03.31.25 Time to batten down the hatches...

     Well ask and you shall receive. I've been concerned, and complaining, about the drought like conditions out here in Mercer County. Flows on the Delaware River have dropped yet again

 and are now at 7,400 cfs. Tonight the East Coast is getting to get hammered by rain, hail, high winds, and threats of tornados. Of course we couldn't just get a nice few days of steady rain, it has to come all at once over 6 hours. No doubt trees will fall, and wind up floating down the river, power outages will occur, and basements will flood. The river will get blown out and then maybe we'll see the start of spring and fishing. 

03.30.25 Off to a slow start...

 

     Well it's striper season 2024 but to be honest it just doesn't feel like it. It's probably due to a combination of work stuff, which is 7 days a week, poor conditions, and a later start on the fishes part. I'm trying to find some mo-jo to get me going and it's coming at a snails pace for me. Usually this time of year it's watching and waiting for conditions to line up for things to kick off which is usually a tap dance around big rain and big water. This year the river its boring. It's flat. It's droughty. And it doesn't look fishy.

 

     Right now the river is at 8,300 cfs which is summer flow levels. I wonder how it affects migratory fish that move up the rivers to spawn. I know they have to get there and do their thing but it has to affect when and how they move. When the water's big you can kind of count on fish being in places similar to trout when the waters up. With flows down and a minimal "movement" when there is a tide it's just hard to picture fish strategizing and taking shots to move north. Not only does that affect the fish but it changes how and when you fish for them. For me, picking the deepest holes and the spots behind the rocks when it's that low isn't challenging and is kind of like fishing in a bathtub. They want to go up but when the waters low they stop and stage, and can be easy pickings if they are interested in eating or a reaction swipe because they are annoyed that you're bothering them. 

     The wait for those 50 degree water temps is over. While it's not 50's across the board we're now over the hump and things should be more consistent temperature wise in both the bays and rivers. But that doesn't always mean it's good. My friend has been down on the Chesapeake and has been struggling to find striped bass even when there's bait and good water temps. Now the Chesapeake is big, and the fish, at least this year, seem to be more mid-bay and east. 

     The problem, more for the rivers than the bays, is the water temps and the water levels. While 50 is great, we're only a few warm and sunny days away from the temps skyrocketing into the 60's. Yes, 60 is a good number, especially if you think that's around when spawning gets going, but the quick jump doesn't do anything good. High temps mean low oxygen and just nasty water. Cool, fresh, oxygenated water does the body good. High temps mean stress, and that run alone is taxing on the fish, and can affect spawning. 

     I won't get into fishing for pre-spawn bass, like pros and cons, but what I will say is anglers should take all precautions when targeting, hooking, fighting, landing, and releasing striped bass. Single barbless hooks is a good start. Maybe fishing within a certain area, meaning casing distance, can help when and if you hook a fish. A 40 pound fish hooked 400 feet away, and down current, is a recipe for disaster. Most times, after the hooks and first run, the fish peter out and what you're doing is fighting the current, basically dragging the fish up current until it comes to hand. That's how fish lose eyes, lips, gill plates and rakers, their esophagus, and their lives. You may not take them home but they ain't surviving. Ok, that rants done. If you're catching and releasing, be the best sportsman and woman you can be.

     I've been out here and there and hit it a few good times this weekend. Again, the river isn't much to look at. What it is is just time airing out some casts with low to no expectations. Yesterday marked March's new moon which can be a sleeper compared to a full. April 13th marks the "Pink Moon" which is one I always look forward to. While I haven't found any striped bass the smallmouth are out to play. There's been some swings and misses and some that came to hand. I got to tell you, I'm not much for fish other than striped bass. Not smallmouths, largemouths, bluefish, or albies. But that's just me. 

     I've done the O-dark thirty thing and I have to say it was a push and grind to drag myself out of bed. But I did it and once I got going the juices started to flow. In going I got the opportunity to find my gear, get my waders on and off, and try and rekindle the relationship between my muscles and my casts. It's been three plus months since my joints rotated that way so it has been good for that. 

     It's also given me the chance to find my walking and climbing mo-jo again. Long gone are the days of just rock hopping, now each step is carefully calculated with staff in hand. I do that because I know one false move could be a slip and fall which could wreck me and my now aging- college-Professor-body. To sat my core is strong would be a joke. Outside of having a spine I don't think there's much there these days. 

     And in kind of sad news a friend sent me the below picture yesterday. It's the house at 116 Spier Avenue in Allenhurst. It once was the Walker household. I spent many a day over there stopping in before or after a trip to the beach. If it was after then it included having coffee 

with some pastries from Craving's or lunch from Brennan's. Of course Al and I would hold striped bass court while Evelyn just shook her head at us. I don't think she ever got the striped bass thing, probably because Al was obsessed and drove her nuts about it for over 60 years. 

     Al and Evelyn passed in July of 2022. The house in Allenhurst was built in 1964 and they lived in and around town for over 50 years. In 2019 the home was sold for $3,000,000 which was way above the price per square foot at that time, according to the Asbury Park Press. At $3 million the house went for $1,087 dollars per square foot, far above the $445 per square foot for other homes in the town. 

     Soon after the purchase the new owners proposed a plan to the town of Allenhurst Planning Board. it called for demolition of the existing home and the construction of two single family

homes. In 2021 the plans were approved but the project never went anywhere. In 2024 revisions were made which included a single family home with pool and pool house. That got some of 

the neighbors up in arms but eventually it was approved and and this week the house was demolished. It's not surprising as that has been common in and around the Jersey Shore for the last two decades. Older homes that were laid out and served people differently than the ones constructed today. What's sad is how the face of the towns have morphed into something too large, too extravagant, and too new. But it is what it is.

     The above picture was taken during my last visit with Al and Evelyn before they sold and moved to North Carolina a few years before their deaths, which occurred within 24 hours of each other. Since then when I left the beach I always turned onto Spier off of Ocean Avenue and looked left at the house as I drove by. Things come and go, people, houses, but what can't be taken away are the warm and fond memories that are cemented into our hearts and minds. I am sure the Walker kids fondly remember growing up in that house and no matter what stands at that address the memories can't be erased. 

03.25.25 That fever just showed up....

     I liked what I felt weatherize when I left the college this afternoon. Sun felt warm and it finally appeared to resemble spring. I had my stuff in my truck so on the way home I decided to stop and give it a hard go. Conditions were perfect on the dropping tide but the only thing I didn't like was the gin-clear clarity. I prefer a touch more water and it a little off color. 

     Last week I said my first time with a fly rod in my hand was the shakedown trip but today was really it. I had my waders on and my feet in the water. Luckily I brought the ski pole and that saved me from surely would have been my first wipe out of the season. Put it 1-1/2 hours of pure bliss with the sun on my face and a river devoid of anyone or anything which including the fish. 

03.23.25 Some fish starting to show...

American Angler via Facebook

     I would say things are off to a slow start compared to the last few years. But the question is is this year just a "normal" year like things used to be? While temps seem to be what should be expected the thing that concerns me are the water levels in and around the spawning grounds for striped bass. With a spawn dependent on so many factors drought like conditions this early aren't good.

     Many of us look at water temps as the sole indicator of when things should heat up, no pun intended. In the Raritan Bay water temps have crested 50 during the warmest parts of the day but at night, and when the wind is honking from the NW, temps drop back down to the high 40's. What we look for is consistency. In the spring where fish acclimate to water temps and get going as the temps increase the see-saw fluctuations can stop them in their tracks and slow things down. 

     There's been reports of bunker hitting the bays and rivers and the American shad run is underway in the Delaware with some catching around the Delaware Water Gap. Hopefully soon the river herring will begin their trip north and if cormorants are any early indication then they're here setting up shop on the rocks mid river. 

     Way down river the big bass are starting to show and are eating worms and bait the soakers are throwing out there. There's been a nice start in the less than clear water and you have to be patient, and rich, after threading jumbo bloodworms onto a hook. I've been out a few times throwing flies and I can say it's been less than inspiring. The wind has been relentless already and it doesn't take long for my fingers to shut down due to the cold. As far as water levels were now down to 13,000 cfs with no real sign of rain in the near future. 

First fish 2024- March 29

     For some reason I feel less than inspired this spring, which is a little concerning. Maybe there's a part of my brain telling me that it's way too early which is saving me from frozen fingers and skunks to show. Or maybe it's a combination of all the drama surrounding striped bass that just has turned me off a bit. Could it be social media and reports, that show up without searching, that turns me off by seeing poorly handled fish and or multi-hook baits that I know don't do the fish any good. Or it could be I'm just burnt out from this semester and will get my mojo back when things wrap up. 

Either way the fish will come and go and it'll be another year in the books of my life and who knows how many more of them I'll, or any of us, will have. 

03.21.25 Well there went that...

     Driving home from work yesterday I thought that maybe today would be the day. But around 2 am I could hear the wind and the rain outside. The shutters were banging against the house and I was sure the rainwater was seeping into the basement. 

     When I woke up I took a ride down to the river. I knew things weren't good because when I opened my truck door it almost blew off the hinges. The wind was cranking northwest and the temperature had dropped from yesterday. even with the rain we had days ago the river is only running around 15,000 with temps just below 50. The thing is either way, the fish have to start to move.

     I don't know why I tried but I threw a bunch of casts, with most of them sailing from right to left landing on the bank below me. It's not what I had in mind for my day-off outing. 

03.17.25 Well that helped....

     Wishin' I was fishin'. After a quick deluge of rain, and of course wind, this weekend, things are starting to look better then they did. Rain up north quickly had an effect on the water levels in the river. Since this morning we've seen a 20% increase in the cfs and there will be more coming over the next day or so. While the water will drain rather quickly a good push of water does wonders for the start of the run of American shad, river herring, and striped bass. 

     In addition to the flows the water temps have hit that sought after 50 degree mark for the first time this spring. I'm not ruling out cold weather, or even snow, in the forecast but for right now I'll take what Mother Nature is giving. I'm probably a few weeks away from bringing the first fish to hand and I hope to start sneaking away from life, and work, from time to time coming soon.

03.14.25 Quick shakedown trip...

     Took the opportunity with the warmer weather to give it a go for the first time this year. Did't expect much and got just what I expected. One thing I did learn is how resistant my hands are to the cold as I get older. I just can't take it anymore. 

     Incoming tide wouldn't be my choice especially at 630 am this time of year but you go when you can. Amazingly the waders and the stripping basket still fit from last year adjustments which is a good sign. Obviously there was nothing to see and the northwest wind kept things chilly and my hands raw even just after 30 minutes of casting and retrieving. 

     At least we've had some sun and warmer weather which causes a slight bump in the water temps but not enough to get things going. It's still early, and way early if you think of things 10-15 years ago. It's just the mild winters we've had in the last few years that have got things going earlier than normal. The earliest fish I've caught at the place I visited this week was March 9th, but it was much warmer than this year. 

     And in other news how's that for a result of hard work on the professor's side and the student's side as well. It's the trill of victory and the agony of defeat. Above is the class average from Exam 3 which has has my guts all turned inside out. For some it's a continuation of good or bad performance, a wake up call, or a nail in their coffin. As a teacher you pull for just about all of them, the ones you don't are those with a bad attitude or continued bad habits. It's a 27/7 job, literally, for 15 weeks in the fall and the spring. Nursing school is hard and there's no participation trophies given for just showing up. 

03.09.25 BOOKED...!!!

Let the countdown begin.....

03.07.25 I hope these aren't new weather patterns...

 

     Yesterday I stopped by local watering hole, no not a bar. I am amazed that with all the snow and rain we've had this late winter the river isn't really reflecting that. Waiting for water from the north is like waiting for those Long Island bass to show up on the Jersey beaches in the fall. You can wait and wait and they may come or not.    

      I found this U.S. Drought Monitor website and looked at things here in the northeast and things New Jersey. To the south in Cape May County and in and around the Chesapeake Bay things aren't looking good. Besides the risk of wildfires, like we've seen around New Jersey the last week or so, drought means less water in the rivers and bays that we fish. while some say a cold winter, like we've had, we still need solid water levels for a good striped bass spawn. Good levels keep the salt line in the Delaware River where they're supposed to be and water levels good for the fish like shad, bass, and herring to make their push up. 

      We can see ranges from moderate (Trenton) to severe (Salem) to extreme (Cape May). Even points north of New Jersey are seeing Abnormally Dry conditions. The below 

     image taken from Port Jervis, New York shows the ice pack breaking up in the river and traveling south which may add some water into the system, but it's probably not enough to really make a difference. Down near me the Delaware River has bumped up to 17,000 cfs but that will 

only trend down in the next couple of days. It's not how much water crests on any day but the consistent water level over the weeks and months. As expected every spring the deluges of rain that push the river to 60,000 cfs only blows out the river and makes travel for fishes, and conditions for fishing less than optimal. 

     Over the next week we'll see air temps over 50 degrees, even into the 60's, with lows in the 20's and 30's at night. Warmer water is the impetus to get fish moving and the coveted 50 degree water temp for some means it's go-to time. The Raritan Bay at Keansburg is 48 degrees during the day so the bloodworm soakers should start to see fish rooting around for a spring meal. 

     But the springs of late have meant wind and lots of it. Living out west I see how bad the combination of days of rain followed by wind can be. It means lots of downed trees, like big ones, due to the saturated ground which makes tipping the lumber over easier. As far as fishing, and fly fishing, these winds just suck. And most of the winds seem to be coming from the northwest which for me double suck as they always seem to be on the wrong side of my body where I like to fish. 

      The weather over the next week looks good once Mother Nature turns off the fans, but that's not going to be until Monday. As far as fishing predictions, who knows, last year my first fish came on March 29th near home base, and in 2023 it was some fish on March 9th up north. My early prediction this year was that things would be delayed but I've changed that up a bit. I feel, even with this weather as of late, I'll be getting good fish earlier, if I can squeeze time in around my current work schedule, which is all consuming and basically 24/7 until the semester ends at the end of April. 

03.06.25 She made it....

     Well after a 1,800 mile journey the SS United States arrived in Mobile, Alabama. Surprisingly she made it without incident. She left the berth in Philadelphia on the Delaware River on February 19th and arrived on March 4th. It was cool to be able to track her on her last voyage. 

     They say it'll take 6 months to rid her of things that may be harmful to the environment and sea life before she'll be sank to create the largest man-made reef in the world. At 1,000 feet long that's a lot of nooks and crannies for fishes and crustaceans to call home. 

 

03.02.25 I wasn't ready if I wanted to...

     Good for those that went out yesterday and opened up the season. Yep, it was opening day with air temps in the 50's and wind blowing about 30 mph from the NW. I hope we don't have another spring like last year where it blew all spring, with monsoons in between. 

     The pics of the fish I saw were of all holdover fish that most likely will be caught and released into the grease or ran around trying to capture some of the bounty from one of the tackle shops. You know what, it's not me, not my fish, so I don't care. Have fun. 

     I spent most of yesterday, and the weekend, getting ready for school this week. I am so overwhelmed and exhausted with all that the job, and the students, bring to the table.

     While running around yesterday I ran into WalMart to see if I could grab a leaf rake cheaper then the $35 DeWalt (Don't they make power tools?) option Home Depot was selling. While there I was stopped by a nice kid from Newark. He works for AT&T and was assigned to the store in Hamilton this weekend. He got my ear, and then I got Theresa from the car and he got her ear. 21 years we were with Verizon and after an hour or so we were done. AT&T for cellular and internet at home. It looks like we save about $400 a month. Real nice kid, and you know how I feel about all things Newark. 

     Even if I wanted to go fishing I am behind this year. Truth is I don't even know where all my stuff is and I definitely slacked on tying up flies for the spring. Luckily it's cold, and today really cold, so hopefully a delayed start will serve me well. 

     

03.01.25 Ramadan Mubarek.....

     One of the best, if not the best, things about teaching at Essex County College is experiencing its diversity. I could probably go back to when I first came to Newark in the mid-1980's and found myself exposed to people different than what I experienced growing up down on the Jersey Shore. Newark had a wider range of socioeconomic, cultural, and religious diversity. While I like the melting pot of people, I also do like "neighborhoods" where the people and practices are consistent. Example, "Down Neck" or the Ironbound used to be almost all Portuguese, and North Newark predominately Italian. Today famous neighborhoods like Manhattan's "Little Italy" have had their boundaries, which were once well defined, now fluid between Chinatown and Little Italy which takes away from the neighborhood, and the visiting experience. In tougher neighborhoods gentrification has changed the landscape, while not always bad, and the flavor. My daughters done the Brooklyn tour, Williamsburg, Bed-Sty, and Crown Heights, and it's not uncommon to find a bougie coffee joint or a fancy restaurant where a bodega sat decades ago.  

     The students in my class this year come from all walks of life and from all corners of the globe. I should really get a list but besides the few born and bred in the USA, we have students from Africa, Jamaica, Haiti, China, Taiwan, Philippines, Mexico, Dominic Republic, and the list goes on. Some of my students are Muslim, which is a religion, not a race, and those students come from a variety of different countries. 

     Last evening was the start of the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and the start of Ramadan, the holy month that signifies when the Quran, their holy book, was delivered to or seen by the Prophet Muhammad. I can follow briefly all that is Ramadan, but in fact every year I have to brush up on things Lent and Easter as well. What I do know is that in the last week or so Muslims weren't sure when Ramadan would start as it is governed by the siting of the crescent moon in Saudi Arabia. It will last until the next crescent moon, which is March 29th. 

       For those practicing Muslims Ramadan is a month of fasting, praying, reflecting, and giving back to the community. It is kind similar to Lent, or the 40 days before Easter. Several of my students do the fasting and this year I am deciding to join them. The fasting goes from just before sunrise to just after sunset. It's pretty hardcore, no food or drink, even water, between those times. If you are on your feet all day, working, studying, it's easy to feel the effects physically especially if you don't wake up at zero-dark-thirty and eat before the sunrise. I have had students get woozy due to low blood sugar during this month. 

     While I won't be praying to points east, like to Mecca, I will get a feeling of what it's like to have to fast during the day hours, when I seem to do the most damage to the contents of the refrigerator and my body. I won't be giving up drinking water during the day though, it's too much with clinical and lecturing for three hours. We'll see how it goes. 

If you see a Muslin drop them a "Ramadan Mubarak", which would be similar to Happy Ramadan.

02.28.25 Just a day away...

 

      I stopped by the Delaware on my way to work this week. I was surprised to see how the river "looked" during the last week of February. With all the cold and the snow and some good rain mixed in I thought the river would be up, even on a lower tide. 

     While volume is good for striped bass spawning runs, and it'll come with the spring rains and the melt in the mountains, water temperatures play a big role as well. Luckily we've had some balmy weather this week which has brought up the water temperatures a bit. 

      The Raritan Bay is hitting 44 during the warm parts of the day which is good for those anglers soaking bait on the mud flats. If timed right, tide, sun, and time of day things can get good out there especially towards the perimeter along Staten Island and New Jersey's bayshore towns. 

     The Delaware is now up into the 40's and it will be interesting to see what plays in out there. With the river at 5,740 cfs that could make for skin water conditions until a big rain comes and blows things out at 70,000 cfs, which happens every spring. People have their go-to cfs, and that depends on foot or on the boat, but 10,000- 20,000 works for me.

Have fun out there tomorrow is you go, and get them back into the water quick as possible. 

02.26.24 Good to see Henry on MOTF....

      Got in from work late last night but just in time to catch ex- New Yorker now Georgian Henry Cowen on Master's of The Fly. He's known as being an expert on "sodium-free stripers". He moved down south in 1997 and has been there ever since and calls Lake Lanier his home waters.

     Henry tied up some flies on MOTF and explained the how and why's of fishing for striped bass in lakes. For him tying on 60 degree jig hook is the way to go for his fishery. He likes the fly movement on these hooks and the high success rate in landing bigger fish on them. His fish are stocked by the Georgia DNR each year. In 2022 they stocked 3.4 million fingerlings which remain lake locked. He fishes this non-tidal water looking mostly for water temps and the fish movement patterns. 

     He wrote the book, "Fly Fishing for Freshwater Striped Bass" and is available on Amazon HERE. It's a solid book and is a good read for the striped bass fans out there. 

     It was really good to see and hear Henry as he's has been battled blood cancer the last few years. He was healthy enough to make it out to The Fly Fishing Show in Atlanta this year. Interestingly, today was my cancer lecture, which included leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. He really had a road to travel down and I'm glad he's doing so well after fighting the hard fight. 

02.23.25 Tragedy in the channel...

     Around noon today a boater called 911 stating their boat had capsized in the Ambrose Channel between Staten Island and Brooklyn. There were reportedly six souls on board, three have died, two are in the hospital, one is still missing.

     It's unknown the type of boat it was but early reports state it was smaller in size, not a large shipping container ship that navigates the channel heading to ports in Newark, Elizabeth and Bayonne. While the water is freezing there are still hardcore anglers that fish, I would guess for blackfish, during the water. 

     I also have the utmost respect for water, and for other boats that are out there. Almost to the point of not feeling comfortable as there's a ton of things that could go wrong. I've seen it first hand, as my friends know, being out there in that same channel when a friend got into a spot. They all survived but were shaken, as I was along with the two sports I had fishing with me that day. 

RIP to those that lost their lives and to the families of those involved.