Absecon Inlet Sportsman Center report 12-3

[jackdaniels]

Absecon Bay Sportsman Center
81 Natalie Terrace
Absecon, NJ
(609) 484-0409
Website www.abseconbay.com
Email go-fish@abseconbay.com


December 2, 2009, Spot aren't just for the back bay and inlet any more! It looks like the month of December has started the HOT striper fishing. After the post Thanksgiving blow I got out Jerry Dipietro out on Sunday morning where we got a good start in the inlet with a pair of keepers and three shorts. When that bite slowed up we headed out front. I don't get out in the ocean much but the area in front of the Brigantine hotel has usually been good for me so without any hard reports that's where I headed. Thanks to the miracle of satellites and modern electronics I just picked the shallowest spot on the Brigantine shoal and started drifting Spot. The top of the lump didn't hold anything, but as we started sliding off the side Jerry had his spot banged and it started! We would drift from 12' to 20' and we had constant bites on the slope.

Whenever the depth finder showed fish we hooked up. It was amazing that before we hooked a fish there were a couple very scattered boats in the area and within a half hour there were at least twenty making exactly the same drift as well as some trollers crisscrossing the area. It seemed like the trolling was resulting in some shorts and lots of bluefish but those fishing spot like us were the ones getting constant bass action. Jerry had his bonus card so we brought home five nice sized bass a couple slammer blues and released more than we kept.

On Monday the south wind that was building the day before got stronger and the inlet was the color of cafe con leche and only one short and a swing and a miss came out of there. It took some looking around but I finally found some clean water and scattered fish up in the Little Bay area and drifting the banks paid of again for Ed and his clan.

Friday probably would have been a great day but my trip canceled and I didn't make it out. Not to worry I've got plenty of winterizing and shrink wrapping to do in the yard. But the off day let me help Ray catch up so If you need your boat prepped for winter we can now do it almost immediately. We did so good that Ray snuck off early and drift a couple spot himself. I believe these are the first two keepers he had a chance to catch all year. They came from the ICW around the 175 marker so it looks like the fish are moving in.

Finally I get to today's action. It looks like the school migration is ON! Ron Quillam brought a crew down from PA and we were in the inlet at daybreak The tide was still running in hard and I made several drifts. Since I wanted something a little faster I headed out to Brigantine Shoals where I had left them biting Sunday. The sun still hadn't quite broke the horizon, but there was plenty of light to see the cloud of birds right on the mark I had left a couple days before. I stopped so the wind would blow us toward the action, but we probably didn't get fifty feet before two of the rods bent over with nice fish. By the time we got those fish landed and we re-rigged the marks were off the machine and the birds were balled up a little farther up the shoal. I repositioned and the exact scenario replayed. This time the birds made a departure not to be seen this morning. Luckily the fish didn't and we worked the drop off and stayed in constant action.

I had filled the live well with over three dozen lively spot and we fed every one to hungry bass. Most of them resulted in solid hook ups with fish in the 27" to 32" class. with a majority over the 28" keeper line. The lunker of the day went 17 1/2 pounds. We had only one bluefish hooked but he chomped thru the 40# leader along side the boat. Everyone was well worn down by that time and we headed in with a nice limit to take back to freshwater locked Philadelphia.

When I came back thru the inlet I was surprised to see the inlet jammed with boats. Evidently when the tide turned there the light switch lit up the bass. From customer reports everyone caught fish and plenty of them. My live well was empty so I didn't get a chance to see how good it was, but with the water temperature only touching 50 degrees I think that this is just the start of the school migration thru our area. If you enjoy bass fishing I hope you haven't put your boat away yet because the very best is yet to come. Unfortunately tomorrow looks like a blow out, but the weekend looks more than fishable. Maybe a little on the cool side, but it is December.

I will be open every day and stocked with all the bait an trolling and jigging tackle you could possibly need until New Years so just stop by and go get 'em. I will also be hauling, storing and winterizing boats right on thru so if you are getting rushed to block your boat for the season give me a call and I'll keep you fishing and probably save you some money as well.

I'm looking forward to catching these fish as long as they hang in here . I do have plenty of open days thru December so If you want to make a trip and the weather looks good, give me a call. If I'm open I can leave the dock with only minutes notice.