Sea bass and fluke bite returns as fall stripers stir

What's biting

What's next

Over the next two to three days, expect the bottom bite to firm up as the wind settles. Capt Ron's wrote that the weather looked great for the days after its first trip back, and it found its bottom bite in about 55 feet of water. Hands Too expects quick sea bass limits on the Wildwood and Cape May reef sites once the wind dies down.

Plan around the tide. NOAA station 8531680 has high water at 2:37 AM EDT and low at 8:46 AM EDT. Capt Ron's noted a bite that died around 11:30 when the tide changed, so the early part of the moving water is the window to fish.

If the trend holds, stripers are next. Fin-Atics expects a heavy feed once the storm wind clears. Pier 47 Marina reported fish to over 31 inches on the Southern NJ sod banks during the flood tide before the blow, taking quarter-ounce bucktails and 6-inch Mag Darters. Fin-Atics is hoping tog rebound at the pier after the storm, so bridges and rock structure with sand fleas or green crabs on tog jigs are the next thing to try. Grumpys Tackle has its Barrier Island Beach Brawl surf tournament on October 9 and 10 if you want a reason to be on the beach that weekend.

Context

Water in the mid-60s is about typical for early October along this stretch of coast, so the season reads as on schedule rather than early or late. Bottom species such as sea bass and tautog hold on structure through the cooling months, and the striper run usually builds through October as bait moves south. The storm is the local variable this week. Several Northern NJ boats sat out most of a week, so expect a short catch-up period before the reports settle. Check state regs before harvesting, since seasons and size limits change.