Article by Larry Jock
The wind never seemed to stop blowing last week. Actually, it seems like it hasn’t stopped since last November! However, nice catches of stripers, black drum, flounder and weakfish made it worthwhile for anglers able to make it out on the water.
We did see the first thresher shark caught on Sunday by a boat out of Ocean City. They brought back a 178 pounder from the Fingers. Other boats that headed towards the Marine Electric and the Jackspot didn’t fare well, managing only a few blue sharks and a couple of bluefish. Seems like the water temperature is still just too cold, hovering in the upper 50’s on the inshore fishing grounds.
Mike Behney at Rick’s Bait & Tackle reported the best action for his customers came from the Indian River Inlet on Thursday night when stripers were all over the place. Most were caught on Storm lures and bucktails. Mike also said that a few flounder, shad and small black drum were caught from the pier at Massey’s Landing last week. The back bays also saw some life with a few flounder being hooked and good catches of snapper bluefish for anglers using spec rigs. He also mentioned that the weakfish bite at the Outer Wall in Lewes was good and he had John Albring from Hanover, PA stop in the shop with a 27-inch, 6 lb. weakie that he caught while tossing a Storm shad in the Indian River Inlet.
At Hook’em & Cook’em and Hook’em & Cook’em Outfitters, Bert Adams was very excited about the outstanding striped bass bite in the Indian River Inlet on Wednesday and Thursday night. Fish in the 32 to 36-inch range were all over the Inlet and quite a few were caught. The bite was decent on Saturday morning at the end of the incoming tide and picked up again on Sunday for anglers fishing off the south side rocks and from the beach just south of the jetty. Bert said that a few bluefish were mixed in as well.
Ocean water is still a frigid 57 to 60-degrees and it hasn’t helped surfcasters this spring as they continue to catch a few striped bass and black drum, but have been getting dominated by kingfish, spot, blowfish, skates and a lot of sharks. Unfortunately, the spring run for surf fishermen has been a big disappointment this year.
Sea bass fishing has been tough with most boats staying in the slip due to windy weather. When you can get out, the bite isn’t red hot but anglers are catching enough for dinner. Water temperature on the bottom has been hovering around 44-degrees.
Joe Morris at Lewes Harbour Marina said much of the holiday weekend was a blowout, but drum action was good during the week. Steve Barrell, George Bissey, and Tom Kuzsma joined Captain Ted on the “Indian” for some drumming at the Coral Beds on Monday evening. After six big boomers were in the box, including Tom’s 82.7 pound whopper, they decided to call it quits. Ted noted the best bite took place before it got dark. Mark Butler was fishing at the Coral Beds on Wednesday night aboard the “Indian” when he landed the largest drum brought to the dock so far this spring. Butler’s behemoth tipped the scales at 93 pounds. Captain Brian did some drum fishing this week aboard the “Lil’ Angler II”, and among the fish his patrons landed were citation boomers of 60.9 pounds for Scott Dostaz, and 62.5 pounds for Larry Grimm. The fleet of New Jersey boats that had been anchoring on the Coral Beds off Slaughter Beach thinned way out, likely indicative that a drum bite has started on the other side of the Delaware Bay. Spots such as the Pin Top, Horseshoe and Tussey’s Slough are usually productive.
Anglers not targeting drum had encounters with the big critters as well. Robert Perholtz was casting a pink Gulp! along the Inner Wall Tuesday when he hooked and landed a 72.6 pound specimen on 10 pound test line. The drum nearly covered the whole floor of the jon boat he was fishing from. Just to prove it was skill and not luck, the very next day, Robert boated a 63.3 pound black drum using pink Gulp! on the same 10 pound spinning gear.
Fishermen in search of seatrout had success while working structure such as the Roosevelt Jetties, Ferry Wall and Inner Breakwater. Tossing artificials such as Gulp!, Bass Assassins, Fin-S-Fish, MirrOLures and paddletail worms were effective for weakfish. Daybreak and dusk were good times to try. Zach Brown brought in a beautiful 5.66 pound trout he captured while casting a pink Gulp! from the beach near Cape Henlopen Pier.
Casters fishing with bloodworms, clams and Fishbites along Lewes Beach told of seeing some croakers, blowfish, kingfish, spot and bluefish. The surf bite at Herring Point cooled off compared to last week, but an occasional striper or drum was pulled from the suds by those baiting with bunker or clams.
Several stripers were taken in the Indian River Inlet during the week by jetty jocks throwing Storm Shads from the rocks during nighttime tides, and at daybreak. Stripers also started to show around the rock walls off Lewes before the weekend blow. Boaters casting Bombers, X-Raps, Rat-L-Traps and Stretch 12 plugs hooked nice bass. Paul Matthews managed a 22 pound linesider by working a swimming plug at the Ice Breakers.
Rough seas kept sea bassers from getting to the ocean wrecks and reefs most days, but the crew aboard “Katydid” captured a limit of 160 bass, along with about 30 nice ling and a pair of decent cod. Because of the wind, they only made it to Site 11 the next trip, where the group put 70 keepers in the box. A lot of fish were caught, but most were shy of the 12.5 inch minimum.
Until next week, tight lines!
