Fluke Building at Raritan Bay as the Jersey Shore Shifts into Summer Mode

What's biting

What's next

The next few days represent the threshold moment for Raritan Bay's summer program. Water temps in the 61–62°F range — as logged by Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands — are close to but still a few degrees below what most Northern NJ skippers consider the trigger for peak fluke action. Capt. Al Shinn of Miss Belmar Princess and Capt. Michael Doren of Lady K Fishing Charters (via The Fisherman — Northern NJ) both flagged warmer bottom temps as the prerequisite for the kind of keeper-heavy fluke fishing that typically defines a productive Jersey July. If the seasonal warming trend holds through the last week of June, expect keeper ratios to improve meaningfully over both inshore bay edges and nearshore structure.

For the next several tidal cycles under the First Quarter moon, the period just after the tide turns — especially incoming water pushing bait through inlet cuts and sloughs — should be the most productive window for summer flounder. Small Gulp sand eels and plain Gulp remain the consensus top presentations per Capt Ron's. Downsizing the rig and slowing the drift has been the adjustment when fish go selective.

Bluefish in the 3–5-pound range should remain consistent on surface plugs and poppers during morning hours, per Grumpys Tackle. Capt. Rich Falcone of Golden Eagle is specifically targeting slammer bluefish before pivoting his charter program to flatties in July (The Fisherman — Northern NJ) — if larger fish push in from offshore, it would represent a meaningful uptick from the tailor-class blues currently in the reports.

With sea bass now reduced to a one-fish bycatch limit through September 22 per The Fisherman, the reef-bound charter fleet is shifting hard toward fluke and blues. That redirect of pressure may benefit anglers drifting lighter Gulp rigs over structure that had been hammered by sea bass parties all spring.

Offshore, bluefin tuna are firing at the inshore lumps, with fish to 40 pounds on the troll and fish to 60 pounds on poppers per The Fisherman — NJ/DE Offshore. Yellowfin are beginning to show along the shelf as well, and the canyon tilefish bite remains reliable for those making the longer run. The summer offshore program is coming together.

Context

Late June at Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook is classically a pivot week: the spring striper run winds down, sea bass flip to their summer bycatch restriction, and fluke (summer flounder) step into the spotlight as bottom temps stabilize through the mid-60s. By this point in a typical season, keeper flatties should be mixing with shorts in the bays and over nearshore structure, and the bluefish should be building toward slammer-class fish pushing inshore ahead of the baitfish push.

This year is tracking slightly cooler and more inconsistent than average for mid-to-late June. On-water temps recorded by Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands ranged from 56°F on a Friday to 61–62°F by Father's Day weekend — a swing that has kept fish behavior patchy and made targeting precise. The Northern NJ charter fleet echoed that story across the board: Skylarker, Golden Eagle, Miss Belmar Princess, and Lady K Fishing Charters — via The Fisherman — Northern NJ — all characterized the 2026 spring sea bass season as one of the weakest in several years, with inconsistent weather, chilly bottom temps, and unreliable forecasting cited as compounding factors. Capt. Rich Falcone described June striper fishing as a 'one day good, the next day slow' pattern throughout the month.

The fluke picture is more encouraging. OTW Northern New Jersey's June 18 report flagged the fluke bite gaining traction from the bays to the beaches, and Capt Ron's is already logging keepers at Atlantic Highlands — suggesting the fishery is on schedule but held back by a week or two of cooler-than-ideal bottom water. No NOAA buoy data is available for this report cycle, so a precise temperature comparison with prior years isn't possible, but the angler-intel consensus points to conditions sitting right at the edge of the summer transition. A sustained warm stretch should flip the switch.