Drum, Fluke, and Bluefish Active as Delaware Bay Heads Into Peak Summer

What's biting

What's next

Over the next few days, Delaware Bay conditions should continue building toward summer peak. Broader NJ coastal readings, including Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands logging 61 to 62°F around Father's Day, suggest bay water temperatures are likely climbing into the mid-60s now. That range typically triggers more consistent fluke activity on the shallower flats and channel edges. OTW Northern New Jersey's June 18 report noted fluke are "slowly improving" with warmer water and an "abundance of bait" moving in, and that trajectory should hold through the weekend.

The waxing gibbous moon building toward full will generate some of the strongest tidal exchanges of the month. In Delaware Bay, these big tides push bait into current seams, creek mouths, and along the bay's grass-flat margins. Fish the outgoing and incoming tidal transitions rather than the slack. Early-morning and late-afternoon starts will align with cooler air temps and peak tidal movement for the best shot at active fish.

For fluke, Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands found Gulp sand eels and plain Gulp baits most effective on sticky, rocky-bottom areas. Bay anglers targeting channel edges and flat transitions on the NJ side should find similar results with bucktail-and-Gulp combos in the 1/2 to 1 oz. range. Drift with the tide rather than anchoring when the current is moving.

Bluefish and striped bass remain in the surf-side mix through NJ's June period, per OTW Northern New Jersey. In the Delaware Bay, bluefish are worth targeting on fast-retrieved metal spoons or surface plugs near structure and tidal rips. The stronger currents of a near-full moon should set up productive ambush points. Stripers are beginning to thin as summer settles in, but dawn sessions with clam or bunker chunk on the bottom are still producing fish per the June 18 OTW Northern NJ report.

For those targeting black drum, late June tends to be the final window before fish disperse from the bay's shallower crab-feeding areas. Grumpys Tackle (NJ) noted drum in the mix alongside bass and blues, a signal the run has not fully closed out. Blue crabs and cut crab fished on the bottom near grassy shallows and channel drop-offs remain the go-to offering. Shark action offshore has also picked up across the NJ coast, per Blue Chip Sportfishing (NJ), with multiple makos released on recent trips.

Context

Late June typically marks the pivot on the Delaware Bay (NJ side) from a striper-dominated spring run to a more diversified summer fishery built around fluke, bluefish, black drum, and weakfish. Historically, the bay's shallow, warm, nutrient-rich waters make the NJ side one of the more productive inshore summer flounder grounds on the Atlantic seaboard once temps stabilize in the low-to-mid 60s. Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands readings near Father's Day suggest 2026 is tracking at or near normal seasonal timing.

Black drum are one of Delaware Bay's signature early-summer species. Each late spring through early summer, large schools stage in the bay to feed on blue crabs along grass-flat margins and shoal areas. Late June typically represents the trailing edge of that peak drum push before fish scatter into open water. Grumpys Tackle (NJ) noted drum alongside bass and blues in the recent mix, consistent with where the calendar says the season should be.

Striped bass historically begin evacuating the Delaware Bay in earnest during late June, as warming water pushes fish north or offshore toward cooler refuges. The fact that OTW Northern New Jersey's June 18 report still documented bass taking clams and chunks in the surf speaks to either a trailing edge of migration fish or resident holdovers hanging in tidal-scoured areas. This behavior is typical for the tail end of the NJ striper spring season.

OTW Northern NJ's characterization of fluke as "slowly improving" with an "abundance of bait" is consistent with historical expectations. Delaware Bay flounder fishing typically peaks in July through August as populations settle into summer holding areas. Based on available intel, the 2026 season shows no significant deviation from the normal late-June transition: summer species moving in, spring migrants winding down, and a healthy mix overall.