The big news on the Beach Haven fishing scene has been the very solid tuna fishing bite both in the canyons and in some instances closer to shore. The captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association are getting in on some of this action.
On Sunday Captain Bob Gerkens and mate Dante Soriente of the "Hot Tuna" discovered that the yellowfin tuna had moved inshore. They had planned on another inshore bluefin tuna trip with a charter that included some anglers from past successful bluefin runs. However, they were all pleasantly surprised by yellowfin that had moved into an area that had been holding only bluefin for several weeks. In a relatively short fishing time, 4 yellowfin up to 55lbs were boated. Capt. Bob indicates he expects the yellowfin to remain inshore for the remainder of the season if the bait and weather cooperate.
Captain John Koegler of the "Pop's Pride" had an interesting experience when he had a charter fluke fishing around the wreck of the Miller Barge. He caught three fluke from the actual top of the barge and the fish were rust colored. He has caught fluke in the area of the barge, but this was the first time he had actually caught fish from the deck. The rust colored appearance of the fish indicates their skin pigment was gathering color from the sunken metal boat.
The inshore fluke fishing on the Garden State South and Little Egg Reefs has been good the past week with some limit catches being reported.
Additional information on the association can be found at www.fishbeachhaven.com.
