Striped bass have arrived in the waters surrounding Beach Haven on Long Beach Island, and some giant bluefish are also providing action for the boats of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association.
Captain Tim Knorr of the "William Knorr" took his mates and a friend out trolling along the beach just off Island Beach State Park. The bluefish action was red hot with 4 out of 4 lines going off at least twice, and multiple hook ups most times. Blues ranging from 9 to 12 lbs were caught trolling 6" chrome spoons, magnum stretch lures and white shad umbrella rigs. Everything worked but the chrome jig was the favorite. The group kept 5 and tossed the rest back. and headed for home early.
Captain Tim plans to target striped bass in the next several weeks.
Captain Fran Verdi of the "Drop Off" has boated keeper stripers on a daily basis for his past few trips. On Sunday Jack landed a 20-pounder while on Monday George boated a 15-pound fish while Captain Fran caught his own 19-pounder. He plans to fish for linesiders every day the weather permits.
"The Miss Beach Haven," a head boat, will also be targeting stripers now since the action has been good.
Last week Captain Fran Camarda took the "Miss Beach Haven" on an overnight tuna trip to the canyons with five anglers. In addition to lots of laughs, the group ended up with one swordfish, six yellowfin tuna, and two long fin tuna.
Captain John Lewis on the "Insatiable" was out trolling for bluefish last weekend when he encountered a school of bluefin tuna feeding on the surface. He managed to hook up with one of the big tuna, but the fish straightened out the #9 hook after a short battle.
Additional information on the association can be found at www.BHCFA.com or by calling 1-877-LBI-BHCFA (1-877-524-2423).
