Bunker-fed stripers keep the Raritan fall run alive
Water at NOAA CO-OPS station 8531680 read 57.2°F at 7:30 AM, still mild enough to hold bait and keep the fall striper run going. Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands NJ reported on Veterans Day that the boat found life right away on shads. After a lull through the tide change, the fish fed steadily while the bait bounced around. The shop logged a few keepers and oversized bass, with the best day's high hook landing five fish. The shop also described a Monday bite on the end and change of tide, with fish up to 38 pounds and bait doing the work. Its advice has been consistent: bring a snag and a bait rig. The Fisherman's NJ/DE Bay Region forecast describes jumbo striped bass blitzing on adult bunker along the beaches and for the boat fleet, with pencils, glide baits and sand eel imitations all in the mix. On The Water's Northern New Jersey report for November 12 calls the striper bite spottier this week, especially for surfcasters. It adds that tautog are an option when the bass slow down. Charter captains writing for The Fisherman — Northern NJ describe an up and down week. Some days the fish sat just outside the inlet and fed hard, and when the wind swung west the bite turned picky.
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What's biting
What's next
Use the tide as your clock. Today's predicted high comes at 9:52 AM and the low at 4:25 PM local time, so the strongest moving water for the bunker-fed bass should fall in the late morning outflow and again as the evening current builds. Capt Ron's reports keep pointing to the end and change of tide as the productive window, with the lull around slack followed by action once the current gets going. Plan to be on the water for the push rather than the slack.
Bait is the story. Where bunker schools are tight and birds are working, expect the best chances. Grumpys Tackle (NJ) notes that fish have been bunched farther north at times, so be ready to move if your first stop is quiet. Tackle that has produced this fall includes bunker chunks and live bunker, jointed glide baits, metal-lipped swimmers, pencil poppers, paddle tails and bucktails. In a fast drift, shads fished properly were the key at Atlantic Highlands. If the wind builds from the west, expect the bite to turn selective, as charter captains have seen.
When bass are slow, tautog are the fallback. Southern NJ shops report green crabs and sand fleas working on the structure, and Fisherman's HQ LBI notes a storm-driven slowdown can pass within a day or two. Bluefish remain a possibility on mullet and bunker, per Fin-Atics via The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf.
Context
Mid-November is the back half of the fall migration for this stretch of coast. Bait and bass concentrate near the shoreline, and daylight and water temperature steadily fall. A reading in the upper 50s is typical for this point in the season and keeps bait moving, though cold snaps tend to push fish south in waves. That is why reports swing from blitzes to nothing in a matter of days. Tautog usually peak on rock and wreck structure as the water cools, and bluefish often hang around as long as bait does. Recreational rules on size and possession change, so check current state regulations before keeping fish.
Synthesized from real-time NOAA buoy data, USGS stream gauges, and current reports across regional fishing blogs, captain updates, and angler forums. Check local regulations before keeping fish. Never trust a single source for a trip decision.
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