Fishing Report

Looks like the weather should be decent for the last big weekend of summer. Wind made things tough for boaters this past week, but he forecast for Saturday through Monday seems ok. Croakers have started to gather at the mouth of Delaware Bay. Hardheads were located near 4 Buoy, where a trench leads out towards the Ocean. Trout, kingfish and snapper blues were mixed in. Chloe Collier checked in a 1.16 pound kingfish she caught there aboard the Angler. Bluefish have also been roaming the rip over the shoal outside the Outer Wall. They've been chasing silversides to the surface during many moving tides. The little choppers are a blast on light tackle, and will grab a shiner or piece of cut mullet on a bottom rig. Bucktails or metal jigs cast and retrieved at a fast clip will get bit as well. Blues have shown up in the surf too. Snappers were reported at different spots all along the beach between Cape Henlopen and Fenwick. Jeff Sherwood was soaking mullet in the suds at the Navy Crossing and landed his limit of blues. A few tog and triggerfish came from the Outer Wall and Ice Breakers, but tautog season closes August 31st. Triggerfish congregated on wrecks just outside the Bay. It was blowing hard ENE Monday, but Captain Brent was able to make it to a snag outside the Bay, and returned by noon with a box full of 37 triggers, plus sea bass and porgies for his anglers on Katydid. Drift conditions were difficult much of the week, but Captain Brent made a long run into the Ocean Wednesday, and his flukers worked structure to put 39 quality flatfish to 6 pounds aboard Katydid. With a kinder Ocean and more boats out and about, flounder should continue to be found on the Old Grounds and bottom changes between DB and DA Buoys. Inshore trolling is starting to produce some false albacore and dolphin. Captain Les on Martha Marie pulled ballyhoo and plastics between Site 11 and the Twenty Fathom Line to take a 50 pound wahoo for Ryan Graver, plus a pair of gaffer mahi and some false albacore.

Most anglers seeking flounder have chosen to work Ocean structure the past couple weeks because of strong currents in Delaware Bay. However, since the passing of this month's full moon, conditions have improved, and crews trying Bay Reef Sites were pleased to find flounder action coming back to life. Captain Carey on the Grizzly had good fluking at the Brown Shoal Reefs this week. Captain Brent's fishermen on Katydid also returned with limit catches of flatties after working Sites 6 and 7 recently. In addition to flounder, Bay bottom bouncers found plenty of croakers on the Star Site and at Site 5 in Broadkill Slough. Kingfish, trout, puffers and snapper blues were mixed in. Bluefish were also found in the rip on the shoal just outside the Outer Wall. During moving tides they chased silversides to the surface, and diving gulls and terns gave away the feeding activity. A bucktail jig or spoon cast among the fish would usually generate a strike in short order. The scrappy snappers are a blast on light tackle, and lots of fun for young anglers. Captain Pete Haines took son Rainer to the bluefish rip for his first fishing trip the other day aboard Top Fin. Rainer reeled on blue after blue, and was definitely hooked by the fast snapper action. Jumbo spot continue to inhabit Lewes Canal. Many are over 10 inches. They're suckers for a piece of bloodworm or Fishbites. Good sized croakers swam the Canal too, and bank fishermen near the Railroad Bridge hooked into some of the largest specimens. Slot striper season runs through August 31st, and rockfish within that size range were found by folks drifting pencil eels around the drawbridge, or those bottom fishing with clams or peeler crabs. Speckled trout aren't too common in our area, but they're around if you know where to look. Brian Smith was casting an Electric Chicken Bass Assassin to the marsh bank on Broadkill River and connected with a beautiful pair of specks weighing 3.5 and 5.4 pounds. Ocean flounder fishing remained real good. Inshore sites 9 and 10 were productive, as well as Site 11 outside the shipping lane. Live bottom and structure changes of the Old Grounds between DB and DA Buoys also gave up plenty of fluke. Chris Vann works as a mate on the Katydid, but recently he invited his buddies on board to fish with him in a birthday celebration. The crew took a limit of 40 quality Ocean flounder, and was back at the dock early. Total weight of only the five heaviest tallied 27.5 pounds. Ron Mistretta decked the largest, a 7.33 pound doormat. Geoff Klopp and Mason Newsham had flatties of 5.1, 5.95, and 5.96 pounds as part of their limit from Site 10. Bert Long landed a 6.1 pounder aboard Miss Kirstin. Chris Ragni checked in a 6 pounder he caught on the Quintessa at the Old Grounds. Dave Walker wound in a near citation 6.77 pounder. Ocean water quality has been very good, and many flounder fishermen have encountered dolphin while drifting Site 11 and the Old Grounds. Marc Levinrad landed an 11.5 pound mahi to add to his limit of flatfish to 4.5 pounds while bucktailing aboard the Thelma Dale IV. Jack Henriksen had a 12.5 pound dolphin grab a flounder rig he was reeling up from the bottom of the Old Grounds.

It may sound like a broken record, but flounder fishing has been about as good as it gets over the past couple weeks. Conditions were tough in Delaware Bay around the recent full moon due to strong currents, but Ocean anglers did well on structure where lunar and tidal effects were less severe. Flatties came from inshore reefs 9 and 10, as well as Site 11, east of DB Buoy. Live bottom of the Old Grounds, southeast of DB and northwest of DA also yielded plenty of flatfish. Limit catches were commonplace on days with good drifting. Not only were flounder numerous, but several sizeable specimens have been checked in. On Saturday, Price Lindsay and Steve Friend were working Site 10 using rigs baited with mackerel strips and Gulp!, and compiled quite an impressive limit of fluke. Among the fish was a 9 pound trophy for Price, and Steve's awesome 10 pound doormat. Steve said it was his personal best, and a replica mount may be in his future. On Monday, Wayne DeMarco and his crew limited out with quality flounder form the Old Grounds. Wayne was jigging a bucktail sweetened with cut bait and landed an 8 pound beauty. Captain Brent has been running Katydid to Ocean Structure on a regular basis, and returning with boat limits most trips. The most memorable was last Saturday, when flukers on board captured a 40 fish limit that pushed the number of keepers for Katydid this season to over 1000. Some other nice fish to hit the dock included a 6.9 pounder for Captain Pete Haines, Art Shapiro's 6.07 and Scott Ayars' 5.25 pounder, all taken Saturday on Top Fin. Renee Pergeorelis was on a roll with big flatties, and limited two days in a row, including specimens weighing 5.5 and 5.63 pounds. Joe Walker, Kyle Falgowski, Bob Karpovich and Mike Delio drifted Site 10 Monday for their limit of chunky fluke to 6.45 pounds. Croakers have also been plentiful on Site 10, and often proved bothersome to boaters targeting flounder by constantly nibbling on baits and stealing them before flatfish get a crack. Anglers seeking croakers in Delaware Bay found plenty around the Star Reef and the Broadkill Reef. Kingfish, spike trout, blowfish, snapper blues and triggerfish were mixed in. Tog action was slow in general, but a few tautog and triggers were taken along the Outer Wall and Ice breakers on sand fleas. Snapper bluefish have shown up in good numbers in the rip over the shoal just outside the north end of the Outer Wall. They often chased siversides to the surface, and fed ravenously beneath clouds of diving terns and gulls. A bucktail or small metal jig tossed into the melee got bit in short order. In Lewes Canal, croakers were a popular catch. Seems they were bigger than a lot of fish out in the Bay. The Canal held spot of jumbo proportions too, some of which were 10 to 12 inches long. The panfish preferred bloodworms and Fishbites. Stripers were still caught around the drawbridge by small boaters drifting eels or bottom fishing with clams. The slot striper season ends August 31st. Offshore, tuna were located in the Wilmington Canyon. Daytime chunking among whales produced good sized yellowfins. Geoff McCloskey, Andrew White, Mike Zeccola and Vic Mattia had yellowfins of 56, 68 and 69 pounds while fishing live spot at dusk in the Wilmington Saturday. On Sunday, Captain Brent ran Katydid to the Wilmington, where his group deep dropped for tilefish. They loaded up with grays to 15 pounds, and goldens to 25 pounds. Brent saw signs of tuna in the afternoon, and stopped to chunk up 5 stout yellowfins to 73 pounds. With the fish boxes full, the crew headed back to the dock in anticipation of a long night at the cleaning table.

Flounder fishing is still the most popular game in town. Delaware Bay reefs yielded fluke, but the bite was limited to tide changes. Flatties bit best at the end of slack water through the first half hour of moving current. Barry Gerhard and his grandson Sam Hazlett had 7 nice keepers to 4.4 pounds at Reef 8 Thursday. Jigging Spro bucktails sweetened with a strip of fresh cut croaker was the key to success. The rest of the Hazlett family hit Site 8 Friday to score another good catch. Ella Hazlett hooked a 4.5 pound flounder, and Melissa Hazlett handled a pair of flatties weighing 4.0 and 4.4 pounds. Elijah Brown boated a 5 pounder while fluking the Bay aboard Lil' Angler II. Sunday started out as a crappy weather day, so Captain Brent left the dock late and decide to stay in the Bay. He ran Katydid to the Brown Shoal reefs, where his anglers put together a 32 fish limit. So, what began bad, ended up good. Ocean flounder seemed to cooperate during more of the tide than those in the Bay. Many flatfish came from Reefs 9, 10 and 11. Word of the good fishing drew quite a crowd of boats at the Sites on fair weather days, so sometimes maneuvering on the structure was tricky. Open bottom of the Old Grounds continued to be productive as well, with spots southeast of DB Buoy and northwest of DA Buoy giving up fluke. Rigs sporting hair teasers baited with squid, shiners, smelt or strips of fresh cut croaker or sea robin were favored offerings. Bucktail jigs sweetened with 5 or 6 inch Gulp! artificials proved deadly for flatties. Captain Pete hosted the gang from Hidden Acres Sawmill Monday aboard Top Fin, and they jigged up a limit of 28 quality keepers at Site 10. Seven of the fish were over 5 pounds. Bill and Charlotte Hughes joined Captain Vince Keagy and Mate Bert Long for their limit of 16 flounder from Site 10 Tuesday on Miss Kirstin. John Lymaster checked in a 5.32 pounder he landed aboard Martha Marie. Captain Brent's Tuesday crew on Katydid returned with a boat limit of flatties. Bent took big fish of the day with a 7.73 pound doormat he caught from up top on the bridge. Wednesday's regulars on Katydid rounded up their limit of 40 keepers while drifting Ocean structure. Lou Pennella and Chris Vann each caught 7 pounders. Larry and Joe Coyle, along with Tyler Brown took their limit of flatfish Wednesday at Site 10. Joe landed the heaviest, weighing 6.37 pounds. Bill Hughes fished again Wednesday on Miss Kirstin and boated a 5.4 pound fluke. Wayne DeMarco, Joe Pergeorelis, Josh Wilkers and Doug Mickowski worked the Old Grounds Wednesday for their limit of flounder. Dave Walker took Matt Shoup, Amy and Patrick Conroy, and Clara Hollingsworth to Site 10 Wednesday to capture and bring back 20 flat ones. On Thursday, local flukers aboard Katydid put 28 keepers in the box, including John Gudknecht's 5.4 pounder. Katydid was back over Ocean reef rubble Friday, and returned with a full limit of 36 fluke to 4 plus pounds. Bill Hughes fished again Friday on Miss Kirstin for his limit that included specimens of 4.3 and 4.4 pounds. Captain Carey said fishermen aboard the Grizzly limited out with 24 flounder Friday at the Old Grounds, and were back at the dock early. In addition to flounder, bottom bouncers connected with plenty of croakers in Delaware Bay. Reef sites 5 and 8 and the edge of The Anchorage near G Buoy held hardheads. Kingfish, spike trout, puffers and sanpper blues were mixed in on reef structure. Croakers and big spot were also caught in Lewes Canal, Roosevelt Inlet, and in Broadkill River all the way up past Oyster Rocks. Rockfish roamed the Canal too. Slot stripers were caught around the drawbridge using pencil eels. Boaters working the rocks of the Outer Wall and Ice Breakers had some tog, triggerfish, sheepshead and spadefish. Rodney Shoemaker and "Booker" Bookwalter kept 9 chunky blackfish at the Wall Friday. Booker battled a citation tautog weighing 7.44 pounds. Bob Meyers tempted a 3 pound trigger from the Outer Wall with sandfleas. Offshore anglers encountered yellowfins,longfins and billfish in the Wilmington. Charlie Horning on the Fish Whistle trolled Wilmington's East Notch Tuesday evening, pulling ballyhoo skirted with Joe Shute lures, and landed 4 bigeyes. The crew laid over and went one for two on eyeballs at first light Wednesday. Back at the scales, the tuna ranged between 137 and 194 pounds. Inshore trollers found some pretty decent dolphin and a few white marlin at the Hot Dog. Nick Strait and Ethan Davis decked mahis of 15 and 18 pounds at the Dog aboard Chasin' Tail.

Croakers have been plentiful on Delaware reef sites in recent days. Most of the hardheads are in the 9 to 11 inch range, but larger specimens were taken by boats that anchored right on reef rubble piles early and late in the day. Clams, bloodworms and Fishbites were best baits. Kingfish, puffers, spot and spike trout hung out in the same spots as croakers. Some of the biggest croakers and spot seen this week came from Lewes Canal. Hardheads to 13 inches and spot to nearly a foot long were pulled from the Canal and Broadkill River as far up as Oyster Rocks Road. Slot striper action was also good on the Canal. Boaters drifting pencil eels around the drawbridge during the last of incoming tide caught bass within the 20 to 26 inch limit, and also released larger fish. Casting artificials along the marsh banks and around bulkheads and docks also produced rock. Gulp! Swimming Mullets, Storm Shads, Bass Assassins, RatLTraps, Zara Spooks and Chug Bugs all got bit. An occasional decent sized weakfish and even a few speckled trout were hooked by casters working the same assortment of lures along the Roosevelt Jetty. Even though water temps have risen, some flounder still were found in the Canal and other shallow areas. Dan Bramble bested a 5.55 pound flounder from the Canal. Richard Roberts reeled in a 5.26 pound fluke while fishing with Gulp! from the Port Lewes Pier. Flounder were caught around Delaware Bay artificial reefs during the week, but Ocean fluking seemed more reliable. Mike and Drew Ambler checked in with their limit from the Old Grounds Tuesday. "Flip" Flipping fished the Old Grounds for his limit of flounder up to 4.32 pounds. Larry and Joe Coyle and Dillon Holdren had a limit of flatties on Site 10 Tuesday. Andrea Monetti managed a 5 pound fluke on her trip to the Old Grounds. Lou Pennella put a 6.3 pound flatfish in the box as part of a 20 keeper catch from Site 10 aboard katydid on Wednesday. Joe Walker, Tony and Diana Vansant, Barry Gerhard and Pete Riberio rounded up a limit of fine flatties Wednesday at Site 10. Shane Townsend and his buddies drifted the Old Grounds Friday on Katydid to take home 19 flounder and 5 triggerfish. Nate Townsend had big fish honors with his 5.46 pounder. Offshore tuna catches were spotty. Bluefins were located at Massey's Canyon, and trollers there early and late in the day found mostly under 47 inch fish by pulling spreader bars, Green Machines and cedar plugs.