A Whale of a Time Fishing

The other day Clay Harrison and his boys were fishing about two miles from the Indian River Inlet when they had some unexpected company.   A humpback whale breached in front of their boat while it was feeding on bunker.  They took some time to let it pass by and shot a few pictures.  It was quite an experience to see one that close to shore in only forty feet of water.  Humpback whales have come this close in the past chasing bait fish schools.  The boys noticed on the fish finder you could see the large whale and another reading looked like it could have been a baby whale as well.  They never saw the baby breach and only saw the humpback whale once.  In the past few days everyone has been so frenzied about sharks this was a nice break from the latest media frenzy.

A hammerhead shark washed up on Fenwick Island beach the other day and apparently it may be the same one that was found floundering in the surf in Ocean City, MD the night before.  The one in OC was full of baby hammerheads and were released by the help of some good Samaritans.  In one of the photos floating around  Facebook you can see a wire leader and hook in the picture.  These folks did not catch this shark and most likely it was caught earlier that day form a boat or the surf.  That is just a guess and is not facts, except for the wire leader in the picture that is the only evidence it had been caught previously.  Most likely the line had broken on the retrieve or was cut.  No one knows how the shark dies it was buried by the town of Fenwick before any necropsy could be performed.  The waters are safe don’t freak out about sharks, they live int he ocean, not much can be done about that we are treading on their territory.

So what is going on out there that you can catch?  Flounder is getting hotter and hotter in all the area waters.  From the ocean and Delaware bay sites to the Lewes canal, Broadkill River, and Inland Bays.   Minnows and Gulp have been the best baits.  Some have used squid strips on bucktails jigging along the bottom.  Soft plastics work well if you don’t want to use squid, pink is a good color to use.  The surf has plenty of flounder out there too, you just have to work for them a little.  Jigging or using sand fleas works well.  minnows are okay but the saltwater will kill them fast.  The charters have been racking them up as well, from private charters to the head boats.  You can find a great charter service on our Business Directory Charter section  You just have to put in the time and you will produce some nice flattie action.  It would be great if the spot would show up to use for bait they are excellent flounder candy.

The flies have been rough this past week from the west winds at the beach.  Our Gneux More Gnaughty Gnat spray works wonders on them.

Croaker has been a hot catch too while flounder fishing the Delaware bay and ocean sites.  They are being caught as far up as Woodland beach and possibly farther.  Clam, squid,and fishbites works well for them.  Top and bottom rigs and you could double up on catches.  My Diamond State Tackle top and bottom rigs have been doing well on the double ups.  Croaker have been in the surf, just not as heavy as other places.  Kingfish have been decent in the surf if you can find them.  The surf has been quiet the past few days.  Might have something to do with the Sahara desert like temperatures and bright sunlight.  Best to fish during the early morning and late evening to dark.  Puffers and burr fish are still thick in the surf once you find them moving about.  Big butterfly rays are showing up.  You know the ones that look like the size of a car hood.  A few have been mistaken for shark fins when they flip the tips of their wings up chasing food.  I heard one was seen jumping out of the water and that always gets people excited and freaked out.

Weakfish are making an appearance but only in the spike trout sizes.  I have seen very few to none of the larger ones like last year and hopefully that will change up soon.  They were making a nice comeback for the last two years.  Hopefully that trend will continue. I have seen several nice ones from the back bays of New Jersey.   They are hitting the same baits croaker and kingfish are after.  Top and bottom rigs as well.  A small hammerhead was caught in the surf the other day a few days before the large adult washed up on the beach in Fenwick Island.  Just shows there are more than one shark out there.   Crabbing is getting better you just have to get into them and once you do it is a good day.  The offshore action has been hot for tilefish, mahi, and yellowfin.  A couple of big eyes have been to the scales in Ocean City caught in the canyons.   A couple of white marlins have been landed and released as well and blue marlins. Summer offshore action is in full swing.

We are getting rocked by a storm and hope everyone in Jersey is okay after they were hit with severe winds and a possible tornado.  We experienced heavy rain, wind and lightning.   I have seen some wild pictures online and we have some on the Delaware Surf Fishing Facebook page.

Fish On!!

Rich King