The spring striped bass season is right around the corner in the Beach Haven area and I will be gearing up for some more of that amazing fishing we had in the fall.  I still have some open charter fishing dates so if you are staying on LBI in May or June book your charter boat trips early because they fill up pretty quickly.  I am holding my fishing charter rates the same price until June 1 where I will be forced to have a price increase due to boat insurance and gasoline price increases.  You can book your LBI charter fishing trip now and lock in last years charter boat prices for the upcoming fishing season.  The Compass Rose is currently in the boat yard and having some work done.  This warm weather we have been having hear in Beach Haven has really made me anxious about getting back on the boat and putting some fishing lines in the water. 

It is hard to argue that this striped bass season in LBI was one of the best ever.  The only argument that one could make is that the weather in the beginning of the fall was down right awful.  We had several natural disasters working against us during the months of September and October but November sure made up for anything that was missed.  The red hot action was occurring just a bit to our North off Island Beach State Park.  The striped bass were holding in this area for about 4 weeks and were gorging themselves on sand eels.  We never really had a cold snap to drive the sand eels away and the mass of stripers heading south from New England just log jammed in this area and went on a feeding frenzy and had no intention of leaving.

We were catching our two fish per person limit in just a matter 1 or 2 hrs.  Often was the case that everyone got so tired of reeling in and releasing so many fish that we went back to the dock early.  Some boats were catching 50 to 60 bass per day if the crew was willing to put in the time and effort.  My average fishing time during this frenzy was just about 2 hrs. 








Unfortunately, everything must come to an end.  I have ended my fishing operation for the year.  The Compass Rose has been winterized until May 1.  I am heading to Costa Rica in the early part of December for some marlin fishing on the West Coast.  I will post some photos when I return.

It's safe to say that the usually amazing September fishery we experience in LBI was a total disappointment. Although Hurricane Irene left little physical damage to the island, she really churning up the waters from where we never recovered. The following Hurricane two weeks later, which caused major flooding to the Lehigh Valley, spilled it's rainwater runoff into the local tributaries and rivers and really muddied up an already fragile situation. The bays and inland waters looked like iced tea for weeks and the fluke moved elsewhere from where they never returned. These two storms accompanied by another Northeaster along with additional days of lousy weather put a nail in the coffin for the rest of the fluking season. I had to cancel several trips due to lack of fish and poor weather. I am not going to take groups out when I know the fishing is poor. Fluke season closed on September 25 and sea bass season is closed until Nov 1. The only saving grace had been a very steady blowfish fishery.

I am taking some time off until striped bass season which should be getting underway in a few weeks. November is traditionally the best month to fish for stripers in LBI. Lets hope all of this rain stops and we can get some clean water for the remainder of the fall season.

The Compass Rose is back in the water after Hurricane Irene and ready to go fishing.  There was little damage to the island despite a category 1 hurricane making a direct hit.  The fish should be extra hungry and I am excited to make my first trip.  We took all of the appropriate precautions for the storm and were lucky to get away with such a small impact.  Let's go fishing.

 

 

Hurricane Irene has made landfall along the New Jersey coast near Little Egg Inlet with 75-mph winds, the first hurricane to make landfall in the Garden State in over a century.

Only two hurricanes have made landfall in New Jersey in the last 200 years.

An 1821 storm crashed into Cape May and zipped up the route of what is now the Garden State Parkway.

A 1902 hurricane struck just north of Atlantic City and ripped out piers in the beach resort.