First 50-Inch Stripers Show as Jersey Shore Fall Run Takes Hold

What's biting

What's next

Tide peaks run roughly midday this week, with the next high near 12:22 PM at the northern CO-OPS station and 1:33 PM at the southern one, and the overnight low around 6 AM at both. That sets up a workable window for stripers moving bait on the sod banks and in the inlets through the morning low into the midday push. Winds are coming around out of the W/NW behind the storm, per The Fisherman — New Jersey edition, and the surf and back bays should clean up quickly from here.

Fluke season is closing out, with The Fisherman — Southern NJ and The Fisherman — Central NJ reports already flagging this as close to the final stretch, so black sea bass and tautog take over as the main bottom-fishing targets on the reef sites and wreck structure. Bluefish should keep building as peanut bunker and mullet continue pushing out of the back bays, the pattern Grumpys Tackle (NJ) is already seeing.

The Last Quarter moon keeps the tidal swing moderate rather than the harder currents that come with the full or new moon, which should keep the sod banks and inlets more fishable for stripers working bait through the week.

Context

This tracks right on schedule for the Jersey Shore's early October turn, the handoff from summer species to the migratory fall run of stripers, blues and sea bass typically accelerating once the season's first real nor'easter clears through, which is the pattern this week follows. Fluke winding down as black sea bass and tautog take over is the standard early-fall sequence here. Weakfish and false albacore read more as late-summer holdovers at this point, tapering as water temps ease toward the mid-60s.