New Jersey fishing reports
379 reports for New Jersey — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Big Fluke, Hot Sea Bass Headline Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook
A 6-pound, 11-ounce fluke topped the pool aboard Capt Ron's boat out of Atlantic Highlands this week, with several customers boxing three-fish limits on quality-size doormats mixed with a good showing of sea bass. Sea bass fishing is red hot on Blue Chip Sportfishing's boats, with anglers limiting out on almost every trip, while striped bass are also getting crushed on the same trips — captains are calling it some of the best striper fishing they've seen all season. Blue Chip also reports shark fishing has busted wide open, including three Mako sharks caught and released on a recent trip. Grumpys Tackle notes bluefish and striped bass are still mixed in around the bay, with croaker and spot keeping bait anglers busy and crabbing remaining good. Drift and current strength are the swing factor per Capt Ron's crew — the better bites are coming when there's a clean drift working.
Sea Bass Limits and Bluefin Push Highlight Jersey Shore Bite
Black sea bass are red hot along the Jersey Shore right now, with Blue Chip Sportfishing reporting anglers limiting out on almost every trip. Keeper fluke are trending up too: Fishermans HQ LBI notes surf water temperatures near their seasonal high around 72°F, and OTW Northern New Jersey's July 16 report calls keeper fluke "more common from the surf to the reefs." Offshore, Fishermans HQ LBI reports bluefin tuna have moved within striking range on the heels of a massive squid invasion, with 20-to-30-mile runs putting anglers on fish via drifted bait, a pattern echoed in OTW Northern New Jersey's note that bluefin continue to haunt the midshore grounds while yellowfin dominate the canyons. Striped bass are a quieter story for now; Grumpys Tackle describes only "the occasional" fish mixed in along the surf, with small stripers and cocktail bluefish working the beaches and inlets per OTW Northern New Jersey. First Quarter moon this week keeps tide swings moderate.
Summer bass patterns settle onto the Delaware and Pine Barrens
No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for this cycle, so we're leaning on seasonal patterns and this week's technique reporting rather than local hard numbers. Tactical Bassin's recent coverage of hot-weather bass fishing notes that fish are pushing into shade and grouping around deeper cover once summer heat sets in, a pattern that lines up well with where Delaware River smallmouth and Pine Barrens largemouth typically sit by mid-July. Fishing the Midwest's Bob Jensen also flagged working weedlines as a go-to summer approach for locating active fish, a tactic that translates directly to Pine Barrens cedar-water ponds and slower Delaware backwaters. With water temperatures typically in the mid-70s to low 80s for the region this time of year, expect fish to favor dawn and dusk windows, current breaks, and any available shade line. Chain pickerel remain a solid bycatch in the tea-colored Pine Barrens rivers regardless of bass activity.
Delaware Bay flounder bite runs red-hot on the NJ side
Flounder are the story on the New Jersey side of Delaware Bay right now. The Fisherman — Southern NJ describes the surf-to-reef bite as "off the charts," with fish showing in the back bays, along the oceanfront, and at the reef sites, and keeper flounder pushing past 6 pounds at deeper structure while shorts dominate closer to shore. Croaker are running strong as a companion catch, spread from the bay's reef sites and oyster beds out toward the Old Grounds per The Fisherman — DE/MD/Chesapeake, with peeler crab and Fishbites doing the work. Weakfish, spot, black drum, and the occasional sheepshead are mixing in as bycatch for bay boaters, and slot-sized striped bass are still hitting peeler crab along wall and jetty structure. It's classic peak-summer Delaware Bay fishing, with live minnows and strip baits the go-to baits on the moving tide.
Quality Fluke and Red-Hot Sea Bass Lead the Raritan Bay Bite
Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands put together back-to-back days of quality fluke this week, with Gen Wong topping the pool aboard a 4.2-pound flatfish and multiple customers boxing their three-fish limits on drifts with little current. Sea bass are riding shotgun on most of those trips, and Blue Chip Sportfishing (NJ) reports its sea bass fishing running "red hot," with boats limiting out on almost every trip. Just north, OTW Northern New Jersey's latest regional report notes keeper fluke becoming more common from the surf out to the reefs, while cocktail bluefish work the rivers and inlets. Striped bass remain a secondary player for Raritan Bay boats right now — Grumpys Tackle (NJ) still lists bass on clams in the surf further down the Jersey coast, with small stripers mixing in with bluefish on northern beaches. With a First Quarter moon overhead, moving water should keep both fluke and sea bass active into the weekend.
Sea Bass Stays Red Hot Off the Jersey Shore as Fluke Bite Builds
Water temps are holding at 75-76°F on the NOAA buoys off the Jersey Shore, with light 1.3-2 foot seas and a gentle breeze — comfortable conditions for a full day on the water. Black sea bass are the story right now: Blue Chip Sportfishing says the bite is "red hot" and boats are "limiting out on almost every trip." Fluke are cooperating too — Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands logged quality keeper fluke through the week, including fish over 5 pounds, while Fishermans HQ LBI and OTW Northern New Jersey both note keeper fluke becoming more common from the surf out to the reefs. Striped bass have thinned out along the beaches as summer sets in, per OTW Northern New Jersey and Saltwater Edge Blog, with most fish pushed to deeper, cooler water offshore. Further out, Blue Chip reports the shark bite has "busted wide open," with three Mako sharks landed and released on one recent trip.
Low, clear flows push Pine Barrens bass into shade and structure
USGS gauge 01408000 is reading a lean 29.7 cfs today, a clear signal of the low, warm-season flow conditions typical for this freshwater system by mid-July. Direct fishing intel for the Delaware River and Pine Barrens itself is thin in today's feeds, but the broader bass-fishing picture is consistent: Tactical Bassin's summer-heat playbook stresses shade and depth as temperatures climb, while Fishing the Midwest's weedline approach keeps getting pushed as the go-to for pressured, hot-weather largemouth. Field & Stream's current jig breakdown backs that up, noting football jigs earn their keep once bass slide deep for summer. With low, clear water expected to hold, smallmouth and largemouth should be tucked tight to shade, wood, and deeper breaks, while chain pickerel and channel catfish stay a reliable Pine Barrens fallback. The First Quarter moon won't move much on its own this week, but fishing the coolest parts of the day should be the bigger factor.
NJ's Fluke and Sea Bass Bite Carries Into Delaware Bay Season
Black sea bass are running red hot on New Jersey boats right now — Blue Chip Sportfishing reports limiting out on almost every trip, with shark fishing also busting wide open including three released mako sharks on one recent trip. Fluke are following the same arc: Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands describes quality fluke all around the boat with several anglers filling three-fish limits, while Grumpys Tackle confirms fluke, bluefish, and spot croaker are all showing on bait and scented soft plastics up and down the Jersey coast. None of this week's angler intel comes directly out of Delaware Bay itself — the reports on hand are from NJ's Atlantic-facing ports (Atlantic Highlands, Long Beach Island, Seaside Park) — but the same summer mix of fluke, sea bass, and croaker typically holds on the Bay side too, with weakfish traditionally part of that same July lineup. No buoy or gauge readings were available for this update, so treat conditions as regional guidance rather than a Bay-specific reading.
Sea Bass Limits Out as Quality Fluke Turn On in Raritan Bay
Black sea bass are the story right now — Blue Chip Sportfishing reports limiting out on almost every trip this week, and Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands is mixing in "nice sea bass" alongside the boat's bread-and-butter fluke trips. Fluke quality has been strong at the mouth of Raritan Bay: Capt Ron's logged several customers boating their three-fish limit, with the pool-winning fish running in the 4-6 lb class on recent trips, best action often coming in the last two hours as the drift settles in. Up the coast, OTW's Northern New Jersey report notes keeper fluke becoming more common from the surf out to the reefs, with cocktail bluefish working the rivers and inlets and small stripers and bluefish still patrolling the beaches. Offshore, bluefin are holding within 15-40 miles per that same report, giving Sandy Hook-based boats a run-and-gun option on slower bay days. Bring bucktails tipped with Gulp for the fluke bite and expect the sea bass to keep cooperating on structure.
Sea Bass Limits Out as Bluefin Push Inshore on a Squid-Fueled Jersey Shore
Black sea bass are running red hot on the Jersey Shore this week, with Blue Chip Sportfishing reporting boats limiting out on almost every trip. Offshore, Fishermans HQ LBI notes bluefin tuna have moved into range 20-30 miles out on the heels of a massive squid invasion, with drifted bait the go-to tactic, while the Northern New Jersey report from On The Water has yellowfin holding in the canyons and bluefin still working the midshore grounds. Keeper fluke are becoming more common from the surf to the reefs per that same report, and Grumpys Tackle in Seaside Park describes bluefish and small stripers filling in the surf mix alongside fluke on bucktails and scented soft-plastics. Blue Chip also reports a hot shark bite, including three released Makos in a single trip. Surf water is holding in the low-70s per Fishermans HQ LBI's Long Beach Island report, typical for a mid-July pattern with the bite spread across bay, surf, and midshore grounds.
Delaware River & Pine Barrens bass settle into summer dawn-dusk pattern
Water temperatures across the Delaware River and Pine Barrens region are running in the typical mid-summer range for late July, pushing smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, and panfish into a classic dawn-and-dusk feeding window while midday hours slow under high sun and warm surface water. No dedicated freshwater angler reports came through our Delaware River or Pine Barrens sources this cycle, this week's New Jersey intel from charter captains and tackle shops like Blue Chip Sportfishing, Capt Ron's Atlantic Highlands, Grumpys Tackle, and Fishermans HQ LBI centers on the coastal saltwater bite (fluke, sea bass, striped bass), not the state's inland rivers and Pine Barrens streams. For freshwater anglers here, that means leaning on seasonal fundamentals: work shaded banks, deeper holes, and current breaks early and late, expect catfish to stay aggressive through the heat, and treat any remaining coldwater trout holdovers gently given typical low, warm summer flows in this region.
Fluke lead a mixed summer bag for NJ bay-side anglers
Fluke are keeping New Jersey boats busy this July, with Fishermans HQ LBI's mid-July report noting fluke, bluefish, striped bass, weakfish, croaker and kingfish all in the mix as surf water temps sit near their seasonal high around 72°F. Capt Ron's out of Atlantic Highlands has been putting anglers on quality keeper fluke, with several three-fish limits and a stray five-plus-pound fish taking the daily pool. Grumpys Tackle reports bucktails and scented soft plastics working well for fluke, with striped bass still showing on bait along the beachfront. OTW Northern New Jersey's most recent report (July 16) adds that keeper fluke are becoming more common from the surf out to the reefs, while cocktail bluefish hold in the rivers and inlets. For Delaware Bay-side anglers, that same July pattern of fluke plus a bluefish-and-weakfish mix should be the working assumption this week.