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May 4:
Wind: W/SW 15...Water: 50 degrees and clear green.
Tide: Outgoing...I fished east Atlantic Beach this Sunday (5/4)
morning and managed one 3 pound bluefish and one 15-inch striper on
bucktails in an hour between 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. Left the beach for
appointments otherwise I would still be there.
May 5: I fished East
Atlantic Beach Monday between 1 and 2 p.m. with clams and had no bites on
the bottom of the tide. Went back after dinner and did three bass, one
keeper on clams on the middle of the incoming tide.
Winds were E at 15, water was starting to weed up
a little. Water Temp. 50
May 8: I fished E.
Atlantic Beach for an hour this afternoon (5/8) on the second hour of the
outgoing using clams. The water was dirty with a slate gray and brown color,
but not much weed and very, very fishable...but no bite and no hits at all.
June 6: I fished this
morning (6/6) tossing rigged eels in Atlantic Beach from 3:30 to 5 a.m. with
no touches or bumps. When sun came up I could see the water was brown. Winds
were W/NW at 15. Tried metal lips and pencil poppers at first
light...nothing.
July 2: I soaked some
chunks in Atlantic Beach this morning (7/2) from 5:30 to 8:30 and had a good
bass run off, but he dropped the bait. I did catch a skate and had cocktail
bluefish tormenting me all morning. Some good signs of life and there have
been caught on the bunker schools here in this area very tight to the beach
by bat fishermen the last three days.
July 3: I soaked some
clams in Atlantic Beach this morning (7/3) from 5:30 to 7 a.m. and had not
even a bite. Water was a little brown from the hard east winds pushing most
of the night and there were some nibbles from kingfish, but I was not using
small enough hooks for them.
July 4: I soaked some
clams in Atlantic Beach this morning (7/4) from 5:30 to 6:30 a.m. and had
not even a bite. Water was a little brown, waves were 4 to 6 footers and the
weed was crawling up my line and it was hard to hold with 6 ounces. Waves
were breaking beyond the tips of the jetty and there was no water on the
beach with a very low tide. Glad I didn't have to drive very far.
August 15: Just got back
(8/15) after fishing the stones in Atlantic Beach from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. I
caught two schoolies on a chrome/blue back redfin. Tons of bait and fish all
through Long Beach and Atlantic Beach. I was sitting on the beach relaxing
and about 1 p.m. schools of bait were being chased by what looked to be
Spanish mackerel and then what looked to be weakfish, but the majority of it
as Spanish mackerel and snappers. I was surprised to see the snappers in the
ocean going crazy as it is way too early for them to be here and the
snappers in the bay are barely large enough to use for bait. These blitzing
scene played it self out into dark as the beaches were covered in schools of
marauding fish.
August 16: I fished this
morning (8/16) from 6:30 to 7:30 and saw a good amount of bait but no fish on them I caught
nothing in this hour of relaxation.
Sept. 8: I fished for an hour tonight
(9/8) and had a fish of 18 inches on my very first cast of the fall season!! I dropped two
others and then it died as the nearly full moon was up and bright
Sept. 9: NE 10 to 15, blue skies, just about
top of the tide: Fished from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. and had 15
stripers, five of which were keeper size, largest 36 inches and all on plugs in Long
Beach. Last of the incoming tide and first of the outgoing. Winds were northeast seas 3 to
5 footers and the water beautiful with green clear water and the perfect mixture of sand
in it. Great slope to the beaches this year!! Full moon tonight or tomorrow. I caught most
of the keepers on the Cotton Cordell red/white 2-ounce pencil poppers, caught two keepers
on the mullet colored Creek Chub Knucklehead and added the Cotton Cordell 5-1/2 inch,
jointed red/white Redfin to the arsenal as all three plugs caught fish today!.
Sept. 10:
I fished Long Beach this morning (9/10)
from 5:30 to 8 a.m. The only thing I could see at 5:30 was the gobs of
sea weed that was fouling my hooks and the line of weed at the high tide line from last
night. The tid4e was extremely high, a huge ground swell had developed and he waves and
pounding was incessant. No wind as it was calm and glassy on the ocean. I toughed it out
and at first light I saw the first signs of life as fish were breaking in the east side
pocket of each jetty. Same as yesterday with the easterly sweep still in the beach from
the powerful easterly all day on Tuesday. Water was clear, nice color, lots of nice sandy
foam along the jetties and wash. Would have been perfect for metal lips if not for the
weed and pounding surf as I was only able to get half way out on the best jetties and not
even that far on the broken jetties. I wound up with 6 fish caught, I raised another dozen
and saw plenty of fish breaking and all in the sandy wash of the east side pockets and
tips of the jetties. Life was all over the beach with bait, fish breaking water and
jumping clear and besides seeing them, this is a clear indication it was mullet on the
beach. It was a painful how I had to fish this morning. Beside taking a pounding, water in
my waders, shirt soaking wet, the amount of weed was insane and I would have to wait to
see a fish rise, throw the Knucklehead popper or small Redfin at the swirl, get a dozen
cranks of the handle and I had either the fish or a large amount of weed. By high tide
around 8 a.m. I'd had enough none of the fish were over 25 inches, including the ones I
saw breaking
5-6:30 p.m. NE 10,
blue skies, weedy. last of incoming Morning shift: Just got back from fishing the
surf in Long Beach. Again weed was a problem and I could only get a few cranks before
either fish or weed got me. I caught one keeper of 30 inches on the Knucklehead and raised
five other bass of about the same size or slightly smaller. They would not bite if there
was no foam on the water. I would have to wait for a few waves to leave a layer of foam
and then they would go crazy for the Knucklehead worked through the foam. No foam...no
strikes...too bad there was so much weed...this foam is perfect for metal lips!!
Sept. 11: I fished this morning (9/11)
with friend Mike Martino from 5:30 to 8:15 a.m. The morning was eerily and seemingly
exact....to the kind of day it was on 9/11/01. Northerly winds, gentle and clear and
brilliantly, bright blue skies. It was two years ago today I was in the position, surf
fishing the rocks in Long Beach. Today...as it was two years ago, we caught good numbers
of quality bass on popping plugs and we arrived just about the same time as I did back in
01'around...8:42 a.m. Well today, Mike and I took a moment at 8:46 as we sat in front of
the TV in my office...having just caught several bass and raising dozens of others...that
we realized how lucky we are to be living in the country we do, fishing the wonderful
waters of Long Island and having the freedom to do so...at our own will and pace. God
Bless America and while we will all remember, we must stay true to our path to rectify the
source of so much destruction Winds NE 10/15, incoming tide, clear blue sunny, lots of
weed and eel grass. Seas, flat with a roll and 2 to 4 footers. All fish were caught using Knucklehead
Poppers. I had three fish in my hand, keeping one keeper of 30 inches and both mike
and I raised dozens of fish. if it wasn't for the weed we would have caught a ton of fish!
Sept. 12: Winds NE at 10 to 15: I
fished Long Beach this morning (9/12) from 6 to 8 a.m. The winds when I
woke up were NE at 10 to 15 and as soon as the sun came up I could 
see how rough the surf was and the winds continued to pick
up all morning till they hit the 28 knots around lunch time. I was unable to fish the east
side of the jetties effectively, but did manage to raise over a dozen bass and catch six
bass total, all shorts...three on Knuckleheads and a few on 1-ounce white metal lips. They
all had to be worked perfectly in he back eddy formed by two rips only the right side tip
of the jetty. The weed was manageable today except tight to the shore on the west sides. I
went back at 11 a.m. and last an hour as the sweep and the heave were unmanageable and I
couldn't even crank fast enough to keep up with a pencil popper moving east to west in the
sweep of the ocean. Wild waves and foam blowing off the top of them! Water was starting to
get weedy and was also starting to "brown" up as well by 12:30 p.m.
Sept. 16: I sat on the beach taking a
day off today (9/16). Late in the day there was a flurry of activity on BIG fish way out
past the breakers. This lasted about 5 minutes and popped up somewhere else and it was all
over. This was all the life I saw after fishing from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The water in Long
Beach is clean and weed free and a beautiful greenish color with just the right amount of
sand. The waves however were mostly 3 to 5 footers, plenty of sets with 6 to 8 footers and
I saw several sets of waves over 10 foot! I saw a surfer snap his board in half on a wave
as well and he was just paddling out to the waves. The wave caught him the wrong way and
snap! The wall of water is on the beach and where a wave breaks at your knees and the
depth should be no deeper than your knees, we are now seeing a wave break at your knees
and thew water fill up around you and next thing you know there is water u over your waist
and the both the push and undertow is vicious!
Sept. 17: I took a few hours off to
enjoy the sun today (9/17) and sat on the beach between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. The waves did
not seem as large as yesterday, but I did see a few approaching 10 feet. Water was
beautiful and again very powerful. No bait or action from what I could see, but I did
catch a glimpse of what looked like a large fluke right in front of me flopping in the
wash around 2 p.m. taking a large bait...mullet? Saw no fishermen on the beach today at
all.
Sept. 18: I woke this morning (9/18)
to hard NE winds at 20 knots and building, seas 4 to 6 foot and the surf bordering on
unfishable as the hard sweep has developed and the water is getting dirty. This will only
be getting worse as today progresses.
Sept. 22:
I fished last evening (9/22) between 6 and 7:45 p.m. in Atlantic Beach through
winds that were hard. I used the chicken scratch A Salt Bomber for seven bass between 22 and
25 inches. I came across a few tiny schools of mullet being crushed in the wild
white water, but for the most part the action was not visible. Winds:
E/SE at 28 gusting to 33 kts. Water: 69 degress...nice and foamy and as
clear as a swimming pool and green in hue. Absolutely gorgeous and I did not expect to do
this well because of it.
I took a cruise on my boat this morning (9/22) from
Jones Inlet to Tobay and back to scout the beaches. I found some beautiful water and
great looking beaches. Here's what I saw: West End 2: The slope is best
half way between he pavilion and the pocket with the half way point seeing a great
slope to the beach meeting deep, water close to the beach. Water was clear and weed free
except for this one little spot where the beach was packed with weed, all within a 20 foot
wide area and both sides after that was spotless.
Field 6: Great slope to the beach and
it gets better the further east you go. I found several points, which are great for
stacking up bait on the windward side and several areas, one of which was the white sign
about a mile down the beach (east) where the sand bars are reachable with a decent cast
and with two hours of the tide out, anywhere from 3-1/2 to maybe 5 or 6 foot of water on
the bars and inside the bars there were depths up to 9 foot! This is the perfect chunking
spot where you can find a cut between two bars and have a deep hole inside of that on the
beach. I also found some long running troughs in this area east of Field 6 as well where
the bars were as described, but once inside the bars, a trough would run for 100's of
yards, creating a feeding lane for the fish once they trap bait inside on the dropping
tide. Tobay: Very similar to Field 6 and lots of deep water tight to the
beach with a great slope to the beach. This is shaping up to be some fine beach structure
for this fall season.
Sept. 23:
I fished this morning (9/23) between 7 and 8 a.m. in Atlantic Beach through
pelting rain and winds . I used 1-1/2 ounce white bucktails with a small strip of yellow
pork rind for three schoolie bass to 23 inches. Winds: SE at 28 gusting
to 33 kts. Water: Very riled up as expected with a clear and clean green
hue and no weeds.
I just got back from the beach (9/23) in Atlantic Beach
and the water has turned to crap. The winds went NW 10 to 20 for a few hours this
afternoon, then about 6 p.m. went SW and now at 7 p.m. it is . While the water was wild
this morning, it was clean, weed free and clear. Now it's still riled up some, but brown,
army green in color and full of a weird weed, like a brown spongy sargassum or something.
Ugly water and after 30 minutes I gave up for another day. Winds: SW/W 10
to 15. Water: brown, army green in color and full of a weird weed, like a
brown spongy sargassum or something. Ugly water.
Sept. 24.
I fished this morning (9/24) in Atlantic Beach from 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. and saw no signs
of life anywhere. The water was getting better as far as color and clarity but still way
off from what it was the morning of the wind when I caught fish.
I just got back from swimming on the beach between noon
and 2:30 p.m. today, the water is again clear, clean and green at the bottom of the tide
and the water should be perfect for this evening's session...hope to see some bait soon
and hope the incoming doesn't bring back weeds.
I fished this evening (9/24) from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in
Atlantic Beach. water was much, much improved with clean and clear green water and
southwest winds at 12 to 15. Just some specks of green weed, Not much foamy action around
the jetties and the fish did not even show or respond until after sundown in the dusk. I
caught three schoolie bass on the chicken scratch A-Salt Bomber
Sept. 25: Winds: SW 20-24 Kts
Morning: SW 15 to 17. Water: 69 degrees, clear, green
rough but weedy at top of tide. I fished this morning (9/25) in Atlantic Beach from 6 to 8
a.m.. Looking at my logs from 2002, on this date I was slaying bass in Montauk on pencil
poppers for hours and hours in non stop blitzes. Nice to have seen that this morning, but
I did see a ton of mullet moving through the wash and I did catch three schoolies, raised
quite a few more and had my plugs slapped out of the water several times. I was using the
Knuckleheads and chicken scratch A Salt Bombers. Once the sun rose high and the brightness
really took over it was over by 7:15 or so. No action in the dark and all action took
place in the hour after false dawn.
Sept. 26: Winds NE 5-Water clear, clean and large
waves.
I fished this morning (9/26) from 6 to 9 a.m. in Atlantic Beach as I bounced from
stones to stones. I had fish right away with a schoolie of 24 inches on a holographic
Knucklehead, then switched over to...you guessed it...the A Salt Bomber in chicken
scratch. This is the only color lure that has caught fish for me all week! I had a fish
between 20 and 25 pounds at 6:30 and finished with a dozen fish, three of which were
keepers and this brute the largest of my safari this morning. My last fish was a short of
26 inches on a knucklehead popper at 9:15 a.m. I also got knocked on my fanny by a wave
while onthe jetties. Very glad the water is stil very warm
Afternoon: Water: Clear and some
weeds. Thursday afternoon: I fished from 5 to 6 p.m. in Atlantic Beach just before my
radio show and caught three fish and raised eight others. They would not touch a single
plug other than the chicken scratch A Salt. Bomber. I saw fish swirling at my plug,
bumping my plug and really potting on the feed bag. I will be going back right after the
radio show at 7 p.m.
Sept. 27: Winds SE/E 15 to 20, Water: 69
and clear, weed free & green. Nice
I fished from 6 a.m. to 7:15 as I had to get back to do the Saturday fishing reports.
I caught two small schoolies, had a few bumps and a raised a few on the Knucklehead, but
the fish I caught and the bumps I had were on the A Salt Bomber chicken scratch
color...again. I started with the 7 inch straight Long A Bomber in the same color with no
takers. Switched to the A-Salt and had a few hits and a fish right away. A beautiful and
weird sunrise. Lots of low level, fast moving clouds and when the sun came up, it
reflected off the clouds near me, back down to the sunrise itself and then off the low
level clouds to the east at the point of sunrise. It was looking back on the lost city of
gold or something biblical or fictional. Cool! I also scored a small schoolie on a Diamond
Tackle block tin after sunrise. Make sure you check my daily log to see where I've
been and what we've been catcing. They are in the left border of this page
Sept. 28:
Wind: SW 20+, Water: Riled up, WEEDS!
Went to a few of the jetties in west Long Beach at 6 a.m. Water looked great,
riled up and lots of foam and white water. Took two casts and new it was all over.
WEEDS!!!! Turned around and went home 15 minutes later.
Sept. 29:
Morning: Winds: WNW 5 / Water: Clear with "ticky" weed and clean
and big waves. I fished this morning from 6 to 8 a.m. and only
raised one fish with the same stuff I have been having good success with. Water was above
normal tides and the waves big, got soaked a few times. Saw a few free jumping bass on
mullet, but they had lockjaw this morning.
Evening: Winds: W/NW 20+...Water brown, WEEDS! It
never ceases to amaze me just how fast weeds can move into this area. Winds came on at 3
p.m. this afternoon when I decided to go for swim. The winds went from NW at 10 to W/NW 20
or better and at 6 p.m. were well over 20 mph. I fished Atlantic Beach from 6 to 6:15 p.m.
Water was already brown and full of weeds, Winds whipping and I said forget it...time to
go home.
Sept. 30:
Morning: Winds: WNW 5 / Water: Brown with problem
weed, but no where near as bad as last evening. I over slept and didn't even get to the
water till 6:30 a.m. and I saw and caught fish right away. I hooked 10 bass, landed 5 or
so, three were keepers and I raised many, many other bass as well. I used the Knucklehead
poppers for most of them and the A-Salt Bomber in chicken scratch again
for a few. All the action was at the start of the incoming. Seems like someone flipped the
switch and it was over at 7:45 or so, wiht just a few splashes after that and the wind
picked up to NW 10 to 15. So far a great season.
Oct. 1:
Morning: Winds: W/SW 15/ Water: Gin clear with some weeds. Obviously I have been
doing so well lately, I called the TV crew in to film this morning and of course...only
two fish caught and one keeper lost and no other hits or bumps and needless sot say we
have to go back again. We fished from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. The best bite has been on northerly
winds and the last of incoming tide, this morning I had the opposite winds and outgoing
tide. The fish I caught came on the A-Salt Bomber in chicken scratch
again and I only saw two jumping fish and nowhere near the amount of bait I did yesterday
morning!
Afternoon: Winds: N/NW less than 10..Water Gin
clear and very little weeds.The water was just too flat, too calm and too clear
for any action,. I fished form 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and left before dark.
Oct. 2:
Morning: Winds NW 5-10...Water: Just about
perfect: Waves just right, 2 to 3 footers, lots of white water as they broke and
then spread white foamy water with good sand coloration! There was cloud cover in the east
so the sun actually rose above the clouds later than normal sunrise so I had extra time
for fishing. I knew I should have brought the camera crew this morning, but it was blowing
last night an they were predicting 20 knots for today. I had fish right away in the dark
at 5:45 a.m. on chicken scratch A Salt Bombers, one was a keeper, Also caught a keeper on
the Knucklehead and lost him when my leader broke as I tried to drag him the rocks. Non
monster but still a keeper and I lost my holographic Knucklehead on that because....I was
a knucklehead as I knew I should have gone to the beach for this one. Also caught some
shorts and it was all over just after the sun rose above the clouds around 7:15 a.m. and
the wind dropped out and the ocean lost the waves and white water. Total:
Five fish landed, two of which were keepers and had numerous bumps.
Afternoon: Winds NW 20-28 gusting to over 30....Water: Just about perfect great color, you
can see the brown (sand) mixing in to now and it was wild. I am very glad the wind and
water was not down in the 40' degree mark. Nice and warm in this wind and the fish were
biting. The wind came up today around noon and went from NW at 10 to NW at 20 and
gusting over 30 and a steady 25 I would say. Ran down to the beach at 4:30 hit a few
jetties in Atlantic Beach and scored a few fish on most every one. It was hard leaning
into the wind and it was so strong that if you were leaning into it and it let up...you
could fall over! Started with a keeper I dropped and scored two others on the A-Salt
Bomber in chicken scratch. Then hit a few smaller fish on bucktails and split tail
yellow/white pork rind, then scored another fish on a holographic Knucklehead. Also
dropped a few fish on the bucks and had a few other bumps. Only reason I cam home at 6
p.m. was to do the radio show tonight. I am going back out at 7 p.m. Total: Six
fish landed, all shorts
Night: Clean
and bright half a moon. Winds NW
20-25....Water: Just about perfect great color, you can see the brown (sand) mixing in to
now and it was wild. I ran back down to the beach after the radio show. Got back
on the same rocks at 7:15 or so and had fish right away. Lots of bumps and strikes.
Started with the A Salt chicken scratch and had just a few bumps. Saw the bight moonlight
and switched to the regular size Bomber Long A in the black/see through/silver sort of
color. Had fish right away on that. had a few shorts, had a keeper which got me down off
the rocks. made some casts from the beach while I was down there and caught two more,
another close to keeper size. Tried a yellow 1-ounce bottle plug and a yellow darter just
looking for a large fish...no takers. Went back to the Bomber and had another fish and
some strikes and misses. A few bumps on the bucktail...climbed down off the rocks at 9
p.m. after a half hour of nothing. Total: Six fish landed, one a keeper
and another real close. Lots of fun in a windy clear crisp night...Fall IS here!
Oct. 3:
Night: Clean
and bright half a moon.
Winds SW 20-25+....Water: Just about perfect great color, wild and white!
I ran down to the beach around 5:30 to my favorite set of stones...so far
this season to find another surfcaster on it. After some good natured
kidding, I fished for a few hours with this nice surf rat Mike, one of
Suffolk County's finest. Just prior to my arrival Mike had a half dozen
small schoolies on wildeyes and poppers I think he said and one was close to
28 inches. We proceeded to become fishing buddies and walked the jetties
together fishing bucktails and Bombers. We came across two mini blitzes in
the southeast pocket of two jetties and I scored a couple of bass on chicken
scratch Long A Bombers that were 22 to 25 inches the largest. He left and I
stayed on the rocks till 8:30 or so. Wind was wild and I found a nice patch
of fish that were cooperating on bucktails or white metal lips, since the
metal lip was heavy enough I could feel it cast and swim. Lots of bumps and
strikes. Total: Eight fish landed, one just short of a
keeper and the rest 22 to 25 inches. Lots of fun in a windy clear crisp
night...Fall IS here!
Started with the A Salt chicken scratch and
had just a few bumps. Saw the bight moonlight and switched to the regular
size Bomber Long A in the black/see through/silver sort of color. Had fish
right away on that. had a few shorts, had a keeper which got me down off the
rocks. made some casts from the beach while I was down there and caught two
more, another close to keeper size. Tried a yellow 1-ounce bottle plug and a
yellow darter just looking for a large fish...no takers. Went back to the
Bomber and had another fish and some strikes and misses. A few bumps on the
bucktail...climbed down off the rocks at 9 p.m. after a half hour of
nothing.
Oct. 4:
Morning...Clear with clouds on the east and southwestern horizon.
Winds: SW 25+ gusting to 30....Water: Wild and white lots of foam... perfect
color with just the right amount of sand and oxygen. I hit the beach just before 6 a.m.
and saw a lone surfcaster in the middle of the beach. I asked how he was doing and he said
not much going on. He introduced himself as Angus and we proceeded to fish together for
the morning till he left a little after 8 a.m. We fished a set of stones in Atlantic Beach
and right away I had a schoolie on a Long A chicken scratch which I dropped trying to lift
it out of the water. I had several other whacks and hooked a few of them only to lose them
in the wild surf. Angus raised a few fish on poppers. I switched over to a buck tail and
caught a few small schoolies in the 20 to 24 inch class I guess. Action slowed and
we hit a few other jetties. On one jetty I caught another schoolie or two on bucktails,
then we went back to the same jetty we started on on and I had another four bass (I think)
all on bucktails. Total: Six or Eight fish landed, one just short of a keeper and the rest
22 to 25 inches. Lots of fun in a wild and windy surf.
Oct. 5:
Morning...Clear...Wind: NW 10 to 15. Water: Nice and color and high tide around dawn.
Went west to Suicide jetty in Atlantic Beach this morning and did NOT have a very good
morning in many ways. No fish in the dark and thought I picked the wrong jetty. As soon as
false dawn hit, they were jumping out of the water as mullet and then peanut bunker were
everywhere as were the schoolie bass. My first cast with my purple holographic Knucklehead
produced a 24 incher schoolie. I went to grab the leader and it broke and the fish
swam away with my lure. Now I am trying to tie a knot and new leader with braided line..in
the dark...a nightmare. I finally get it done while fish are still breaking all around me.
I make a cast and on the 3rd cast I catch another bass, bring it to the beach, go to the
wash and just I am about to grab the leader, the knot slips and lure #2 swims away with
the fish. I now have to tie another leader on in the dark and tie a knot with the
braid...still before it is light enough to see...another headache. I get it done and make
a cast and the line breaks and my A Salt lands in the rocks.. I have to climb down to
retrieve it. I tie it on because I can see and the line breaks on the next cast. I tie a
new leader on and attach a 1-ounce blue metal lip Danny. I make a cast and the line breaks
and my plugs sails away on the outgoing tide with a northwest wind...bye bye plug #3. I am
a screaming maniac at this point in time. They could have heard me in Jersey in the dark
like a raving madman! I have two fish to my credit and am down three plugs. I inspect the
guides now and find the the ceramic insert to my oversized tip is cracked form my fall
last week and I am cutting the line like a razor blade. I remove all the insert and am now
fishing with the just the metal ring to the tip top as my guide. A few cast and no takers.
I go to a bucktail and drill a 20 incher...Irish Anthony shows up, catches a fish
and the bite is over! It is now 8 a.m. Wait it gets better....
Afternoon: I hit the beach with friend Mark DeAngelis
of Brooklyn around 4:25 p.m. for a trip on the rocks. I have a brand new, filled
spool of braided line. We are casting away and the line for some reason is wrapping around
the manual bail "mushroom and now I have knots I have to contend with. After an hour
of no fish but plenty of signs on bait in the wash and at the tip of the jetty, I launch a
cast to the outer bar and SNAP... plugs number four...a 2-1/2 ounce green Gibbs pencil
poppers sails into the wild blue yonder. I have an outgoing tide and you guessed it...a
north west wind...bye bye plug #4. Later just at dark I make a cast with my favorite
chicken scratch A Salt and snap....I was wrapped around the manual bait again and my A
Salt took off like a rocket. This time there may be chance it t will come back as the
white water of the outgoing tide is pushing water onto the beach...but alas it was not to
be. My total for the day of fishing...five plugs lost...only four fish caught. Three in
the a.n.m. and one one in the p.m. Here's what I lost in case anyone finds them in
Atlantic Beach. I lost a Creek Chub Holographic Knucklehead, a Super Strike blue Little
Neck popper, a Gibbs 1-ounce Blue Danny swimmer, a Gibbs 2-1/2 ounce green pencil popper
and a chicken scratch A Salt Bomber.
Oct. 9:
Morning...warm, clouds
in eastern horizon. Wind: SW 5. Water: Nice, clear clean and good and tide high around
8 a.m. I hot the jetty in Atlantic Beach late, around 6:30 a.m. as I slept in
after a two day stint at Cabela's grand opening and proceeded to see small white bait in
the wash and caught a schoolie on a Knucklehead right away. Made a few more casts and
raised another. Cast the west the side of the jetty and caught my first fish almost a
keeper, on the west side of a jetty in over a month! This fish took the A Salt bomber in
chicken scratch. Cast again and had another bump. Worked a rip to the east a little and
had another bump. Came back to the jetty and raised a keeper on a Cotton Cordell pencil
popper right behind the first tiny wave in the wash, he hit it three times, felt the
hooks, missed him and he never came back. Continued to work this west side wash and caught
another schoolie on the pencil Left the rocks at 7:30 to catch up on some work and the sun
was peeking out over the clouds. Total: Three fish in hand, one close to
a keeper, raised and hooked a keeper, a few bumps and raised a few. Good to be back
in the game after two days away.
Afternoon: Sun...warm, flat calm, I was swimming for 3 hours before this trip. Wind: SW 5. Water:
Flat, too clean and clear no white water at all. Fished from 5:30 to 6 p.m., no
signs of life anywhere.
Oct. 10: Afternoon: Cloudy, Winds: NE 10+...water:
Nice and clean & green, good color and lots of foamy from NE winds and waves!
Fished with Mike Marinto from 4 to 6 p.m. I caught no fish, raised a keeper in the middle
of a beach on a white pencil...Mike caught an 18 incher on white shad bait Morning...warm, clouds. Wind: NE 5. Water: Flat, ground swell
2 to 4', too clean and clear no white water at all. Hit the west end of Long
Beach at 6 a.m. fished till 7:30 and found no bait, no signs of life over four jetties and
never raised a fish.
Oct. 16: Finally got to go fishing
after 11 days off with the thumb infection. Went to the beach Atlantic Beach around 2:30
p.m. (10/16) and fished till 3:45. Caught six schoolies, all tiny in the 18 to 22 inch
class. Used pencil poppers, A-Salt and bucktails. Dropped a decent fish on pencil as well.
Water beautiful clear and clean with just a few "ticks" of weed. Looked great
with winds 20 to 25 knots steady.
Oct. 17:
Morning: Winds NW 0-5, Water: Clean and clear, flat calm. Woke
up late this morning (10/17) after a Yankee celebration and guess what...? NO WIND!! Hit
the beach around 7:45 a.m. and almost right away had a 24 incher on a chicken scratch A
Salt. Saw some bait, worked several other plugs then drilled a 15 pounder just before 8:30
on a 1-ounce, white bucktail with a yellow/white trailer. Left the rocks at 9 a.m. with
clean water, no waves, no white water and flat calm seas and winds out of the NE at 5 or
less.
AfternoonWinds NW 0-5, Water: Clean and clear,
flat calm.: I fished the Silver Point jetty this afternoon from 3 :30 to 5 p.m.
and only saw action on birds way out there, and everyone there was fishing bait with only
sea robins to show for it. They said the fish were there around noon (See Dave W.'s report
below). The birds did come closer and I managed two schoolie of 24 inches on poppers and
it was as quick as it started. LOTS of bait in the Silver point area on the ocean front
side with rain bait, peanut bunker, mid size bunker and all sorts of fish I haven't seen
before. It looked like an aquarium.
Oct. 19:
Morning: Winds SW 5...finished at SW 25-30, Water: Clean and clear, sight
surface ripples. I hit the beach around 5:30 a.m. and got on one of my favorite
jetties in West Long Beach. Threw everything in the bag for no takers and never raised a
fish. Spent nearly an hour on the this rock, then went two west. Fished that for another
20 minutes and had nothing and never raised a fish. I was leaving this set of stones when
I ran into local regular rock hopper Keith. He had been out chunking and bucktail since
2:30 a.m. and fished the entire outgoing with NO results at all. We proceeded to fish
together and didi another four or five jetties working our way west. We were calling it
quits around 8 a.m. or so and on our way back to where we started, he suggested we try the
jetty one more time.
We got out to the end of the jetty and the wind on the
change or tide around 8 a.m. went hard SW at 15 then 20 knots. The birds showed up and we
saw bait breaking. I launched a Diamond Tackle Tin by NJ Tackle and felt the hammer of
what I knew was a BIG bluefish. The chopper was an easy 7 to 9 pounds and Keith was in as
well with a blue about 10 pounds he dropped at the rocks. From this point on till 9 a.m.
or so we had plenty of fish. Most were bluefish in the 5 to 10 pound class and Keith had
three bass on three successive casts at one point as birds and fish were all around us.
These BIG blues were chasing adult, market size butterfish right up into the wash and up
on the beach, although you never really saw the bluefish on top. Keith stayed with the
bucktail and I bounced around with large Danny metal lip swimmer, pencil poppers and tins.
A the winds increased to over 25 knots and the rain came...the fishing got better. It shut
off very fast at 9:30 or so and then we saw more birds, but never really hooked up again.
I continued on after Keith went home and I scouted Silver Point with no action seen and
then hit the Atlantic Beach jetties one by one looking for signs of life. I found birds in
the 25 knot winds and drilled another schoolie bass around 11:30 or. Was back hone for
lunch. will go back out this afternoon.
Afternoon: Winds NW 10-15...Water: Clean and
clear, flat calm again.: The winds went from a howling 25+ SW in the morning to a
west at 15 around game time at 1 p.m. and by 3 p.m. it was sunny and NW 10 to 20 knots
settling down to a decent 10 to 15. I hit the Suicide jetty in Atlantic Beach around 5
p.m. or so and found Dave W. from Valley Stream and another very nice angler already
there. This other angler had just finished an hour before putting nine bass to 6 pounds on
the rocks using Wild Eyes shads. I got there to find plenty of birds way out of casting
range and after an hour of half hearted casting by the three of us...the birds finally
came close enough and with a tin I drilled a bass just short of keeper size, while this
other angler used a pencil to drill a keeper of about 12 pounds. This started at 6 p.m.
and we had this non stop action under birds till just before dark at 6:30 when they
flipped a switch and it was over. I used the pencil after my first fish and had a big
chopper blue around 8 pounds or so and finished with four bass, one keeper, one just shy
and the bluefish while the other angler had two bass, both keepers about the same length
but one was normal while the other looked fat like a football...all on pencil poppers.
Oct. 21:
Morning: Winds SW 25-30...Water: Clean and WILD! Hit the beach around 7 a.m. and
stayed till 8:30 or so. The water was wild and I threw everything in my bag and did not
raise a fish, see a fish or see any bait. Afternoon: Winds SW/W
25-30...Water: Clean and WILD! Hit the Atlantic Beach jetties around 2:45 p.m.
with Joe McQuillan. Water was WILD and even worse than this morning. The winds had layed
down some and were W/SW/SW at 15 knots or so and the more the winds died...the bigger the
surf got. We could not get out toe the tip at all...even on some of the highest jetties
there. We did see plenty of fish, no bait, but I saw fish of 20 pounds or better free
jumping every time there was a calm in-between sets of giant waves in the white foamy
surface. We threw everything at them and Joe managed three small bass of 22 inches or so
on green shad baits and I did manage to raise a few quality fish but never hooked up. At 8
p.m. it was blowing NW around 10 to maybe 15 . Should be windy from the NW on Wednesday.
The further west we went the worse the weed got. We finished at Vernon St. where the water
was less weedy.
Oct. 22:
Morning: Winds: NW 10...Water: Off color/calm, glassy and 4 to 5 footers: Hit the
Atlantic Beach surf around 6:30 and lasted till 8:30 a.m.. No runs no hits no errors, saw
no signs of life anywhere. Afternoon: Winds: NW 15-24...Water: cleaner, but still
slightly off color/calm, glassy and 4 to 5 footers. Broke out the meat stick and
proceeded to chunk a jetty in Atlantic Beach while Mike Martino plugged. We fished from 4
to 5:30 p.m. No fish on plugs, I had two skates on chunks. no signs of life or bait, did
see some birds at 5:15 or so just looking from high in the sky with a few trips to the
water's surface, but nothing doing. Did not see anyone else do anything at all as many
gave up about the same time we did. It was the first cold day of the fall with temps
dropping the entire time we were there.
Oct. 25: Morning...Winds SW 5 to 15...Water:
Gin clear not rough enough:
I fished with Willie young this morning from 7 to 10 a.m. and found lots of bait in the
wash in the form of peanut bunker but no signs of fish anywhere, We quit around 10 a.m.
Oct. 24:
Afternoon: Winds: NW 15 dropping out to 5...Water: Gin Clear and flat calm.
I went down to the west end of Atlantic Beach with the bucket...that's right I was
chunking and sat on the rock from 4 to 7 p.m. I had a pick up or two, felt like smaller
bass that could not handle the chunk. I did catch a 6-pound bluefish at 6:10 p.m. and that
was it for the afternoon. I am though going back down no at 9 p.m. as the water is gin
clear and flat...perfect for metal lips.
Night: Winds: NW 0...Water: Flat, glassy
smooth, 6 inch waves and gin clear:
I hit the Atlantic Beach jetties at 9:15 p.m. or so and knowing how clear the water was I
loaded my bag with all sorts of metal lips in white or gold and Bombers. I cold see
through the water and see rays swimming near the jetty on this new moon night. The action
started to pick up around 10 p.m. when I started to see plenty of peanut bunker being
worked over right up in the crease of the beach in just a few inches water with large
swirls around them. I tried everything in my bag and wished I had a 5-inch Rebel or Redfin
with me. I did manage to raise quite a few fish on the 1-ounce white metal lipped Danny
swimmer. These fish were small, 18 to 24 inches and were not violently attacking the plug
at all, but very interested. I did manage to land a could of smaller fish by night's end
and drilled a 15-pound keeper whcih I released. The best action was between 10:30 p.m. and
midnight. I did see a pair of casters walking off a jetty with a keeper bass of 12 pounds
or so and they said they also had few a bluefish they released and all were caught on
chunks. I met a very nice gentleman named Mike from Brooklyn who had a 25 pounder
laying on the rocks he caught around 10:30 to 11 p.m. and he had just released a 15
pounder when I happened upon him around midnight. He also had a pair of bluefish to 12
pounds caught and released around 9 p.m. He too was using chunks.
Oct. 26: Morning...Winds: SW 15-20...Water:
Clean and wonderful, very rough.
I hit the jetties in Atlantic Beach and started at Vernon where a chunker had TWO rods,
one on each side of the jetty making this one inaccessible. I went to the next one and
caught a small schoolie on a bucktail, no other signs of life. It was nearing high tide
and could not get out far enough on any of the jetties. I did run into a pair of surf
rats, Mike and Derrick from the Bronx (Riverdale) who were chunking with no success this
morning either. They were on their way for coffee and were to return. Hope they send us
their report soon. Went back at 10 a.m. and fished till noon. I cannot believe I could not
find a fish in some of the best and most perfect looking water I have ever seen!!
Oct. 27: Mornign & Afternoon: Winds: SW/SE
15-20...Water: Looked great, great color...full of WEED!! Unfishable in Atlantic Beach
& Long Beach
Oct. 28: Morning...Winds: NW 10...Water:
Clear...full of WEED!! Unfishable in Atlantic Beach & Long Beach
Oct. 29: Winds: W 25...Water: Getting brown, no
weed.
I fished Robert Moses Fields 2 & 4 from 4 to out 5:30 p.m. The wind was only getting
stronger the entire time I was there and I only saw four other anglers the entire time as
well. Bottle plugs could not hold or dig as they were blown across the surface, pencil
poppers moved so fast you couldn't even keep up with them and tins from 1-1/2 to 2 ounces
did not swim right. Water was getting browner by the minute, have no idea what it was like
the next morning..
Oct. 30: Winds..W 10-15, water brown and weedy.
I fished Atlantic Beach this morning from 5:30 (first light) to about 6 p.m. Water was
very brown from yesterday's strong W/NW winds, tide was low and water very, very weedy,
bordering on unfishable.
Nov. 1: Winds...SW 5, water clear, calm and
flat...Temps Air 66, Water 58.
Fished chunks with Mike Martino at Robert Moses Field 4 from 6:20 p.m. to nearly 10 p.m.
with no bites, no runs and no hits. Moved over to the west end of Field 6 at Jones Beach
and fished there with fresh chunks from 10:30 to 11:45...no fish of any kind!
Nov. 2: Winds...SW 5-10, water clear, calm and
flat...Temps Air 66, Water 58.
Ran to the each after Matt W. called to say their were birds on the jetties in Atlantic
Beach. They were heading my way so I fished behind the house two hours down in the tide.
More weed moving in, birds came and went...FAST...no fish big ground swell and could not
get to tip of lower jetties. We hit Silver Point and made a few casts...weed moving in and
this is definitely a low tide beach now with beautiful bars off the beach, but a long flat
beach and unreachable with any water on the beach.
Nov. 13-Morning Winds- SW 20, going 20 to 25 knots,
then W 25, NW by 9 a.m. 30-35 gusting to 40, Sunny mostly sunny.
The
Hourly Weather Page of WABC with Bill Evans
was right on this morning with the hourly wind changes, speeds and direction. As soon as I
could see, the birds were up and running about and he seas were already big. I tried a
2-ounce wood bottle plug...no good, tried a darter and it swam, well but non fish. The
winds and water were moving way to fast to even work a 2 or 3-ounce pencil popper so I put
on the large 2-3/4 ounce Gibbs Polaris popper in white and was rewarded on the first cast
with an 18-20 pound striper. The birds were up and it looked as if I was going to be alone
on the beach in howling winds and getting a repeat performance of yesterday's blitz! This
bass took the popper and with the HARD west to east sweep, took me 10 yards down the beach
to the east. now the birds were working their way to the pocket and I saw a lone
surfcaster, Kevin who was in on yesterday's, action using a bucktail. I showed him my
popper and he changed, immediately hooking into a large bluefish. We both walked west
towards the pocket and it was very, very hard walking into what was now a 30 knot
westerly. We got into the birds...finally...and e each hooked up again. I had a teen size,
FAT bluefish that took me a 1/4 mile or more down the beach...east again and away from the
birds. I finally landed the big chopper and had walk by way all the way west again. Just
as predicted the winds were building ...as was the ocean. I could tell that even though
the water was a beautiful color and clean, out window was rapidly closing as it was nearly
impossible to fish anything with the winds and hard seas, which by the time I called it
quits a little after 8 a.m., the winds were NW @ 35 knots. I finished the day with the two
fish caught and a few others dropped.
Nov. 20: Morning-Winds...NW 20-30
I fished West End 2 this morning (11/20) from 8:30 to 10:30 and the wind was
wicked from the NW at 20 to 30 with gusts higher and some sprinkles. The water was getting
big and the outer bar was breaking huge and it was an off color water and getting worse.
The farther east you went the more weed. No signs of life and no fish.
Nov. 23:
I saw many casters at the West End 2 jetty Sunday (11/23) having a ball with schoolies
and small bluefish on bucktails as the action was pretty good on the tip, the inlet side
and then it spread over to the pocket and down the sand beach. It seemed to die along with
the action in the inlet around the time the boats lost them as well. Monday (11/24) the
action was much slower although I did witness a few fish caught and one angler walking off
with a 15 pound bass.
Thanksgiving-Nov. 24:
I fished Atlantic Beach on Thanksgiving from 3:30 p.m. when I saw birds to
the west of my house. I found them on Vernon St., but they never cam close enough, but
they were heading east, back towards my house. I came home, it the beach and there they
were, brealing all around the jetty. I caught fish to 25 inches on poppers from 4:15 to 5
p.m. They were on very small...what looked like spearing baits. I finished with a dozen
bass.
Nov. 12- Morning: Winds: SW 15, Rain,
heavy at times, cleared around 10:30 a.m.
I fished Robert Moses this morning (11/12) hoping some of the fish were
still there and with this morning's conditions they should have been. I was
in the boat all day on Tuesday and Monday and missed out on what sounds like
great action at Moses. By the way folks, nothing says you can't call me with
news like this once in a while so I can get in on the action too! Anyway, I
hot RM Field 2 at 5:45 a.m. and cast till 7 a.m. No fish no hits no bumps at
all. I saw one angler catch two schoolies, another catch a quality bluefish
and a few rat bluefish were picked at also at Field 2. All this from a dozen
anglers so fishing was not good. I went over to Field 4 where they said
nothing happened this morning at all and the bait boys were now taking over
the beach. Off to Gilgo I went and then Tobay...nothing doing. Then into
Long Beach and I worked the jetties in Atlantic Beach for a couple of hours
with no results. Water was clear everywhere I went although some nuisance
weed was moving into Long Beach and Atlantic Beach.
Nov. 12-Afternoon: Winds
Calm, Sunny, SW 5-10, 60 degrees, fog at sunset.
I fished Jones Beach West End 2 today (11/12) after a call from message board member Joe.
He was right on as the place exploded with peanut bunker and bass from 6 to 26 pounds all
over the place with GIANT bluefish into the teens and all the fish were FAT! Just
incredible action all afternoon...indescribable. I used bucktails and caught nothing while
some other did and they seemed to catch smaller fish. I then went to large metal lips and
caught some of the largest bluefish on the beach and most of the bass caught were in the
20 pound class because of the large size of my offering. This lasted till a giant bass
pulled the middle hook off and the plug (Atom 40) didn't want to swim right after that. I
went to a small 1-ounce Gibbs Danny and caught some large bass on that until the barrel
swivel t the front hook broke and rendered the plug useless. I then used smaller to mid
sized metal lips to continue the carnage on the beach. The funny thing was I and no one
else could catch a fish on a popper of any kind! However I was way down to the west late
in the day and tried the pencil around 4:30 and they turned on to it immediately with bass
to 20 pounds and GIANT bluefish again and this pencil popper action lasted through the
dark till 6 p.m. when the scary fog rolled in and the waves became enormous and
difficult to see. As it was it took Mike Martino and a very L-O-N-G time to walk off the beach from the jetty at West End 2.
Nov. 13. Morning...Winds SW 25...W 25-30...NW 35
gusting to 40. Water: Clean and clear...last of Incoming high tide 9:30
I fished Jones Beach West End 2 again today (11/13) and arrived at the
water's edge at first light in SW winds of 20 to 25 knots. The weather;com site was right
on this morning with the hourly wind changes, speeds and direction. As soon as I could
see, the birds were up and running about and he seas were already big. I tried a 2-ounce
wood bottle plug...no good, tried a darter and it swam, well but non fish. The winds and
water were moving way to fast to even work a 2 or 3-ounce pencil popper so I put on the
large 2-3/4 ounce Gibbs Polaris popper in white and was rewarded on the first cast with an
18-20 pound striper. The birds were up and it looked as if I was going to be alone on the
beach in howling winds and getting a repeat performance of yesterday's blitz! This bass
took the popper and with the HARD west to east sweep, took me 10 yards down the beach to
the east. now the birds were working their way to the pocket and I saw a lone surfcaster,
Kevin who was in on yesterday's, action using a bucktail. I showed him my popper and he
changed, immediately hooking into a large bluefish. We both walked west towards the pocket
and it was very, very hard walking into what was now a 30 knot westerly. We got into the
birds...finally...and e each hooked up again. I had a teen size, FAT bluefish that took me
a 1/4 mile or more down the beach...east again and away from the birds. I finally landed
the big chopper and had walk by way all the way west again. Just as predicted the winds
were building ...as was the ocean. I could tell that even though the water was a beautiful
color and clean, out window was rapidly closing as it was nearly impossible to fish
anything with the winds and hard seas, which by the time I called it quits a little after
8 a.m., the winds were NW @ 35 knots. I finished the day with the two fish caught and
a few others dropped.
Nov. 12. Morning...Winds SW 15...Water: Clean and
clear Incoming
I fished Robert Moses this morning (11/12) hoping some of the fish were still
there and with this morning's conditions they should have been. I was in the boat all day
on Tuesday and Monday and missed out on what sounds like great action at Moses. By the way
folks, nothing says you can't call me with news like this once in a while so I can get in
on the action too! Anyway, I hot RM Field 2 at 5:45 a.m. and cast till 7 a.m. No fish no
hits no bumps at all. I saw one angler catch two schoolies, another catch a quality
bluefish and a few rat bluefish were picked at also at Field 2. All this from a dozen
anglers so fishing was not good. I went over to Field 4 where they said nothing happened
this morning at all and the bait boys were now taking over the beach. Off to Gilgo I went
and then Tobay...nothing doing. Then into Long Beach and I worked the jetties in Atlantic
Beach for a couple of hours with no results. Water was clear everywhere I went although
some nuisance weed was moving into Long Beach and Atlantic Beach.
Nov. 12. Afternoon...Winds SW 5-10...Water: Clean
and clear Outgoing
I fished Jones Beach West End 2 today (11/12) after a call from message
board member Joe. He was right on as the place exploded with peanut bunker and bass from 6
to 26 pounds all over the place with GIANT bluefish into the teens and al the fish were
FAT! Just incredible action all afternoon...indescribable. I used bucktails and caught
nothing while some other did and they seemed to catch smaller fish. I then went to large
metal lips and caught some of the largest bluefish on the beach and most of the bass
caught were in the 20 pound class because of the large size of my offering. This lasted
till a giant bass pulled the middle hook off and the plug (Atom 40) didn't want to swim
right after that. I went to a small 1-ounce Gibbs Danny and caught some large bass on that
until the barrel swivel t the front hook broke and rendered the plug useless. I then used
smaller to mid sized metal lips to continue the carnage on the beach. The funny thing was
I and no one else could catch a fish on a popper of any kind! However I was way down to
the west late in the day and tried the pencil around 4:30 and they turned on to it
immediately with bass to 20 pounds and GIANT bluefish again and this pencil popper action
lasted through the dark till 6 p.m. when the scary fog rolled in and the waves
became enormous and difficult to see. As it was it took Mike Martino and I a very
L-O-N-G time to walk off the beach from the jetty at West End 2.
Nov. 21:
Got the call Friday (11/21) afternoon from a friend at 3:30 p.m. the area
between Tobay and Jones Beach Field 6 was lit up like the lights at West End 2. Birds and
bass...all just out of casting range or just on the border. A good place for you to start
looking this weekend!
