Fall run builds as stripers hit lighted docks, albies fire off LBI
NOAA CO-OPS puts water at 69.8°F off Atlantic City (station 8534720) and 73.4°F off Cape May (station 8536110) this morning, still summer-warm for the third week of September. That warmth is keeping Fluke around right up against the close: The Fisherman — New Jersey edition notes the state's summer flounder season shuts down September 25, and Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands NJ is still picking keepers on the deeper drifts with roughly nine trips left before the season ends. Fall's arrival is showing up loudest in the surf and back bays. The Fisherman — Southern NJ reports Striped Bass to 31 inches hammering peanut bunker and mullet around lighted docks and sod banks after dark, while The Fisherman — Central NJ logged the LBI Surf Fishing Classic's first striper weigh-in of the fall out of Beach Haven. Bluefish are thick behind them: The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf has chopper-class blues working mullet and bunker chunks in the Brigantine surf and tailor blues pushing into Strathmere and Sea Isle City, and The Fisherman — Northern NJ notes the bite switching from artificials to bait with good numbers of slammers. False Albacore are the standout this week — Fishermans HQ LBI (NJ) is finding good numbers on jigs and live peanut bunker, and OTW Northern New Jersey confirms albies have joined the reef bite up north.
New to these readings? What water temp, tide, and moon phase mean for fishing →
What's biting
What's next
Expect the warm water to hold through the weekend before the next real cool-down, which should tighten up the Striped Bass bite further as bait keeps evacuating the back bays. The moon is waxing toward full, and bigger tide swings typically pull more bait, and more bass, through the inlets on the night tide. High tide at Atlantic City runs near 5:15 PM ET today off a 10:50 AM low; Cape May's high lands near 6:18 PM ET off an 11:47 AM low. Plan surf sessions around the two hours either side of the turn, especially after dark, since that's when The Fisherman — Southern NJ and The Fisherman — Central NJ are logging the better Striped Bass.
Fluke closes September 25, so this is close to the last full week before the pivot to Tautog and Bluefish that The Fisherman — Southern NJ and The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf are already describing on the jetties and wrecks. Weakfish are trickling in too, a modest uptick on soft plastics in low light per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Surf and a mixed-bag presence in the Delaware Bay catch per The Fisherman — Southern NJ, worth a look if the bigger targets go quiet.
If the False Albacore push holds, as Fishermans HQ LBI (NJ) and OTW Northern New Jersey both suggest, the weekend outlook favors an early-morning window before any afternoon wind fills in.
Context
This is right on schedule for the Jersey Shore's early-fall transition: warm surf water lingering into the equinox while the season's first striper weigh-ins start stacking up is a normal September pattern here, not an early or late one. Fluke wrapping up around September 25 is the standard statewide close, and the shift toward Tautog and Bluefish as the surf cools is the typical handoff this region makes heading into October. False Albacore showing up in numbers this early in the run reads as on the stronger side for the season based on what regional sources are describing this month.
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.
EVERY SATURDAY MORNING
Weekly fishing intelligence
Nationwide conditions, what's biting, and honest gear deals. One email, no noise.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.