Cape May Fishing Report

[CapeMayRay]

Today I finally got rid of the skunk. It was a beautiful day in Cape May. We went out this afternoon with 2 hours left on the bottom of the tide. Found a great looking area that was draining into the main channel. Water was 63 degrees and pretty clean. We were frustrated by some nice blues that would follow our flies but would not hit.

When the tide was about to change we headed to the inlet where we found the dredge working. The water was 58 degrees and looked like mud. We worked the rocks and found a bunch of hungry blues and a couple of sea herring.

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Action was fast and furious for a while, with a number of double hook ups. I was using intermediate line and clousers and small bunker flies. I Ended with 2 bite offs and three severely chew flies. Pete was using sinking line and deceivers.

My sea herring that was just short of 18 inches took a bunker fly where normally they hit the small skinny stuff.

No signs of the striped ones but we should find a few this week. It just felt good to land some fish on the fly again.

Kept 7 blues for the table and one herring for bait. They had good size bay anchovies in them.

[Dave Sikorski]

Fantastic!

Glad to see you're back into them Ray and glad to see your reports yet again. The offseason has been way to long.

-D

[CapeMayRay]

Still looking for that first striper. Took a quick hit and run trip for 2 hours this afternoon on the start of the outgoing tide. Got three blues the same size as yesterday in a back creek mouth 62.7 degrees on yellow white clouser.

Inlet had the dredge working again and the water was ugly brown. Got two more blues on the same clouser. Beautiful day except for a good breeze making some chop along the rocks.

This afternoon I checked with the bait guys surf fishing and sand sharks were the only action along the Cape May beach front.

[jemche]

way to go ray. you will get that striper soon.

[CapeMayRay]

Had a husband and wife spin charter today. Water as we passed by the inlet was 54.5 We started in the same area where I caught on the fly yesterday. Worked a nice wide creek and got a blue on popping plug and missed a few. Water there was 62 to almost 64 degrees.

Tried a few other spots with no luck and decided to chum with clam belles and bait up with clam and herring. Found no stripers but the blues gave us plenty of action along with some skates.

All the blues were filled with large grass shrimp and small crabs. No signs of bait fish in their stomachs.

Charter had a lot of fun and took home some blues for dinner.

Talked to a number of guys that fish the same areas that I do and the news is all the same. Stripers just aren't around anywhere whether using bait, lures or flies. We are all wondering what is going on.

It is getting real late and the water is getting warm. They should of been here by now. We have the blues and fluke, but we always have the bass long before they arrive.

Had no desire to try a personal trip tonight. If the bass aren't hitting the clam, they are just not there.

[CapeMayRay]

Despite dismal fishing reports yesterday from two fly club members, Ken Kelly and Glenn Hertzler, who where out fishing yesterday, Pete and I decided to give it a try Sunday afternoon on the top of the tide.

Yesterday when I checked the surf fishermen on the beach, I found they did really good. I saw at least 7 keepers on the sand and heard tell of a really big one landed.

I had to give it a try. We left the dock at around 1:30. The water had an aqua-white look to it from all the rain last night. We tried on the lee shore of the the north inlet jetty. The sand was blowing off the beach drifting like snow over the rocks and the waves were crashing and splashing over the top further out. (should be great striper weather) We got no hits. We tried the other side but found it too difficult to fish and stay off the rocks with all the wind.

With the tide starting out we went to the back bay and worked a number of creeks, creek mouths and sod banks. Only found water up to 58 degrees, with a lot of chop and waves splashing over the sod banks. We worked it all to death with out a strike. Even with the electric motor it was tough controlling the boat.

With it cold, raw and windy (we could see vapor as we breathed) we gave up and headed in to warm up. Atleast we gave it try.

[CapeMayRay]

Didn't fish Tuesday, Canceled charter with the strong winds all day. Took a quick look up on the beach and found the water at the surf was like coffee.

Got out this afternoon near the top of the tide. Still pretty breezy. There was a little chop but very doable. Worked the inlet rocks and found 7 blues to 23 inches. Water was nice and clean and 54.5 to 55.6 Not a hot bite but pretty good action. Clousers and jiggies yellow/white on sinking line.

Worked along the beach and picked up 3 sea herring on small jiggies, which I keep to salt down for bait.

With the tide going out I decided to give the back bay a shot. Worked three creek mouths and a number of points. The water was nice and clean with the highest temp being 57.9 Zero signs of life, bait etc. Got one more mercy 21 inch blue on a small bunker fly.

As it got dark it started getting pretty cold and it felt good to get into the car. Still searching for that first striper on the fly.

[CapeMayRay]

Started out nice in Cape May today. Sunny warm and only a gentle wind. By afternoon the wind really kicked up out of the southeast and it got cold with a prediction of showers.

I gave my afternoon Husband and wife fly charter the option to reschedule as it was his first saltwater striper fly trip and conditions didn't look real good for fly fishing.

He decided he wanted to give it a go. We headed to the inlet where the water was 54.6 and very clean. Wind and wave action was going to be a pain but doable.

Just as we started fishing we got hailed over for a safety inspection from the Coast Guard. Since we were the only boat out and about, we where picked.

Inspection only took about 10 minutes. Since I had all the required equipment plus it was fast and easy. They were just doing their job and very courteous.

Right as we started fishing the husband landed a small striper. He was using 300 sinking line and spearing type fly. I thought we were in for a super afternoon.

We worked the rocks and had a couple more hits but not more fish. With the tide starting out and the waves getting bigger we decided to try in the back bay.

Worked a couple of creeks were the best temps we could find was 57.6 Worked a couple of points where we missed another bass on the fly and had a couple of hits.

Last spot we tried his wife caught her first striper ever on a plug. With the wind not letting up and it getting pretty cold they wanted to head in early to warm up and get dinner.

I thought about going back out myself but I was a bit cold and hungry too. Was nice to see the first bass starting to hit in the back. Looks like things will start getting better from her.

Couldnt get pictures in. Can't figure out why my pictures are all coming out big.

[CapeMayRay]

Not a fly report but we are atleast starting to see some striper action.

Friday weather was nice all day. Had light tackle charter Friday evening. Left the dock around 6:00 p.m. Light wind from the east north east. Water at the inlet 55.6 We picked a small striper along the inlet rocks and then worked the outside of the inlet, where we found a big sea swell and caught a mess of blues.


Close to sunset we went into the back bay and find some warmer water. With the new moon water was super high and over the sod banks. We worked some creeks and outflows off the top of sod banks and found water in 59 to 62 degree range. Here we picked another small striper and a couple more blues.

As the sun went down the wind kicked up out of the northeast and it got cold and raw and a good chop made working the open area difficult. We searched around the bridge lights but with the wind and tide pushing in the same direction fishing was difficult and there was no sign of activity.

With it getting sort of foggy and cold we headed in.

[CapeMayRay]

Was planning on an afternoon trip along the beach front in search of weakies, but went to the beach this morning and found fairly good surf and figured may not be able to get in close to the beach with the wave activity.

Must of been 40 guys fishing the surf this morning. Only fish I saw caught were skates and sharks, but I did not check out the whole beach.
Water was clean so I decided to give it a quick shot in the back by boat.

Pete was busy, Glenn from the club was out in his boat and Ken Kelly was on the water already.

Glenn was working the point and the inlet. Ken was working the inlet and the back. Both said it was bad. I decided to do the run and gun with a plug checking out some creeks that had warm water to see if I could find anything. Only wanted to fish 10 to 12 am.

With the tide better than half out I found some 62.4 water in a wide shallow creek. The water was a little brown from the super high new moon tide. Got first blue on plug and then fished the fly. Water was only 1 to 4 feet deep so I used a floating line and spearing type fly.

First I caught another blue on the fly and then I got 22 1/2 inch bass followed by an 18 incher. Most of my action came from where a small creek fed into this larger one. Almost ended up getting stuck back there. As I was unhooking a fish a the northwest wind pushed me up on a mud flat and I had a difficult time getting off with the outgoing tide and the wind pushing me up on it.

The one bass was spitting out tons of grass shrimp all over the boat when I brought him aboard.

As I worked my way out of the creek I got one more hit and had a bigger bass (maybe 26 inches or better) follow my fly and swirl away last minute right by the boat. I think I was just lucky to hit the right spot as over all the fishing has been super tough. The bluefish should be all over and the striper action should be much better.