Article: Plenty of porgies to be had

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Plenty of porgies to be had

Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 09/23/07

This is porgy season. The dour-faced little scrappers are available in the estuaries, Barnegat Bay and on the ocean grounds.

Porgies are good eating, fun to catch, and have long been considered favorites of subsistence fishermen. The possession limit is 50 with a nine-inch minimum size.

Capt. Willie Egerter III, whose Dauntless docks at Broadway Basin, Point Pleasant Beach, said the run really got under way last week with a lot of nice-sized fish moving in on the popular grounds.

"We've been fishing up to the north," he said.

"We're catching porgies, sea bass and some nice triggerfish."

The porgies are mixed in size in the rivers and bays, but there are still a fair share of keepers.

Bob Matthews of the Fisherman's Den, Belmar, said there are a surprising number of keeper porgies in Shark River, and the fish are being caught by bank and bulkhead anglers as well as boaters.

Capt. Sal Cursi, skipper of the Cathy Sea from Sewaren, said the porgies camped along the edges of Raritan Reach and other traditional porgy spots in Raritan Bay, tend to be nice-sized fish.

"I've been fishing for weakfish and bass, but there are plenty of porgies there," he said.

"Anchor in 28 feet of water along the edge of the channel, put out some chum pots, and use mussels and bunker chum.

"You can use sandworms, but you don't need that expensive bait for them," he said. "Use a tiny hook with a red bead — high-low for porgies — and bait with a bit of clam."

Capt. Chris Hueth, skipper of the Big Mohawk from Belmar, said he is catching some porgies along with the sea bass on the rough bottom he is fishing north of Shark River Inlet.

"Sea bass fishing is good," he said. "And we're catching some blackfish."

Porgies run from a half pound to better than 3 and, on light tackle or when caught two at a time, put up a stubborn fight for their size.

The broad-bodied little fish can be recognized by the spiny part of the dorsal fin which is high and longer than the rays, eyes located high in the head and heavy scales on back and sides. They are silvery in color with bright patches and tend toward brassy or brown on top.

Porgies tend to group themselves by sizes, with the small "sand porgies" in shallow water and the big "shad" porgies in deeper water. The big fish often invade the inshore waters, however, so it is wise, when fishing for them, to be set for larger fish. A good rod for porgy fishing is one without too much whip. The idea is to quickly pick up any slack in the line when the nibble is felt. A 7-foot conventional rod will suffice on a party boat. Combine it with a 2/0 reel and 18- to 20-pound test monofilament line or comparable braid. Twelve- to 15-pound test line is the choice of most anglers fishing with spinning tackle, but some go as light as eight- or 10-pound test.

On the open bottom, and this includes mussel beds and semi-hard bottom, you can tie two hooks with dropper loops, one three inches above a bank or dipsey sinker heavy enough to hold bottom and another 18 inches above the first.

Leaders can be from six to as much as 18 inches long. The upper hook is the sea bass and big porgy hook. A third hook can be added when the fish are small, and sometimes all three hooks will have fish on them. Rig with only as much weight as is necessary to hold bottom. Occasionally, if the tide is weak or you are in a sheltered spot, you can get along with very light sinkers. A lot of porgy fishing is done over very rough bottom and over wrecks, in which case you may want to use a single high hook. The Sproat No. 1 or No. 2 is a good bend for the big porgies and, if the fish are mediums, then choose either a No. 2 or No. 4. Small sand porgies at sea or in the rivers or bays were taken on No. 6, No. 8 Sproat or Virginia hooks, but the minimum size regulation prohibits the harvest today.

Bait with 1 1/2-inch strips of clam or bits of sandworm of the same length.

Most party boats provide sea clams for porgy bait, and they are an excellent bait. Sometimes, however, when the action slows up, bits of bloodworms or sandworms will out produce the clams. Select pieces of the skimmer clam with a bit of the soft mantle or stomach attached and lace the hook through it two or three times, leaving the point and barb exposed.