New Jersey Fishing Reports

Cedar waters across the Pine Barrens are producing quality chain pickerel this week, with Creekside Outfitters reporting good action on killies, swimming plugs, and spinners — per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater. Allen's Dock on Bass River confirms that bass and pickerel are active in local ponds and campground waters, with the shop noting they're selling more killies to freshwater anglers than to fluke fishermen — a reliable gauge of where the inland bite stands. Hands Too Bait and Tackle adds trout, bass, and pickerel to the weekly mix, citing area cedar ponds and Ponderlodge Lake for consistent catches. On the Delaware River, Dave's Sport Shop reports mixed-size striped bass being caught at Trenton, with a few fish pushing as far north as Lambertville. Trout action appears to be tapering in the aftermath of the season's heavy April stocking, per NJ Fish & Wildlife News, with only scattered reports filtering in from the Tohickon and Unami drainages. USGS gauge 01408000 shows a moderate 32.8 cfs flow as of midday Tuesday.

May 12

NOAA buoy 44065 is logging 52°F water in the outer bay — cool but no obstacle for the spring striper run that has clearly arrived in force. Capt. Pete Wagner of the Hyper Striper tells The Fisherman — Northern NJ it was 'another super week' in Raritan Bay, with keepers to 25 pounds on every trip and more fish still working northward from the south. The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf reports Sandy Hook beaches have been 'lit up' with stripers chomping bunker chunks and clams, while surfcasters tossing glide baits and rubbertails are also connecting. Blue Chip Sportfishing is calling the current bite 'the best striper fishing possible.' Black drum have joined the action along The Hook on clam baits, offering a bonus target for surf anglers. Fluke season opened May 4 but remains slow — Capt. Ron at Atlantic Highlands reports little activity in still-cold water — with anticipation building for the sea bass opener on May 15.

May 12

Water temperatures at 53°F per NOAA buoy 44009 haven't slowed what multiple Southern NJ sources describe as an exceptional spring. The Fisherman — Southern NJ reports from Boulevard Bait & Tackle and Fin-Atics confirm striped bass feeding hard along the oceanfront and back-bay edges, with fish from slot size to 48-plus inches. Fresh and salted clams are the clear top bait, though soft plastics and glide baits are also producing. Alongside the stripers, a push of black drum has materialized — Boulevard Bait reported drum to 38 inches clam-soaked in the wash. The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf's Nick Honachefsky described it as a drum push 'surprising many a clamslinger looking for bass.' Flounder season opened May 4, and while keepers have appeared in back bays and off jetties per One Stop Bait and Tackle, the bite stays inconsistent in cool water. Boaters in Cape May County should note the Spicers Creek ramp is closed May 11–14 for dock renovations (NJ Fish & Wildlife News).

May 12

Water temps holding at 52°F across NOAA buoys 44065 and 44091 haven't slowed the spring striper run one bit. Fishermans HQ LBI reports the Long Beach Island surf is 'as good as it gets,' with fish working cuts, bowls, troughs, and gutters from end to end. Blue Chip Sportfishing calls it 'the best Striper Fishing possible,' while Grumpys Tackle confirms strong action both in the surf and the bay on clams and jointed glide baits. The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf reports a 50-inch and 46-inch bass released at Point Pleasant, and The Fisherman — Southern NJ notes a 51-inch fish from the surf at Boulevard Bait & Tackle on salted clams. Black drum are mixing in along the oceanfront, hitting fresh clams to 38 inches. On The Water's May 8 Striper Migration Map confirms post-spawn fish pushing hard out of the Chesapeake and spreading across the Northeast. Fluke season opened May 4 and is off to a slow start — cool inshore water is keeping numbers down, though keepers are being picked from the rivers.

May 12

Mixed-size striped bass are running the Delaware River as far north as Lambertville, with the best action concentrated near Trenton, per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater. In the Pine Barrens cedar drainages, chain pickerel are delivering some of this week's best freshwater sport; Allen's Dock on Bass River and Hands Too Bait and Tackle both report solid catches on live killies, swimbaits, and spinners. Largemouth bass are active across campground ponds and small lakes on spinnerbaits. Statewide trout fishing, which launched strong after NJ Fish & Wildlife News confirmed more than 180,000 rainbows and 20,000 browns stocked ahead of the April 11 opener, has since quieted to scattered reports at the lower lakes and ponds, per Creekside Outfitters via The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater. USGS gauge 01408000 registered 37.1 cfs early on May 12, pointing to moderate, fishable flows through the Pine Barrens drainage.

May 12

Water off the Delaware Bay's NJ shore is sitting at 54°F per NOAA buoy 44009, and conditions are clicking for two of the season's marquee species. The Fisherman — Southern NJ reports a "solid" striper bite along the oceanfront this week, including a 51-inch fish pulled from the surf on salted clam, with black drum to 38 inches also responding to clam presentations in the wash and back bays. A broader drum push arrived this week, per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf, surprising anglers who were out primarily clamming for bass. Flounder season opened May 4, but chilly water in the low 50s is keeping keeper counts inconsistent — some anglers are scoring fish on live minnows and strip baits in the back bays and jetties, while others find keepers hard to come by (The Fisherman — Southern NJ). Boaters launching from Cape May County should note the Spicers Creek Boat Ramp is closed May 11–14 for dock renovations, per NJ Fish & Wildlife News.

May 11

Water temps at 53°F (NOAA buoy 44065) are sustaining one of the strongest spring striper runs the Jersey Shore has seen in years. Fishermans HQ LBI's May 11 update called it "as good as it gets for surfcasters," with bass working every cut, bowl, and gutter along Long Beach Island on fresh clam, glide baits, and bunker. Per The Fisherman — Central NJ, Yakitty Yaks Kayaks rates this among "the best spring bass seasons they've seen in years" across Barnegat and Raritan bays. The Fisherman — Southern NJ (Boulevard Bait & Tackle) reported a 51-inch surf fish this week; Grumpys Tackle logged a 41-inch personal best at Seaside Park on an SP Minnow. Black drum have joined the parade — clam baits are producing fish to 38 inches alongside the bass. Fluke season opened May 4 but remains slow, with most shops reporting mostly shorts while water temps hold in the low 50s. Sea bass opens May 15.

May 11

Dave's Sport Shop (via The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater) reports mixed-size striped bass at Trenton on the Delaware River, with a handful of fish pushing as far north as Lambertville — a timely signal as the coastal spring run matures. In the Pine Barrens, Creekside Outfitters confirms cedar-water chain pickerel are producing steadily on killies, swimbaits, and spinners, while largemouth bass are active in local ponds on spinnerbaits. Hands Too Bait and Tackle echoes the same picture: pine-stained streams are yielding solid pickerel and campground ponds are "full of nice bass." Trout action has quieted since the April 11 opener, per Dave's Sport Shop and Creekside Outfitters, though Ponderlodge Lake continues to give up holdovers alongside catfish and bass. Allen's Dock on Bass River notes white perch have been unusually absent from tidal streams this spring. USGS gauge 01408000 recorded a manageable 50.3 cfs on May 11, keeping access comfortable for kayak and small-craft anglers.

May 11

Water at 52°F per NOAA buoy 44065 hasn't slowed what veterans are already calling one of the best spring striper runs in years along Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook. Per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf, Keansburg Pier is 'lit up' with bass hitting clams, chunks, plugs, and shads indiscriminately, while Sandy Hook's Parking Lot areas and North Beach are producing quality fish on chunked bunker — anglers making the hike to the Rip are scoring on wooden swimmers. OTW Northern New Jersey confirms stripers hitting chunks, clams, and bottle plugs throughout the surf and bay system, and Blue Chip Sportfishing reports 'crushing' stripers on every charter. The fluke season opened May 4, but Capt. Ron's Atlantic Highlands notes a slow start — SW winds on opening day yielded just a couple of keepers. All eyes now turn to May 15, when the sea bass opener arrives; per The Fisherman — Northern NJ, the Big Mohawk III is returning to the water specifically to target sea bass.

May 11

Water temp sitting at 56°F at NOAA buoy 44009 on May 11, and the Delaware Bay (NJ side) is delivering on that warmth in a big way. Higbee's Bait and Tackle reports stripers to 48 inches from Fortescue Beach this week, with bloodworms far and away the top producer and a few black drum already falling for bloodworms alongside. Big Dave's Tackle confirms an outstanding bite running Cape May to Salem County — bloodworms, bloodworm bag combos (Vamp Bites and live bloodworm in a spawn net), fresh clam, glide baits, and soft plastics are all scoring, with fish to 46 inches and solid numbers of slot-size keepers. More drum are showing up along the bayshore, with Hands Too Bait and Tackle noting fish to 20 pounds on fresh shucked surf clams. Evening and early morning moving tides remain the prime windows per both shops. Important for boaters: NJ Fish & Wildlife News reports Spicers Creek Boat Ramp in Cape May County is closed May 11–14 for dock replacement and parking-area upgrades — identify your alternate launch before you head south.

May 11

Striped bass to 48 inches are stacking from Sandy Hook to Cape May in what multiple sources are calling one of the best spring runs in memory. The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf says it plainly: 'old heads are calling it one of the best spring bass runs in a long time,' with fish from 24 to 45 inches blanketing all surf zones and clams the dominant bait. Per The Fisherman — Southern NJ, Higbee's Bait and Tackle confirms stripers to 48 inches at Fortescue Beach on bloodworms, and Big Dave's Tackle reports fish to 46 inches from Cape May to Salem County. Hook House, per The Fisherman — Central NJ, describes 'tons' of fish in the wash. NOAA buoys 44065 and 44091 put nearshore water temps at 53–55°F. Summer flounder season opened May 4 to a slow start, but keepers are already turning up in rivers and inlets per OTW Northern New Jersey. Black drum to 20 pounds are also showing along the Delaware Bay shore, per The Fisherman — Southern NJ.

May 11

Shad hauls of 30 to 65-plus fish at the Lewis Shad Fishery are headlining this week's Delaware River freshwater action, per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater. Spawning stripers have pushed past Trenton and into the non-tidal river — a 35-inch bass was netted near Lambertville — while the shad count itself jumped after mid-week rains. Crappies and trout round out the freshwater picture: solid crappie catches are coming from river and lake structure, and the Delaware & Raritan Canal is fishing well for stocked trout. NJ Fish & Wildlife News confirmed the state placed over 180,000 rainbow trout statewide when the season opened April 11. Pine Barrens streams are in fishable shape; USGS gauge 01408000 on the Metedeconk registered 39.4 cfs early this morning. Recent rains also activated northerns, smallmouth bass, and catfish in the upper Passaic drainage, per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Freshwater.

May 11