Ocean explorer monday - NJFishing.com Your Best Online Source for Fishing Information in New Jersey

Ocean Explorer · #1 01-27-2014, 07:11 PM

1-27-14 We made our way out in lumpy conditions this morning...the usual winter time stuff but at least it was warmer today..Still had that swell that I was hoping was gone but we dealt with it.The water in the river was 35 degrees,,,offshore on the grounds it was around 37.The ride was worth it and we got into fish quickly,,,granted it was not the easiest day to fish with the big swell but some guys got dialed in with the Togs,,,some nice ling and a few small codfish as well..In the first picture below Pete Bonilla got dialed in early on with this really nice fish that at first when I saw him swing and set the hook I though was a small fish but with the boat riding high on a swell when we went down and came back up I saw it had some weight...It looked really big when it came up in crystal clear green water from way down,,it looked over twenty pounds...We got her to the net and while not as big as it looked underwater it was a really nice fish weighed in later on land at just under 15lbs..Dj fished as well and had a few other nice keeper Togs as did some others,,no lack of bites just difficult to fish in today..Again some soft baits,,,clams or shrimps tipped over a crab worked well..Actually we had some keeper Togs on the Ghost Shrimps that we use for the Lings,,,,Chartruese Gulp Shrimps that is anyway...I look forward to heading back offshore again,,, we are fishing everyday unless I say the trip is canceled here on the webpage like tomorrow....tomorrow is canceled due to the extreme cold and high winds....Wednesday we shall head back out and it looks like everyday thereafter until the next nasty day..I still have crabs and we also have clams for bait....Remember I have said it before that this is the time of year when we might not catch as many fish as usual but we usually catch our biggest fish of the year when we start fishing deeper so no need to sit at home,,come on down and get in on the action...The cabin is always like Key West!!!Check out some pics,,see ya Wednesday..

MVP · #2 01-27-2014, 08:36 PM

Nice report Bobby. With water temps below 39-38 degrees I thought that fat Lady has sung for us in NJ. Nice to see you are still getting out and [utting some nice fish in the box. You told us the same thing last year and you had some huge fish come up at the end of Jan.

Islander II · #3 01-28-2014, 06:22 AM

Sweeeeeet! At least there is still life down there.

SaltLife1980 · #4 01-28-2014, 04:43 PM

Thats a slob there

Ocean Explorer · #5 01-28-2014, 05:21 PM

We also tried to release the big female,,,she did go down but popped back up behind the boat..She came up from deeper water so she had a tough time....Ended up dropping both anchor lines and backing down to get her so she didnt go to waste..I also dont like the forecast for tomorrow,,they changed it up a bit and have a low pressure coming off the Carolina coast with snow hitting us in the am so I am gonna cancel tomorrow(wednesday))but Thursday is looking good,,,The guys I had coming tomorrow are gonna come on Thursday so we are all set..

Jerseydix · #6 01-28-2014, 05:27 PM

Nice! My man Petey Bo been on a tear lately!

shrimpman steve · #7 01-28-2014, 07:23 PM

Bobby, nice going! Did you say SHRIMP

Word of advice if you want to keep those big ones alive to go back to the deep. Reel them up SLOWLY. keep in mind these fish are coming up from over 100 feet in some cases and will get bent (so to speak). Also a venting needle.

Foul Hook · #8 01-28-2014, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shrimpman steve

Bobby, nice going! Did you say SHRIMP

Word of advice if you want to keep those big ones alive to go back to the deep. Reel them up SLOWLY. keep in mind these fish are coming up from over 100 feet in some cases and will get bent (so to speak). Also a venting needle.

Coming from a guy who Caught 11keepers in 6 months!:

SaltLife1980 · #9 01-28-2014, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Foul Hook

Coming from a guy who Caught 11keepers in 6 months!:

ouch!

BigBull · #10 01-30-2014, 03:52 PM

Also with the big togs if u can keep them alive throughout the trip in a barrel of water and the boat has float totes or barrels they keep the crabs in then the boat can keep the fish overnight in the tote the fish will readjust to the pressure and come back to life upright and u can then bring it out the next day and release it.