Golden! Fishermen return with big hauls of golden tilefish from the deep, offshore grounds
Fishermen taking the long ride offshore are coming back to the docks with some beautiful golden tilefish on ice.
The Jamaica party boat, one of three local boats making the trip. has been out twice so far this spring. Capt. Dale Steinert ran the boat on the first trip that departed May 1. They had a boat limit on golden tilefish that were about 20 pounders. They also landed a medium-size bluefin tuna.
The boat was out again last weekend, and skipper Howard Bogan said they again returned with a boat limit. The fishing was so good they put one drift together on the canyon slopes that lasted four miles.
The Gambler party boat has also been out. On the day they sailed last weekend the conditions were a little windier than expected as anglers had to use a lot of lead to hold bottom. Still, they boxed some nice fish that were over 40 pounds. Capt. Bob Bogan said everyone went back with at least two fish if not more.
The Voyager out of Point Pleasant Beach is scheduled to leave Saturday for a 36-hour tile trip.
Giant bluefin tuna are off limits now after the quota was met, but the brute fish are still local.
Capt. William Egerter Jr. on the Dauntless spotted a pair feeding five miles northeast of Shark River Inlet. Hoping the fish could lead to him to the phantom mackerel, Egerter followed the fish but whatever they were eating was up on the surface and did not show up on his fish finder. He suspects it could've have been menhaden.
Egerter has been fishing on the Farms where surprisingly there have been some scattered schools of whiting. He's had a couple of days this week where they boated about 30 of them. He said the fish are "smoker" size, or about a pound. The ling fishing has been good enough on the Farms to bring enough people down to the docks to get the boat out.
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He's been fishing anywhere from 60 to 160 of water and running into a ton of out-of-season sea bass. That fishery opens next week and it looks like anglers won't have any problems catching them up.
The air temperatures felt like summer this week, rising up into the 80s on Wednesday. The ocean temp is hovering around the mid-50s. Along the beaches, surf fishermen caught striped bass, bluefish and fluke. It's hard to tell just how many fluke are in tight to the beaches, but Grumpy's Tackle in Seaside Park weighed in three for one angler who was using Gulp Jerk Shads for bait.
It doesn't sound like the fluke are well spread out in the Raritan or Sandy Hook bays. Capt. Hal Hagaman on the Sea Tiger II said a lot of boats are working the same small area. He had little too no drift on a couple of days this week but most his fares caught dinner and then some.
More: What's biting: get the latest fishing reports here
Fluke fishermen could have some breezy conditions heading into the weekend. According to NOAA, wind gusts could reach 20 knots out the east on Friday, before switching to the north, then south and slowing down.
When Jersey Shore native Dan Radel is not reporting the news, you can find him in a college classroom where he is a history professor. Reach him @danielradelapp; 732-643-4072; dradel@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: NJ fishermen haul in golden tilefish from deep offshore
