Fishing Reports by Mike B. at Eastern Marine

At Ship John Light a solid Striper bite is in high gear, as is the norm this time of year. Chunking fresh Bunker as usual is all that is needed and good limit reports of fish in the 28-inch plus range have been common. Don’t forget from July 1st through August 31st anglers are permitted to keep 2 Stripers from 20” – 26” in the Delaware River, Bay, and its tributaries. Along with Stripers anglers have encountered an unusually steady Flounder bite that is producing some impressive flatties from off the old lighthouse. Go to baits have been Berkley Gulp Alive in the 4” swimming mullet, fresh Bluefish belly, and large Bull Head Minnows.

Further down the bay just above the elbow of the Cross Ledge at G6s a small wreck is located just off the buoy. Chris Brown of Eastern Marine launched out of Port Mahon and boated limit catches of doormat Flounder to 26”. Chris said Berkley Gulp Alive 4” inch swimming mullet in chartreuse and giant Bullhead Minnows tipped with squid were his go to baits. The 14 Foot Bank was another location that customers were pinpointing as a hot spot for doormat Flounder. Many anglers I talked to seemed to think that the majority of big Flounder were being taken in 20’ – 25’ of water from all three locations.

Along the shore the surf report has been positive with Croakers, Spot, and Kingfish. Bloodworms, Fishbites, and small offerings of clam have been top performers. Many anglers use light surf gear and small top and bottom rigs tipped with Bloodworm to harvest spot. They then in turn have fresh cut bait or live Spot to live line targeting predatory fish. Large Sand Tigers have been caught along the Delaware Shore at Conquest, Key Box, and 3r’s road. Some anglers are kayaking fish baits as far as 400 yards offshore and paddling back to man a surf stick in anticipation for one of these hard battling predators. Sand Tigers in the 5’ – 7’ range have been common this season.

Indian River has given up a steady Bluefish chop for the whole summer. Although the size has varied from day to day, most incoming tides have provided anglers with plenty of fishing action. From the bridge to the second bend on the south side has been the strike zone according to most anglers we spoke with. Johnny Justinson said an ever-increasing Flounder bite is to be had along the south wall of the Indian River Inlet and the keeper to throw back ratio is quickly starting to improve. I can’t wait, as I will be spending the second week of August along that south wall myself. Yes, yours truly will be getting into the swing here shortly. I have to be honest, hearing and reporting about other anglers trips and experiences is a blast but not as fun as telling the stories yourself. Until next time take advantage of this heat wave and remember to be prepared and cautious when enduring excessive heat indexes.

Matt Borelli showed up at Eastern Marine with two impressive Black Drum tethered to the console of his Carolina Skiff, one 55 pounder and the other an outstanding 88 pound boomer. Matt and family spent the night out on the Coral Beds cracking Quahogs and it sure did pay off. Congratulations to Matt and family on their success, citation honors for their Boomer, and continued good luck in the future. A solid Striper bite is still to be had at the Indian River Inlet at night off the jetty and along the rocks. Anglers throwing bucktails with strips of fresh cut bait (herring, shad, bunker) have done extremely well. Storm Lures, Tsunami center post baits, and Bomber Long A plugs have also produced limit catches of Stripers. Further up the bay good reports are coming from buoy R”6L” where Striped Bass have been stacked up. Customers here at Eastern have been leaving Collins Beach and anchoring up in the section of 20ft water just off the buoy. Fresh Bunker has been the ticket, and not much else has seemed to grab their attention but limit catches of fish have been fast and furious.

On the fresh water scene Michael Schenck of Wilmington Delaware fished over the Memorial Day weekend. Upon arriving at Eastern, Michael hoisted an enormous 6 pound 4oz Largemouth Bass on to the scale. With a length of 20 inches and a girth of 15 ½ inches Michaels bass was a real chunk to say the least. Schenck received citation honors for his fish, congratulations on your fine catch Mike.

Fishing Reports by Mike B. at Eastern Marine

On the days that were fishable, anglers had some encouraging news to share. On the fresh water scene Brad Waltman hooked into an enormous 7 lb Largemouth Bass that taped out at 22-3/4 inches. Waltman was fishing at Beck’s Pond and declined to tell the Eastern Marine staff what the big bass fell for. Dave Jordan fished Noxontown Pond and showed up with a hefty White Crappie that tipped the scales at 2 lbs. Dave was fishing with shiners he purchased here at Eastern Marine. Matthew Crawford decided to try his luck at Old Post Farms and brought a nice 1 lb 12oz White Crappie that earned him citation honors. Matt was fishing with Fat Head Minnows under a bobber.

Trout fishing still remained productive throughout the month as stocking continued threw the 23rd of April. Larry Holcomb tried his luck at Rittenhouse Park and nailed an impressive 2lb 4oz Rainbow. William Brittingham fished White Clay Creek and fooled a 2lb 4oz Brown Trout with a Rooster Tail. Perry Swecker and friend Russell Smith waded the Trolly Car and both put on citation Brown Trout. Sweckers trout weighed in at 2lb even and Smiths Brownie was 2lb 4oz. All of the Brown Trout Perry and Russell caught were taken on small Fat Head Minnows.

Striper fishing was at the top of most anglers list. As we flow into mid April the Striper run intensifies and so does the bite. Derek Fagan an employee here at Eastern Marine fished The Pipes, just south of Reedy Point and scored a lovely 24lb 6oz Striper, Derek was using fresh herring cut baits. Vinnie Forte brought a 39” Striper to the scales that was 22 lbs and good enough for citation honors. Vinnie was fishing the skinny water down at Sam Green’s Beach. Don Lane and son Josh fished an undisclosed area that father Don said was south of Augustine Beach. Don and Josh were chunking fresh bunker and managed a beautiful Striped Bass that pushed our scale capacity to the limit. Don’s Striper weighed 27 lbs 4oz, while Josh earned citation honors for an enormous Channel Catfish that taped out to 23-1/2 inches and weighed 7 lb 10oz. Clifford Ray Lewis followed suite with his own citation Channel Cat that was 24 inches and was 7lb 7oz. Shawn May fished Augustine Beach and brought a 39 inch Striper to the boat that received citation accolades at a weight of 22 lbs 8oz’s. Shawn said the big Striper just couldn’t resist a whole offering of Eastern Marine’s JUMBO BLOODWORMS. Well let’s hope the weather report for this weekend holds up better than previous weeks of April and we get a chance to get out on the water and enjoy ourselves. Remember that Eastern Marine is your one stop shopping outlet for the fishing and crabbing enthusiast.

Fishing Reports by Mike B. at Eastern Marine

The upper Delaware River was the destination of anglers in search of big female Stripers. Striped Bass are running hard and the bite has been intense. Customers I talked to said Battery Park, Dobbinsville Beach, Delaware City, The Pipes, Augustine Beach, and Sam Greens Beach have all produced Stripers ranging from 26”- 48” inches. Bloodworms have been the go to bait and here at Eastern Marine we have the biggest worms at the lowest prices in town, or just about anywhere for that matter! The bite has been best on the incoming tide in the skinny water (Battery Park, Dobbinsville). In the deep-water spots (Governor Bacon, Reedy Point) the outgoing tide has produced. A giant 16 lb 2 oz Channel Catfish was also weighed in this week. Ismael Hernandez of Newark DE was fishing the C & D Canal with bloodworms when the behemoth 29” 16 pounder struck. Congratulations Ismael on your fine catch!

Freshwater fishermen have had a consistent bite at both Beck’s and Lum’s Ponds. Alex Manelski brought a 1-1/2 lb White Crappie to the scales and received his second citation honor in as many months. Noxontown Pond has given up several good reports. Pete Fecther and Mike Bowen fished Noxontown on Sunday and recorded a mix of 150 White and Black Crappie, Largemouth Bass to 3-1/2 pounds, and a dandy 4 lb Chain Pickerel. Fecther and Bowen were throwing a 2” Kalin’s grub in a Tennessee Shad Pattern on a 32nd oz jig head. Edward Brown of Claymont DE fished Lum’s Pond and also caught a citation 1 lb 15 oz White Crappie.

The Pure Fishing order that I told you about last week did arrive and as promised we have some new additions to our tackle department that will wow you! Penn Conquer and Sargus Spinning Reels. Penn Torque and Shakespeare Ugly Tiger Lite Jigging Rods. Abu Garcia 176 Cardinal surf set-ups, along with Cardinal 300i ulta-lite reels for trout and panfish. We have Shakespeare rod and reel combos designed for specific applications. For example the trout kit comes with an ultra-lite 5’ foot rod and reel spooled with 4 lb Stren fishing line, accompanied with a medium size tackle box filled with spinners, bobbers, split shot, terminal tackle and a complimentary jar of Berkley Power Bait. We also paid special attention to customer requests on different fishing lines. Stren 100% Fluorocarbon and both Berkley Fire Lines, Crystal and Tracer braid are here in store. Finally our selection of Berkley Gulp and Berkley Gulp Alive is a must see for any individual who fishes fresh or salt water. I am especially stoked about the new Berkley Ghost Shrimp. Anyone who has used the older New Penny Shrimp by Gulp will be interested in this new innovation. Well, that’s just a little sample of some of the new products we are currently promoting. Get out, enjoy this weather and after stopping at Eastern Marine (your one stop tackle shop) go load up on your favorite target species.

Don’t worry! I didn’t forget you salt water guys! We stock the full line of Berkley Gulp Alive buckets (4” swimming mullet, new penny shrimp, molting crab and the new belly strip.) These are becoming the most popular artificials for salt water and a must have for Delaware Bay Flounder fishermen. For the angler that has to throw that special confidence bait, or nothing else will work! Berkley has developed scented spray attractants, Berkley Gulp Alive Spray. Now any soft plastic or hard lure can be enhanced with the great taste of Gulp! Again don’t forget we have the largest, freshest live bait selection around. Bloodworms are in stock and this year we are selling a regular and JUMBO size worm, they are priced at $8.99 for regs and $15.99 for our 10” inch plus JUMBO. With our report from last week being favorable on the Striper bite in the upper Delaware River and 60 degree plus days in store what are you waiting for! Let’s go fishing!

Yong Anderson was fishing Reedy Point and received citation honors for a dandy 1# lb White Perch he weighed in here at Eastern Marine. Yong was fishing Bloodworms on a top and bottom rig. You can see Yong’s picture here on our website.

Shannon Cockrell was at the top of the fresh water scene again this week with a nice bucket of White Crappie. Cockrell said he was fishing a shad dart tipped with night crawler at Smalley’s Dam on the Christiana Creek. Unfortunately Shannon missed receiving citation honors for his crappie by 1/8th of an once.