Tag: weakfish cape may co

Uncategorized

Kensdock Report: North Jersey beaches hold Stripers

by  •  • 0 Comments
                                                                                          IMG_2144
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.
Uncategorized

Kensdock Report: August Back Bay Summer Flounder 2013

by  •  • 0 Comments

flounder 086

The August  back bay flounder bite continues to be slow but steady. Wayne and Jon put off their annual June flounder fishing vacation until August, due to the record rain fall in June (poor fishing conditions).  They fished five of their 7 day vacation in the back bay. We found keeper flounder on every trip coupled with weakfish.  The water temperature was 72 degrees on the top of the incoming today. Fishing pressure has been very light in the back bay during the week.

Uncategorized

2013 Grassy Sound Flounder Tournament

by  •  • 0 Comments
Photo
                  Ken McDermott, Chip Gruff and Steve Wonder
Jim and Debbie Moors have created a Cape May County, NJ tradition with their annual Back bay flounder tournament. If you are a sport fisherman you should make time for this annual event. This year, due to the record rainfall, coupled recently with SW wind, the challenge has been finding clean water in the correct temperature range for flounder. During the tournament,  areas containing the correct conditions were not only hard to find,  the conditions only held for a short period of the tide. The upside to this years  prevailing conditions, is large flounder remain in the back bay areas later in the summer. Chip Gruff caught a doormat flounder in the back bay on 7-25-13 , his second jumbo  of the season. However, Steve Wonder caught the heaviest flounder during the tournament. The Weakfish continue to bite when the conditions are good. Ed Teise  caught and released a beautiful weakfish along with a few summer stripped bass on 7-25-13.   I caught three  mid summer back bay keeper flounder during my last trip 7-22-13.  Gotta love summer at the seashore in  Cape May County, NJ.
Uncategorized

Kensdock Report: Quick up date flounder/striper/offshore

by  •  • 0 Comments
Some nice keeper flounder have been caught in the back bay over the last few days. Ed Teise and Harold had 5 keepers on the last trip. I had one keeper on a short 30 minute trip. A few Kids on a rental boat had two keeper flounder yesterday. The fishermen that put the effort in {on the water at daybreak} are enjoying a good summertime striper bite. At sunset the striper bite has been slow. The best offshore flounder fishermen I know Jowl from Stone Harbor had 3 keeper flounder from the old grounds. Not good. This time of year he usually has his limit of big flounder. Most fishermen have been returning from offshore with nothing in the box. Hopefully it will pick up before the end of the season.  For those that fish smart {get a Roffer’s report and go the distance} the offshore bite has been good.  
Uncategorized

The Fishery Conservation Transition Act (FCTA)

by  •  • 0 Comments

Recently, legislation named  the Fishery Conservation Transition Act (FCTA) was introduced in Washington DC by  United States Senator Bill Nelson that will ensure the conservation intent of the Magnusson Stevens fishery  conservation and management act {MSA} is upheld, while providing the funding and orders to upgrade the science and data collection to state of the art.

FCTA has five key areas that will steer NOAA Fisheries back towards the true intentions of the overfishing amendments made to MSA in 2006.

  • Filling gaps in MSA regarding multispecies fisheries by mandating specific conservation and science-based actions that would be taken in part to allow fishing for healthy stocks;
  • Allowing reasonable time to transition to a new management framework that will deal more rationally and scientifically with rebuilding of stocks undergoing overfishing;
  • Sharpening MSA economic assistance programs to insure funding is directed to those most affected by closures after carrying out full examination of who would be affected by closure;
  • Requiring the agency to look at alternative fishery management measures to enhance the sustainability of an overfished stock and carry out more frequent stock assessments;
  • Directing the agency, along with the National Academy of Science, to conduct a long-needed study on questions surrounding multispecies complexes and how all stocks in such a fishery can be managed for maximum yield.
     A group of marine recreational fishing, boating, and conservation organizations and businesses, including the American Sportfishing Association (ASA), The Billfish Foundation (TBF), the Center for Coastal Conservation (Center), the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA), the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF), the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) and the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) lauds the introduction of the FCTA and strongly supports the new bill. The coalition will continue to advocate with Members of Congress for their support of the bill and to seek additional sponsors. 
Note:
The { FCTA} differs greatly from the RFA backed {MSA} flexibility bill. The {MSA} flexibility bill does nothing to improve the data or the science.
  

The Fishery Conservation Transition Act Fact Sheet

S.3594, The Fishery Conservation Transition Act, was introduced by Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) on July 15, 2010. FCTA has five key areas which steer NOAA Fisheries back to the intent of the 2006 reauthorization of the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA): ending overfishing.

1. A Transition to Rational Management and Sustainable Fishing – Bill Section Two

FCTA addresses current MSA problems pertaining to fishing in a fishery that includes a stock that is undergoing overfishing. Gaps in MSA regarding multispecies complexes have led to overreaching moves such as the current proposal in the South Atlantic to close all bottom fishing for all snapper-grouper species in order to carry out rebuilding of one species — red snapper. This section maintains the prohibition on fishing for an overfished stock. However, FCTA gives the Secretary of Commerce the ability to allow fishing for other stocks in the complex IF specific thresholds are met and IF certain conservation actions prescribed in the bill are being taken, such as:

• Measures to minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality;

• Actions to improve data collection and implementation of a targeted research and monitoring program for the challenged fish stock and the fishery as a whole;

• A program for on-board observers;

• Immediate steps to close stock assessment data gaps in that fishery complex including a stock assessment for the challenged stock, and

• A report from the regional fishery management council on a long-term discard mortality reduction program for the challenged stock.

2. Time to Transition – Bill Section Two

FCTA gives NOAA Fisheries and the regional councils time to transition to a new management framework that will deal more rationally and scientifically with rebuilding of stocks undergoing overfishing. Closures will still be an option but only after actions above have been taken. Under FCTA, if actions above have been taken and total fishing closures are still deemed necessary, they would not be considered before the end of fishery year 2015.

3. Economic Assistance – Bill Section Three

FCTA amends MSA’s economic assistance program to better ensure funding is targeted to those directly affected by closures. The bill more specifically directs the Commerce Secretary to carry out an examination of who is being affected and how they are being affected when prioritizing economic assistance.

4. Better Information Gathering and Use – Bill Section Five

FCTA directs Commerce to carry out better social and economic data gathering and analysis pertaining to a given fishery closure decision and directs the department to look at alternative fishery management measures. Requirements in this area include analysis of social and economic impacts on fishing communities and industries related to the fishery in question; fishery management measures to enhance the sustainability of the challenged stock; an evaluation of alternative measures to enhance the sustainability of that stock and a stock assessment update for stocks undergoing overfishing every two years and a full assessment at least every five years.

5. National Academy of Science Study – Bill Section Five

FCTA directs the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a National Academy of Science study focused on questions surrounding multispecies complexes and the impediments to managing all stocks in such a fishery to maximum sustainable yield.

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

Uncategorized

Kensdock Report:Quick flounder fishing update

by  •  • 2 Comments
For those flounder fishermen that possess the ability to find keeper flounder the back bay areas are still producing keeper fluke. Wally  Bockman caught 5 keeper flounder from the back bay yesterday. Although  far from the 39 keepers him and his crew boated last week from the waters of the Delaware Bay, 5 keepers is an excellent catch for July  in the back bay.
 Eric Reeves  caught an 28″ flounder to top off his limit catch. Reeves was also a top finisher in the annual good old boys back bay flounder tournament.  I should have a few reports on weakfish as the tide cycles around.  All of the fishermen that are targeting weakies are releasing the fish due to the condition of the stock.
John C. from Stone harbor caught 5 kingfish from the beach yesterday. The water temperature was 74 degrees at high tide, water clarity was an 8 with 10 being the clearest water.
Uncategorized

Kensdock report: Flounder update/ weakfish

by  •  • 0 Comments

There is a school of large flounder {6-7 pound fish} in the back bay areas of Cape May co. the school has been moving around from Avalon to Cape May. I have  been unlucky by showing up after the bite. I have seen the fish unfortunately for me they have been in someone else’s cooler.When you limit out with flounder that average 6 pounds in the back bay you have had a special fishing trip. The guy who had the large flounder was using a rig that is common for offshore fluke fishermen,a pink glowing plastic squid combined with bait. The rig is not as important as finding the  school during the bite. Good luck. Wally Bockman and crew boated an impressive 39 keeper flounder yesterday. He was tight lipped as to the location. I am sure he was not fishing the back bay waters. There has been a few weakfish caught in the last week. The top fishermen that are targeting weakfish and catching have been releasing the breeders.  Dr.Gary has caught two weakfish while he was flounder fishing and released both of them. Don  caught a 24″ weakfish  he also released it. A few weakfish were caught and retained by fishermen on rental boats this week. The water temperature at high tide was 64 degrees, the water clarity was a 5.

Uncategorized

Kensdock report: Tuesday flounder update

by  •  • 0 Comments
The windy conditions made fishing the best back bay flounder areas out of the question today.Wayne did manage to catch two nice keeper flounder today. Wayne and Jon experienced some great flounder action during the week. The water temperature was 63 degrees on the top of the tide.The water clarity was a 9 in the area we fished, on a scale of 1-10 with 10 representing the clearest water. The amount of effort to find the fish was a 2 on a scale of 1-10 , with 1 representing the least amount of effort.
Uncategorized

Kensdock Report: 6-9-10 Flounder fishing trip

by  •  • 0 Comments
We were ducking the salt water being thrown over the starboard side of the skiff as we headed across the back waters. The wind was creating unfishable conditions for flounder in the open water so we headed back up to the wood line for cover.Sure enough we found flounder stacked up, the down side was they were all between 16″ and 17.5. Total shorts 21.  We did find one 20″ keeper flounder.Our fishing trip was cut short due to engine issues. Total fishing time not including run time was 35 minutes. The water temperature was 62 degrees. The water clarity was an  8 on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the clearest. The amount of effort to find the flounder was a 5 on a scale of 1-10 with 1 representing the least amount of effort.
Uncategorized

Kensdock Report: Flounder fishing update

by  •  • 2 Comments
                            
We headed out flounder fishing in the back bay about 2:00 yesterday we fished until  4:30. The flounder fishing was very slow. I managed only one keeper flounder. The flounder are simple not here in any numbers {yet}?. There is still a remote chance that more keepers will move in. I have 16 keeper flounder for the 2010 flounder season to date, the lowest number of keepers to date in 10 years.  Wally B., Dr. Gary, Terry H., are a few Cape May County flounder fishermen that average over a hundred keeper flounder  a year. They are all off to a slow start this year,as far as keeper flounder are concerned. This  upcoming  week has  been traditionaly {for me} the best week for flounder fishing in the back bay waters. The water temperature yesterday was 71 degrees at high tide. Water clarity was poor.