The striped bass action for the captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association has been fantastic for the past week. The only problem has been some poor weather including thick fog, strong winds, and strong seas.
Captain Fran Verdi of the "Dropoff" reports the fishing last week was "off the charts." He termed last Wednesday's fishing as "epic." His open boat group of four anglers limited out in just an hour with eight fish and played catch and release for the rest of the day. Every cast resulted in a fish and most of them were 18-25 pounds.
Poor weather over the weekend made ocean fishing difficult, and Captain Fran spent his time fishing in the inlet.
The "Miss Beach Haven" with Captain Frank Camarda had planned to sail last weekend for some offshore wreck fishing, but had a change of heart due to strong winds and seas.
Instead of heading offshore, they fished close to the beach for a nice pick of striped bass and some big bluefish. The swells made jigging difficult, but they caught enough fish to make everyone happy and Chumley won the pool with a 21-pounder. Captain Frank has an assortment of trips scheduled including stripers, sea bass, and blackfish.
Captain George Finck of "Sparetime Charters" took Ray McVry and five of his friends trolling for Striped Bass recently. They had a great trip, limiting out on striped bass with the smallest fish measuring 33-inches. They also picked up a couple of nice bluefish.
Captain Carl Sheppard on the "Star Fish" has been putting together some nice catches of stripers on everyone of his trips. Last Sunday he had Randy Godshall and his fiancée Indy Park of Souderton, Pa., out to try and catch their first striped bass. They went out through the north cut at Holgate and got into fish before they reached Beach Haven. In 40-feet of water the real action started. The best rigs were the stretch lures and umbrella rigs.
Additional information on the association can be found at www.BHCFA.com or by calling 1-877-LBI-BHCFA (1-877-524-2423).
