Jaymann's Blog – May 2007 Archive (24)

Thursday, May 31, 2007: The fishing was good in the surf and remains huge nearshore for boaters chasing the bunker. More and more weigh-ins of boated cows over 30 pounds – with some grumbling over the keeping major fish just for a shop photo. There were also upwards of half a dozen bass of over 40 pounds. Some folks are trolling for the bass.

As blackfish season drops to…

Wednesday, May 30, 2007:

Another fine day though winds got testy late. I’m a bit stuck between a rock and an off-the-record spot. I have a few very upbeat reports of cow bass all but packed under the bunker pods. Try bass over 50 pounds. I know of two but heard there were more. One very dedicated bassers said he’s had three fish over 40 pounds, all catch-and-release. The technique is…

Tuesday, May 29, 2007:

Even with the passage of a cold front, the weather remains profoundly cooperative. In fact, today was the nicest day in the past week, which is saying a lot. Crystal clear conditions with a slightly testy north…

Jamison Stone, 11, poses with a wild hog he said he killed near Delta, Ala., on May 3. His father said the animal weighed 1,051 pounds.

Monday, May 28, 2007:

I take it back. In my last blog I…

Sunday, May 27, 2007: What a fishing day – what a fishing weekend. Low winds, ideal surf and bay conditions and a fair showing of quarry, though many folks would have liked better takes on the bass front. Still, the angling pressure was through the roof, especially boat-wise – though it was not anywhere near the record-breaking numbers I had thought after seeing all the traffic coming on the…

Friday, May 25, 2007:

What’s catching out there?

You tell me. (Actually I have some hot-ish striper news below)

In the past 36 hours I’ve seen a ton of fishing folks arriving for the holiday weekend.…

Tuesday, May 22, 2007: I have word that the Surf City beaches could open by tomorrow. The DEP has sighed off (i.e. agreed with) the Army Corps assertion that the beaches are safe.

Here’s how the beach thing will play out this summer.

First, the impact of the beach will blow away beachgoers. The Surf City sands are huge, wide and perfectly…

Wildfire Well Dones and Slow Lane Insane

Like many appreciative folks, I want to profusely thank the firefighters and police officers that did an outstanding job in fighting the Pinelands blaze – and the related traffic nightmares in Stafford.…

Sunday, May 20, 2007: Despite wholly honking west winds, many folks were fishing, primarily surfside – boating had its proponents especially west bay where the land knocked the winds down a bit.

For the umpteenth day in row, the surfside hooking was amazingly pop-up in nature. A beach would shine one day while nearby beaches go comatose, then, the next day, the comatose beach would offer…

Friday, May 18, 2007:

Weather things are actually a tad worse than the forecasters had pegged. The winds are a solid 25 out of the NE and the rains were pretty steady last night, though they’ve been reduced to spits by midday. I’m wondering if the cleanup of the surf will happen by…

Thursday, May 17, 2007:…

IMPORTANT: TRAVEL IN MANY AREAS OF MANAHAWKIN IS IMPOSSIBLE -- AVOID

Wednesday, May 16, 2007: Fishing is tough with winds to 40 mph along the beach and across the bay.

2 p.m. – Winds have gone gonzo with the wildfire following in its…

Monday, May 14, 2007:

Bigger bass are showing. Here’s an interesting email: “Jay, I was fishing late afternoon Sunday with all the guys on my street. We had been getting shorts and as it usually goes one of the guys caught a 31"er. Great. Then he hooks and loses another big one in the wash after getting caught up in another’s line. Then he caught a 33"er then a 35'er and finally a…

(Above: Vehicles think twice before proceeding west on Route 72. This is right as the fire races across the road. That Fire Service truck was the only emergency vehicle on-scene.)

EMERGENCY…

Saturday/Sunday -- May 12, 13

Breezes played the spoiler for some boat fishermen today (Sunday).

I have reports of nonstop hooking on the beach toward the south. Clams attracted bass after bass, all small but as plentiful as it gets on a couple beaches. Big bass also as hard to come by as it gets. Still, a few keepers came to light.

Emails and reports:



“Another weekend of decent striper fishing despite the high winds. Clams are the ticket although most of the fish…

Friday, May 11, 2007: Very nice day though the south winds added a bit of a nip for surfcasters using clams to catch, well, bluefish. Yep, the bluefish are so ravenous they’re gulping down clams – not really their fair foodstuff. A phone report from Mid-Island told of huge slammers taking those clams. Far more common, are the reports of small blues going for Sassies and such. Doc T. was into those – and having fun. Hey, when you can say “It’s all…

Wednesday, May 09, 2007:

Lots of coastal fog today, making boat fishing very tricky, especially close to LBI. The winds backed down and it seems there should be some decent breaks in the gusts, possibly right through the weekend. Look for south winds until the weekend then light north.

Rogue weakies…

Tuesday, May 08, 2007: Busy day in the SandPaper neighborhood, as the season of plenty moves in. I have gotten a couple reports of fair bassing but there is still a slowdown, as much from the winds (fading today) as the bluefish bombardment.

Another weekly column section.

TOG BLOG: Over the weekend, fishing buddy Walt P. went out in search of his favorite quarry, tog. He worked the rocks of Barnegat Inlet by anchoring up and chumming. Nada.

I had previously mentioned in…

Monday, May 07, 2007: Waves: large, windblown

How about that storm off North Carolina? Waves over 25 feet already – and an expected deepening of the stationary low, which will tuck itself just below the Cape Hatteras jut of land. We may see large ground swells waves from that southerly low but our weather should be fine – though winds today are actually brisker (NE) than forecast, also thanks to that low.

And did you see the devastation from those Midwest tornadoes?…