Delaware Bay blues and stripers wait on storm water to settle

What's biting

What's next

Wind decides the next few days. Winds came up out of the W/NW to start this week, and once they lay down, Hands Too expects the sod-bank striper bite to pick back up, per The Fisherman's Southern NJ report. Pier 47 Marina saw its best striper action on the sod banks during flood tide, with bucktails and 6-inch Mag Darters working.

The flood runs from the 8:01 AM low, so plan on moving water from mid-morning onward. Bluefish are the other reliable draw, and the metal-lure pattern at Old Inlet on incoming water is worth repeating. Sea bass are waiting on calmer seas, with Hands Too customers ready for quick limits on the Wildwood and Cape May Reef Site once winds die. Give the wind a day to settle before committing to the offshore run, and expect cut-up beaches after the storm, so check access before heading out.

Context

Early October is when fall striper and bluefish movement typically starts to show along the Delaware Bay and Jersey coast, as bait pushes and the water cools. Our 68°F reading is still mild for this point in the season, so the cooling trend, not the calendar, is the signal to watch. Watch for bait moving in the back bays, because the fish follow it. Last Quarter tides run gentler than the full-moon tides that came with the storm, which typically makes surf fishing easier. Check current state regs before keeping any striper or sea bass, since size and season limits change.