LEWESHARBOURMARINA.COM
Lewes Harbor Marina Bait and Tackle
217 Anglers Rd., Lewes DE 19958
http://lewesharbourmarina.com
Fishing Report - Delaware Bay / Atlantic Ocean

November 3, 2011 - Stripers Are Here!
The big bass have arrived, right on cue. Timing was good for a strong northeast blow this past weekend to push migratory stripers into Delaware Bay, and fish showed up over shoals at the Bay mouth, just on the heels of the front. Halloween Monday offered the first fishable weather, and local striper sharpies were chomping at the bit to get out and try for rockfish. Evan Falgowski, Garrett Shipley and Lee Abel headed to Overfalls Shoal, where they met with success while trolling Stretch 25+ plugs. The crew caught 9 fish in all while working the running tides. Their 6 bass limit included 35.8 and 28.8 pounders for Garrett, Evan's 34.5 and 30.1 pounders, and Lee's rock weighing 22.9 and 17.2 pounds. Dave Lynam drifted a live mullet at Overfalls to land a 26.8 pound striper. Boats that fished Wednesday found more fish. Chris Wagner was pulling a chartreuse Stretch 25+ plug on Overfalls Wednesday when he connected with a 42.6 pound trophy bass. Evan Falgowski was back at it Wednesday, recording his heaviest striper so far. The lunker linesider he trolled up at Overfalls weighed 46.2 pounds and measured 50 inches long. Patrick Irelan and Jimmy Young towed chartreuse Stretches at Overfalls Wednesday for 4 rockfish to 23.5 pounds. Tuffy Tribbitt used a live eel to tempt his 29.6 pound near citation striper at Overfalls Wednesday. Other boaters had bass while drifting spot and eels, as well as by trolling diving plugs. Fish were also reported by chunkers baiting with bunker on traditional structure. Chilly nights have caused water temps to fall into the mid 50's, which is to the liking of fall rockfish. More northeast wind is forecast for the weekend, which may prevent boats from getting out, but it should help move additional baitfish and gamefish into the area. The action should only get better as more stripers slip into the Bay. The Lewes Harbour Striper Tournament is on now and runs through November 22nd. The annual event offers cash prizes. Participants must register at the store in advance of fishing. The leaderboard so far shows Evan Falgowski's 46.2 pounder on top. Garret Shipley is in Second with a 35.8 pounder. Evan also holds Third with his 34.5 pound striped bass. The Lewes Harbour Tog Tournament ended October 31st. Captain Brent Wiest captured First and Third places with his tautog that scaled 9.62 and 9.33 pounds. Bob Murphy held onto Second with a 9.5 pounder. Thanks to all who entered the contest to make it a success. Togging is still pretty good on the rock Walls and Ice Breakers, with clean water. Bay reefs continue to produce too, as long as conditions are ok. Captain Ted's fares on the Angler had a nice catch at Site 7 Monday. Young fisherman Jacob Gier celebrated his 9th birthday by boating a 7.85 pound citation tautog aboard the Angler. Sea bass season reopened November 1st, and bassing was good at Site 11 and on wrecks in 15 to 20 fathoms.

October 27, 2011 - Record Sheepshead
The string of supersized sheepshead continues. More big sheepshead have been checked in this Fall than during any season in recent memory. The largest so far was a 15.5 pounder that Randy Jensen tangled with at the Ice Breakers on Saturday. That jumbo striped porgy was one pound four ounces heavier than the current Delaware State Record set by Fallyn Smith in 2008. Randy's catch was verified and approved by officials from the Division of Fish and Wildlife, and should replace the existing mark. On Monday, another near record sheepshead hit the dock. Alex Levantovsky was fishing aboard the Grizzly on the Brown Shoal reefs when he landed a 14.8 pound lunker. Captain Carey Evans decked an 11.75 pounder during the same trip. Both fish ate sandfleas. Art Shapiro scored an 11.59 pound sheepshead, and John Klase captured a 10.44 pounder on a Sunday reef trip aboard Martha Marie. Whatever sheepshead still in the Bay will likely start exiting as water temperatures drop. Temps are now in the low 60's and falling. Another species normally normally associated with Spring fishing reappeared this fall. Black drum were mixed in on the same structure as tautog. The Grizzly was anchored on the Brown Shoal reefs last Monday, where fares put 40 tog in the box, plus a pair of drum in the 25 pound class. Anthony Mortarulo was surprised when a 50 pound boomer grabbed a crab he was using for blackfish at the Ice Breakers. Tautog action has generally been good when conditions are right. Some days were tough due to wind and dirty water. Strong currents from a King Tide around the new moon presented problems as well. Tog came from the rock walls and Ice Breakers, and the artificial reef sites. Upper Bay sites such as numbers 3,4,6 and 7 were probably more productive than lower Bay locations, but recently, some fish were pulled from Site 5 in Broadkill Slough and reef 8, the Star Site. Captain Ted toggled the Indian in at the Inner Wall Sunday, where his patrons put 32 tautog on ice. David Stradling got an 8.63 pound tog at the Outer Wall Sunday. Captains Brent and Dave ran Katy Did up the Bay Sunday and returned with 45 plump blackfish. Tom Arnold took an 8.14 pound citation tog aboard the Miss Kirstin Sunday. The leaderboard for the Lewes Harbour Tog Tournament shows Brent Wiest still in First with a 9.62 pounder and Third for his 9.33. Bob Murphy's 9.5 pound tog holds Second. The contest ends October 31. No news on migratory stripers yet, but they should show at any time. Normally there's a push of fish as the full moon in November approaches. Lee Abel was seeking stripers by trolling Overfalls Shoal this week. What he ended up with was the unusual catch of an oversized 11.75 pound Stargazer that grabbed a Stretch 25 plug pulled along the bottom. Stripers continue to be caught in Lewes Canal. Soaking clams and eels between the drawbridge and the train bridge was productive. Casting Storm Shads between the Glade and Gordon's Pond yielded rockfish too. The Lewes Harbour Striper Tournament is on now, and runs through November 22nd. The event offers cash prizes for the three heaviest striped bass brought in by preregistered entrants during that time. Sign up at Lewes Harbour Marina before fishing. Offshore action is still happening. Captain Joe Joachimowski on the Knot Again trolled 40 to 50 fathoms between the Baltimore and Wilmington for some yellowfins, a big dolphin and a 50 pound wahoo. Overnight chunkers had best success. Steve Moore and his group on JoJo overnighted in the Wilmington Friday and returned Saturday morning with a limit of 24 yellowfins taken during a wild predawn bite. Wes and Shane Olson chunked the Wilmington overnight Saturday and iced their limit of 6 yellowfins on the Bad Habit. Wes said there was a load of squid and tinkers in the lights, and tuna fed heavily. The guys also released several other yellowfins, and landed a 70 pound swordfish, plus, they lost a much larger sword.