LBI & Ocean County Online
Scott's Fishing Bulletin
May 23, 1996
Express Index,
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Scott's Bait & Tackle
28-4 Radio Road
Mystic Island, NJ 08087
(609) 296-1300
E-mail us
your questions, reports, and comments.
Winter's Over!
The snow is really gone. The winter has past. It's the kick off
of summer! Memorial day is upon us and should be remembered for what
the day really is; the commemoration of those members of the armed
forces killed in war. To all who have served, and all of the families
affected, I speak for many when I say thank you.
Fluke
The number one subject of the week is summer flounder, locally
known as fluke. How can an angler tell the difference between a fluke
and a flounder? There is a complicated way to tell with eyes, left
and right sides, white side/dark side, spots, etc.. The easiest way
to tell if you caught a fluke is to determine if the fish has teeth.
A summer fluke has a large mouth and lots of teeth and a winter
flounder has a small mouth and no teeth. Their diets differ too.
Since the summer flounder are the ones you are likely to catch in
Great Bay this week, I will babble all about them. Where do they hang
out? Fluke are a bottom fish. Generally, a fluke will hide under a
thin layer of sand that they stir up with those wavy side fins. When
a fluke lays on the bottom, it is invisible except for the eyes which
are above the sand scanning for food. When food is present, the fluke
draws the side fins in, raising his body a few inches off the bottom
and strikes with lightning quickness similar to a snake. The speed at
teeth. A summer fluke has a large mouth and lots of teeth and a
winter flounder has a small mouth and no teeth. Their diets differ
too. Since the summer flounder are the ones you are likely to catch
in Great Bay this week, I will babble all about them.
Fluke Tips
Where do they
hang out? Fluke are a bottom fish. Generally, a fluke will hide
under a thin layer of sand that they stir up with those wavy side
fins. When a fluke lays on the bottom, it is invisible except for the
eyes which are above the sand scanning for food. When food is
present, the fluke draws the side fins in, raising his body a few
inches off the bottom and strikes with lightning quickness similar to
a snake. The speed at which a bait moves by is very important to
fluke. Slowing the drift down on a very windy day may be the
difference between a fluke dinner and an empty fish box. A drift may
need to be modified on calm days or during situations of wind against
tide. Here are several ways to modify your boat drift. On a breezy
day, turn the engine or rudder all the way to one side, forcing the
boat to push through the water sideways, slowing the drift. Lowering
or raising a canvas top can also modify the speed of the drift. On
very windy days, a device called a sea anchor which is a canvas wind
sock looking device is pulled through the water creating drag which
can really slow the boat down. A pail tied to a rope will work
similarly, but does not work as well. On days with very little boat
movement, turn the engine or rudder in a direction that will help the
boat slide through the water, picking up the boat's speed. A more
extreme method, usually done by the most elite of the fluke catchers,
is to troll backwards. A slower motion can be obtained by idling the
engine in gear in reverse. This is very difficult to do without
running over your own lines. Now that we have the speed right, bait
visibility is very important. An old timer once took a dime out of
his pocket and threw it in the lawn about 15 feet away. He asked me
if I could see it. I said I could not. He said, "now imagine if I
held the dime one foot above the lawn on a piece of fishing line. Do
you think you would see it then?" I answered with a definite yes! I
guess that's why those floating spin and glow rigs and the top and
bottom rigs work so well. To use a top and bottom rig effectively,
heavier weights are required. A T&B rig is fished with very little
line out. The weight should only bounce along the bottom, not drag on
the bottom. The line should be straight up and down from the rod tip
to the water or your weight is probably not heavy enough. This will
create the "dime effect" with both hooks of a T&B rig. The diet of
fluke in Great Bay is mainly grass shrimp, small crabs, and little
bait fish (minnows, spearing, alewives, anchovies). This is known by
observing the stomach contents when cleaning the fluke. The most
common baits used to catch fluke are minnows and squid. A squid strip
and minnow combo on one hook is usually a winner. The squid strip
increases the visibility of the minnow or the increased motion of the
squid waving in the water invites a fluke strike. Enough tips for
now. The best place to catch fluke this week was in the area of 139
marker in the inland waterway in Great Bay. A few boats caught their
limits, but most are catching just a few. Largest fluke weighed in
last Sunday was 6 pounds 9 ounces, caught in the area of the fish
factory.
Fluke Tournament
The Jersey Coast Anglers Association is holding their annual
fluke tournament this Saturday. All boats must be registered by
7:00pm on Friday night at a mini Captains meeting held at Scott's Bait
& Tackle by their weigh master Al. The entry fee is $60.00 and the
first place prize for the two Beach Haven ports is $1000.00. Scott's
will also donate a Penn PG4866 new series power stick rod matched with
a Penn 930 reel, to the largest fish weighed in our port that does not
get the $1000.00 bucks. That guy can buy his own! Good luck all
anglers.
Bluefish
Where did the bluefish go? Up the coast is the best answer I can
give. However, there is still some great blue fishing going on. The
blues were feeding real good in the Little Egg Inlet area during the
mornings all week. Trolling many types of lures or casting metal
Hopkins type lures worked well. If you want to try something new, we
have a 1 ounce silver metallic needle eel that came in this week that
looks excellent for casting into the bluefish. Fishing mackerel bait
on float rigs is still working on the larger bluefish hanging out in
the mouth of the Mulica river. Early morning and evening fishing has
been more productive.
New Tudkers Island
Had enough of the heat and want to get into the water? Well,
Tuckers Island is off limits while the birds are nesting. That's OK
though, because there is a new Tuckers Island forming on the bay side
of the original Tuckers Island. Anchor your boat here and have a ball
swimming or just walking around looking at neat shells and other
stuff. Be careful with small children and pets though, because at
times the tide moves through this area very swiftly. Just where is
this Tuckers Island? It is a large sandbar on the ocean side of 118
buoy in the Inland Waterway. This weekend I am sure it will be the
island with all the people on it!
Clamming
Speaking about getting in the water, clamming is a big thing this
weekend. Yes, we have plenty of clamming licenses on hand. A
juvenile license is $3 and is required for kids 13 and under. A
license for 14 through 62 year olds is $11 for New Jersey Residents
and $21 for Non Residents. A senior citizens license can be applied
for with a $2 application fee and is good forever. Ask for the senior
applications at the counter. Good clamming areas are hard to find.
The first place to try would be the sandbars on the Mystic Island side
of the Fish Factory in the Great Bay or if you are already in Little
Egg Harbor bay, the Goose bar is supposedly clammers heaven.
With the hot weather expected this weekend, we have stocked up on
extra ice. We sell 8 pound bags of cubes or 20 pound blocks. The ice
is kept in separate freezer in front of the store to insure that it
does not get "fishy" and ruin that next glass of soda. Most
importantly, ice is to secure the quality of the fish you catch during
the day. A fish that is kept cool is easier to fillet because it
remains firm and the flavor of the fish is preserved.
Ke Ski
Attention Jet Skiers: There will be an open house walk-in test
at the Southern Ocean Cycle Center on June 10, from 5:00 to 8:00pm.
The store is approximately one mile north of Southern Regional High
School on Route 9. The fee is $17.00 to take the test. If more
information is required, give the good people a call at 597-6044.
Good luck.
New Hours
Scott's Bait & Tackle has extended hours this weekend. Friday
5:00-10:00, Saturday 5:00-10:00, Sunday 5:00-9:00, Monday 5:00-6:00.
Our summer hours begin on Tuesday.
Summer hours:
Monday through Thursday 5:30am to 8:00pm
Friday 5:30am to 9:00pm
Saturday 5:00am to 9:00pm
Sunday 5:00am to 6:00pm
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