really good boat and crew. They are docked next to the Pt Pleasant fishing club boat and I used to interact with the Gambler guys all of the time.
That being said, if you plan on fishing within the next 30 days (and you want to bottom fish for fluke), then I actually would recommend that you choose a boat out of the highlands. Simply because the fluke fishing right now is better up in the Raritan Bay area. The Gambler would most likely not go that far north and would stick to the Sea Girt Reef, Axel Carlson and other grounds that are closer to the Manasquan Inlet. Fish the Gambler in Aug and Sept for Fluke. The highlands now.
If you're just looking forward to a day out on the water drinking beer and having fun then go for it, but a party boat captain on LBI confided to me about a year ago that there's so little being caught anymore that it's hardly worth it.
has been poor since hurricane Sandy and the Army Corps of Engineers started with the beach replenishment shit. Covering up all of the habitat and structure that existed.
However, the fluke fishing has been very good. Even though the keeper size is up to 18", the action you will get is still very good.
Suggest going on a day that has little wind vs a day that we had yesterday when it was blowing at 15mph. Your bait will fly past the fish so fast they will barely have a chance to even see it.
to read that the fishing is poor with all the limits imposed to prevent over fishing
Forgot to mention that the limits are for the recreational fisherman. They still let the commercial guys basically strip the bottom of the ocean clean. The regulations between recreational and commercial are like night vs day.
interested in a species like fluke? Blackfish? Porgies? Or do they just get caught up in the hunt for other fish?
They are definitely interested in Fluke and their size limits are lower than recreational fishermen. They also get other fish caught in their nets and typically kill them too. Blackfish live within structure (rocks and reefs) and you will not see commercial guys dragging nets through there.
They have lobby dollars that the recreational fishermen do not have. The whole thing is a scam.
The beach replenishment thing is a serious problem. It is also flushing billions of dollars down the drain because the next big storm is going to wash that sand out again. If they were smart, they would be constructing a series of T shaped Jetty's which would protect the beaches AND would create more of a habitat for fish...accomplishing two things with ONE spend. The Jetty will last almost forever.
out of the Atlantic Highlands does a 3/4 day for fluke. Al Hilliard was the Captain, but I think his sons (Scott and Glenn) now run it. Also the Atlantic Star run by Tommy Buban, does two daily trips. I believe if you are on his 1st trip, Tommy will discount the 2nd trip for you. I think the 1st trip is 8:00-12:30 and the 2nd trip is 1:30-6:00.
It's been about 5 years since I last went on either boat, but they are both good and will put you on some fish.
Dauntless in Point Pleasant Beach
Paramount in Brielle
Issue right now is most of the boats mentioned above are already half-day fluke fishing since the season opened around Memorial Day.
Seabass "closes" July 1st (goes from a 15 fish bag limit to 3 fish) so if you can go, GO NOW. Fishing has generally been excellent and there have been some ling and cod mixed in with the seabass.
just not anchored up like you would for porgies or blackfish, the boat drifts.
This all depends on what you want most out of this - you want consistent action? Go for fluke - you might keep 1 out of every 10 fish you bring up, but on most days the captain has his spots and will get you to the fish.
A little more hit or miss, but with more to take home would be porgies or seabass. They'll anchor up near some rocks, chum away, and you should be good for the limit in most cases this time of year. Personally, I enjoy fishing for fluke on light tackle more than porgies, but when I want to fill the cooler, porgies is what I go after.
And if you're looking for game fish, this isn't a good time of year for striped bass, but the bluefish have been out in obscene numbers. Most people don't like to eat blues (key here is to give them the ole' Columbian necktie upon catching, and throw them immediately on ice to bleed out). To me, anything short of a gorilla blue is decent eats as long as it's been handled properly and it's fresh, but to each his own.
were Porgy & Sea Bass. When you hit a hot spot it was doubleheaders and tiring in a good way. That was out of Sheepshead Bay and I knew the boats. I've had good doormat flunking trips, won a pool with a 3 1/2 pounder. I live in Jersey and don't want to go back to Brooklyn.
because the best bottom boat in the NYC metro area is there, the Ocean Eagle. Not only do those guys know how to fish, but they're one of the few boats that provide good customer service and they've got a kick-ass galley.
Typically "bottom" fishing the targets are ling, porgies, seabass, cod, winter flounder, etc. It's usually done at anchor with clam baits on high-lo rigs fishing over rough bottom.
Fluke fishing the target is simply fluke, drifting over sand, rocks, edges of wrecks and reefs (almost always NOT on the anchor) using bucktail & teaser rigs, squid/spearing combos on long leaders, etc.
Good luck with your quest - this is my livelihood and would be glad to help if I can :)
The bluefishing has been insane so far this spring.
I was out in Raritan Bay a month ago fishing for stripers. Was trolling and hooked up with a giant bluefish. It was spinning my kayak around in circles. Not an easy task since it weighs about 160 lbs excluding my weight. All of the other boats around me thought I had a huge striper. Ended up being one of the biggest bluefish I ever caught. That was the first of about 35 fish I caught of similar size that day. The same thing repeated the next two weekends until I started fishing for fluke.
A fun time is night fishing for blues on a warm calm night.
Here's the deal, my 30 year old son who I have fished with in the past suggested he wanted to do a trip for a Fathers Day present. He needs to arrange the time off and we decided Friday July 10 he'd sleep over Thursday the Ninth.if I can get a porgy sea add ling boat for that timeline I would be appreciative because this is what you guys do , come through when asked
On July 10th, seabass will be a 2 fish limit per person in NJ.. That for all intents and purposes eliminates that fishery as most boats will not target them any longer - so that leaves the "bottom boats" to target ling, triggerfish and porgies if they are in range in our area.
Ling fishing should be pretty good, and you should see cod and some winter flounder mixed in.
For porgies, they typically migrate North to South, with the southernmost end of their migration off central NJ N of Barnegat Light. In the point pleasant area, we usually don't see them LOCALLY until at least September, but they are usually within range (fishing from basically the shrewsbury Rocks up to the tip of Sandy Hook) by early July when their season opens in Jersey waters. FWIW, they're already catching them out of Sheepshead Bay - so there's a chance you'll have a good crack at them at that point.
I mentioned triggerfish above - their migration is always a crapshoot but when we get them here in big numbers, you can crush them.
Like I said, the only bottom boats fishing in central and northern NJ are the Dauntless in Pt. Pleasant Beach and the Paramount in Brielle, and they'll most likely do a few drops INSHORE for porgies and triggerfish (maybe catching the boat's "Limit" of seabass for 2 per person) then will go out to the deep to target ling, cod, and winter flounder.
Whoever posted about bluefishing being insane -- that's news to me. I'm on the water everyday and although we had bluefish really well in May and early June, they've pushed off and are now on the spawn. I would avoid bluefishing!
Since you're planning on fishing Friday July 10th, I'd suggest you hop on the Paramount in Brielle. He does a combo marathon trip on Friday's (6:30-5PM) targeting the inshore stuff first, then going off into the deep to load up on ling, cod, flounder, etc. A good friend of mine is the first mate on the boat and I know the owner also. They run a great operation and will strive to put you on the fish. No BS - just a boat to go out and put meat in the cooler.
That being said, if you plan on fishing within the next 30 days (and you want to bottom fish for fluke), then I actually would recommend that you choose a boat out of the highlands. Simply because the fluke fishing right now is better up in the Raritan Bay area. The Gambler would most likely not go that far north and would stick to the Sea Girt Reef, Axel Carlson and other grounds that are closer to the Manasquan Inlet. Fish the Gambler in Aug and Sept for Fluke. The highlands now.
Stay away from Belmar.
However, the fluke fishing has been very good. Even though the keeper size is up to 18", the action you will get is still very good.
Suggest going on a day that has little wind vs a day that we had yesterday when it was blowing at 15mph. Your bait will fly past the fish so fast they will barely have a chance to even see it.
Forgot to mention that the limits are for the recreational fisherman. They still let the commercial guys basically strip the bottom of the ocean clean. The regulations between recreational and commercial are like night vs day.
They are definitely interested in Fluke and their size limits are lower than recreational fishermen. They also get other fish caught in their nets and typically kill them too. Blackfish live within structure (rocks and reefs) and you will not see commercial guys dragging nets through there.
They have lobby dollars that the recreational fishermen do not have. The whole thing is a scam.
The beach replenishment thing is a serious problem. It is also flushing billions of dollars down the drain because the next big storm is going to wash that sand out again. If they were smart, they would be constructing a series of T shaped Jetty's which would protect the beaches AND would create more of a habitat for fish...accomplishing two things with ONE spend. The Jetty will last almost forever.
It's been about 5 years since I last went on either boat, but they are both good and will put you on some fish.
Paramount in Brielle
Issue right now is most of the boats mentioned above are already half-day fluke fishing since the season opened around Memorial Day.
Seabass "closes" July 1st (goes from a 15 fish bag limit to 3 fish) so if you can go, GO NOW. Fishing has generally been excellent and there have been some ling and cod mixed in with the seabass.
This all depends on what you want most out of this - you want consistent action? Go for fluke - you might keep 1 out of every 10 fish you bring up, but on most days the captain has his spots and will get you to the fish.
A little more hit or miss, but with more to take home would be porgies or seabass. They'll anchor up near some rocks, chum away, and you should be good for the limit in most cases this time of year. Personally, I enjoy fishing for fluke on light tackle more than porgies, but when I want to fill the cooler, porgies is what I go after.
And if you're looking for game fish, this isn't a good time of year for striped bass, but the bluefish have been out in obscene numbers. Most people don't like to eat blues (key here is to give them the ole' Columbian necktie upon catching, and throw them immediately on ice to bleed out). To me, anything short of a gorilla blue is decent eats as long as it's been handled properly and it's fresh, but to each his own.
Typically "bottom" fishing the targets are ling, porgies, seabass, cod, winter flounder, etc. It's usually done at anchor with clam baits on high-lo rigs fishing over rough bottom.
Fluke fishing the target is simply fluke, drifting over sand, rocks, edges of wrecks and reefs (almost always NOT on the anchor) using bucktail & teaser rigs, squid/spearing combos on long leaders, etc.
Good luck with your quest - this is my livelihood and would be glad to help if I can :)
A fun time is night fishing for blues on a warm calm night.
Ling fishing should be pretty good, and you should see cod and some winter flounder mixed in.
For porgies, they typically migrate North to South, with the southernmost end of their migration off central NJ N of Barnegat Light. In the point pleasant area, we usually don't see them LOCALLY until at least September, but they are usually within range (fishing from basically the shrewsbury Rocks up to the tip of Sandy Hook) by early July when their season opens in Jersey waters. FWIW, they're already catching them out of Sheepshead Bay - so there's a chance you'll have a good crack at them at that point.
I mentioned triggerfish above - their migration is always a crapshoot but when we get them here in big numbers, you can crush them.
Like I said, the only bottom boats fishing in central and northern NJ are the Dauntless in Pt. Pleasant Beach and the Paramount in Brielle, and they'll most likely do a few drops INSHORE for porgies and triggerfish (maybe catching the boat's "Limit" of seabass for 2 per person) then will go out to the deep to target ling, cod, and winter flounder.
Whoever posted about bluefishing being insane -- that's news to me. I'm on the water everyday and although we had bluefish really well in May and early June, they've pushed off and are now on the spawn. I would avoid bluefishing!
Since you're planning on fishing Friday July 10th, I'd suggest you hop on the Paramount in Brielle. He does a combo marathon trip on Friday's (6:30-5PM) targeting the inshore stuff first, then going off into the deep to load up on ling, cod, flounder, etc. A good friend of mine is the first mate on the boat and I know the owner also. They run a great operation and will strive to put you on the fish. No BS - just a boat to go out and put meat in the cooler.