Highlands or Shark River?

[JusGlase]

Hi Guys,

New to this forum, thanks for any advice on this! I fished NJ for years before moving my boat out to Southampton NY. Just purchased a 28' CC and looking to get back into fishing. Used to keep my boat down in the Manasquan River but now will be living in Long Branch.

I have the choice of keeping the boat in Sea Bright, Highlands, or the Shark River. What would you choose if you were me?

My thought is the shark river is ideal for getting right to the ocean, but highlands offers the opportunity to be right in the Raritan Bay, but a longer ride to the ocean grounds.

Any advice here would be appreciated, especially if you keep your boat in one of the two areas.

Thx!

[bulletbob]

It depends on what you fish for and what months you will be fishing.. April through June, , IMHO its Raritan Bay.. Stripers will start there first, and it stays good until it starts to get too warm for good daytime fishing for them.

Fluke are often thick as hell in the bay and very active early in the season, while the ocean fishing stays slow due to cold water,, So again, for early season fluke, IMHO, the choice would be Raritan Bay. Blues start showing in the bay in late April early may, and you have good fishing for them, while they are more sporadic in the ocean..

However, for April Blackfish IMHO Shark River would be your best bet.. Same with the 3 week May/June Sea Bass "season".

July/August/Sept, when the water is warm in the bay, and a lot of the big fluke have been mopped up, or are starting to move out, you are better off hitting the rough bottom from Sea Bright to Asbury Park so IMHO Shark River or MI would be best at those times.. Look ANY of those ports would be great, and personally I am envious that you have those choices... bob

[Capt. Lou]

Inshore Highlands , offshore - inshore Shark River ! Personally I would have purchased an express that I could stay on &'leave it in the Hamptons ! I fish out there all the time & it's a great area for most species , considering the bay etc.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Great advice above. If you decide to stay North and are choosing between Sea Bright and the Highlands, I'd choose the Highlands. Problem with Sea Bright is a lot of summer traffic on the road to get to the boat and most of your trip in the river to get out to the bay is no wake.

Welcome to the site!!

[NoLimit]

Keep in mind that the afternoons prevailing south wind means a rough ride if home is Shark River. Plus that wind can keep temps low along the Jersey shore while fish will be feeding inside.

I used to fish out of all the inlets from Beach Haven and north and Highlands or Atlantic Highlands offers the most days of quality fishing.

[Captain Rich]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the low water/ shoaling problems shark river has been having.

[Joey Dah Fish]

Hands down highland many more options to fish. Bay and ocean. Sometimes bay is sloppy and ocean is fine. Conversely sometimes ocean is ugly and the bay is fine. Not many option in shark river.

[bulletbob]

Yeah, I would go with Raritan Bay.. even later in the season when you want to fluke fish rough bottom off of say Long Branch, or if you want tog/seabass/ling, its no problem with a 28 foot boat from the bay.. It will just cost a few more bucks worth of gas.

it might be different if you had a 17 footer with limited range, but with the boat you describe, you have the most options in the bay.. bob

[Billfish715]

Shark River: Close to your house. Great access to the ocean and ocean fishing. Good for late season striped bass, bluefish. Close to the Mud Hole and several artificial reefs. Close to fishing places you already know. Low water in the back. Bridge traffic. Later start to striped bass season. Almost exclusively ocean fishing.

Sea Bright: Close to home. River traffic. Better access to early season stripers. More fuel docks. More access to river and bay fishing. Long ride to the ocean, Mud Hole, sharks and tuna. Good crabbing access.

Highlands/Atlantic Highlands: Longer ride to the boat. Afternoon beach, bridge and highway traffic. Closer to Raritan Bay, Staten Island, Hudson River. Traditional early season striped bass/bluefish spot.

Do you want to fish the ocean or bay most? Think about YOUR time. How far do you want to drive your car and your boat? How about cost? Security? Maintenance services? Fuel cost per trip?

Shark River: More ocean fishing with less time getting there.
Highlands: More river/bay fishing and less time getting there by boat.
SeaBright: Closer to river fishing options. Longer ride to the ocean and Raritan Bay.

[june181901]

I live in Sea Bright. A neighbor has a very nice dock but keeps his boat in Highlands. Main reason being traffic and currents.