Tag: Avalon fishing

The amazing Weakfish come back, On The Water Magazine May issue

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What is unbelievably  refreshing is how resilient  the weakfish have proved to be. Considering in 2009 Dr. Jamie Geiger of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, suggested that the weakfish stock may have fallen to such lows that managers might wish to consider invoking the provisions of the Endangered Species Act as one of the management tools.  The listing seemed like  a sure bet. As  any fish stock  experiencing  decades of unlimited  commercial and recreational  harvest would surely end  up that way. A timely weakfish recovery was not expected by the ASMFC under any circumstances.

The good news is  they were wrong.  With only three years of historic weakfish regulations  (limited harvest) they are showing up in numbers not seen in decades along the entire east coast.

The return of the weakfish in  this month’s (May )issue of  On The Water magazine covers it well.

http://www.onthewater.com/issues/

Update: 2014 weakfish season was the best for me in a decade.

Beautiful spring weakfish I caught from the sand.

Beautiful spring weakfish I caught from the sand.


CJ Polhamus  with his 30" spring tide runner weakfish

CJ Polhamus with his 30″ spring 2014 tide runner weakfish


Wayne McDermott and a summer 2014 weakfish

Wayne McDermott and a summer 2014 weakfish


Bill with a nice size spring 2014 weakfish

Bill with a nice size spring 2014 weakfish

Kensdock Report: Striped Bass, weakfish and summer flounder show

IMG_0783 Short stripers have gathered in good numbers at select locations on the Delaware Bay side of Cape May County.  There has been  at least one keeper striper caught  from the ocean beach side of the county.  Blood worms are the only bait  to use at this point. There has been 3 summer flounder caught and one confirmed  8 # weakfish. This cold snap will slow the bite until the temperature bounces back up.

Kensdock Report: Last U.S. smelting plant closing will cost outdoor sportsmen

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The closing of the last United States  lead processing  plant will force all lead to  be shipped in from over seas, with the exception of recycled lead. The closing is a direct result  of  a 1000% increase in new  U.S. DEP requirements. Do not blame President Obama, the rules were  set in motion before he was elected.   The cost of processed lead in the United States will skyrocket.  Hunters, fishermen and the target shooter will feel a direct hit. Lead jig heads and ammunition  are expected to rise. The U.S. military stock piled ammunition  at a historic rate prior to the closing. This caused an ammo shortage and a record price increase  in itself.  However,  the military induced  price increase  will pale in comparison of what is to come.  Aviation fuel requires 2g lead per gallon. The extra cost will push jet fuel cost   and without doubt increase  airfare.  The smelting plant closing will reach far beyond increasing the cost of outdoor sports. It will create a redistribution of wealth, pushing more U.S. dollars to china and peru.  The smelting plant was in business for a 120 years. Now it becomes a victim of the American manufacturing blight,  joining the  U.S. steel plants in Pennsylvania and the auto manufacturing plants of Detroit .

 

 

Kensdock Report: NJ Delaware Bay artificial reef

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The  NJ DEP, NJ F&G,  NJ Federation of Sportsmen’s clubs, NJ Outdoor Alliance and the JCAA  have  been  closing in on approval for New Jersey’s first artificial reef site in the Delaware Bay. While the exact site has not been chosen, conditions needed for approval favor the lower bay. This Delaware Bay reef site has the potential to be the most productive fishing location on the east coast.

Kensdock Report: Jimmy Fee catching weakfish, On The Water TV Sunday Jan.19

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Cape May County, NJ weakfish late June 2013.

The weakfish has carved a special place within  many saltwater fishermen. If you are one of them, do not miss this week’s  episode of On The Water fishing show.  Sunday at 10AM on Comcast SportsNet New England. The show is all about the fish that are found   in the New Jersey region. The weakfish are making a come back,  due to the efforts of  many saltwater fishermen. They took the time to write a letter, attend a hearing or make a phone call, asking for a moratorium.  It is such a beautiful thing to see the purple  hue  of the weakfish return to our waters. The management system works best when the  participants  get involved.

Kensdock Report: Cape May Striper bite hot for a few

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Missy Alcorn with a nice late season Striped Bass

The striper bite here in Cape May County  has been hot over the last week for those in the know.  For those that are not in the loop it has been slow  fishing.  The  lumps just off the beach about two miles have produced a good amount of keeper stripers for the fisherman that have stayed dialed in.  The Delaware Bay has  consistently produced some heavyweight stripers  for a few sharpies, they are not the information sharing type.

Kensdock Report: North Jersey beaches hold Stripers

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The beach fishing is obviously not happening in Cape May County at this point. However, that did not stop  Jeff and crew from catching stripers from the beach this week, the key, they headed  north to ******  ***** State Park .  They  found many nice stripers there,  including the one Jeff is holding  above. Check out, Nick and Betty’s website for updated  surf fishing reports from North Jersey.

Kensdock Report: Striper bite

 

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The striper bite remains slow at best.  Fishermen with extensive local knowledge, coupled with over the top effort, are catching a few stripers,  including a few 50 pounders.  The large migratory school  stripers should  show up at some point. The lure of choice here in Cape May County this fall,  is called  patience…  I have been able to find a few resident stripers in the back waters, how long they hold remains to be seen.

Kensdock Report: Cape May co. stripers, red drum and specks

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Today I was sitting on my couch looking across the sound, wondering when the migratory fish are going to show up. I have been fishing hard and often,  so far I have not seen or caught  any migratory fish.  I made it out today in-between  wind gust and rain, once again I caught resident fish.  The pictures of  red drum, stripers and specks that I have posted over the last month are  resident fish. The fall migratory fish are not in Cape May County NJ waters yet.  The last year that the migratory fish were this late showing up  was 1998. That year turned out to be the best fall fishing in my lifetime, lets hope for a repeat of the banner fall fishing of 1998.

Kensdock Report: Stripers in the surf

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Surf fishermen day dreams  are made out of  days like today.  A fall crisp north-west wind  blowing, clouds  of anchovies, sand eels and peanut bunker in the surf.   Big Mike pictured above, topped off the morning with his keeper striper.