Welcome to Fall Fishing, officially.
The official switch from summer to fall fell during the patch of rough weather we recently had, so consider this your invite to participate in the fall run.
But first, shop news.
This week we received the new lineup of rods from ODM. They have taken what they learned with the successful lineup of D.N.A. surf rods and applied that to their new line of D.N.A. Inshore rods. Built on a premier proprietary carbon nano blank with quality Fuji components, these rods feel and perform like inshore rods costing almost twice the price. The handle detail is proof of this alone, with a double locking reel seat and ergonomic grips. The ODM D.N.A. Inshore rods have a lot of backbone to tackle big fish, but a light enough tip to throw the smaller presentations you want to throw for inshore fishing. Whether jigging for fluke, throwing poppers for monster bluefish or (for those who go south for the winter) skipping soft plastics into mangroves for snook, you are going to love this rod.
Further adding to the lineup of spook style fishing lures we carry, we have added the Heddon Saltwater Super Spook XT. The XT stands for Xtra Tuff, as this lure is designed to hold up to fish like bluefish and large striped bass.
Does anyone remember what a weakfish is? If you have been fishing Barnegat Bay or the Manasquan River this year you may have heard of their return. You may have even seen one, or caught one yourself. Well, one of the most popular lures for weakfish back in the day was the Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap, and we now have them back in the shop and online.
We had a big restock of Bill Hurley lures, so we are well stocked on the best sand eel imitations available. Get them now before the sand eel bite gets hot and these disappear into everyone else’s surf bag. Also, we added a new Bill Hurley product. We now have the ABB (Albacore, Bonito , Bass) lure in a 1 oz version available in single packs. The smaller size is still available in a 3 pack.
We also had restocks on No Live Bait Needed (NLBN) items, Penn Battle DX reels, and Penn Fierce IV Live Liner reels.
So now that the weather is calming down, how is the fishing? In the surf, the mullet run seems like it is just about over. There are still some schools moving through, but not like before the blow. The bluefish that were chasing them likewise have become less common too. The striped bass bite looks like it is starting to pick up.
Although the bag limit is currently only one, the shore bound anglers targeting blackfish off the jetty and back in the bay have been doing well. Lots of shorts, but enough keepers to make it worthwhile. Blackfish jigs with green crabs or sand crabs have been the ticket.
Here are some notable recent catches.
George Apolo with 24” 9.75lbs caught in the bay on a Crab and Jig combo! Nice fish!
Shel E Caris sent us this picture a nice bass that fell for a Salty C’s metal lip in the IBSP surf on Wednesday morning.
Speaking of mullet, we have a real nice announcement. Anyone who knows Ray knows how competitive he is. He loves fishing tournaments and rarely refuses a bet. With the end of the fluke tournament season, and no one willing to bet with him, Ray was looking for an outlet for his competitive drive. Actual sports were out, so Ray’s search brought him to a mullet competition. Ray probably thought it had something to do with the bait, so he entered. Turns out, it was the haircut mullet, not the fish mullet. Didn’t matter, Ray won anyway…
