Jersey salt in the fall

D

Daren

Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2006
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55
Hey Guys,
Looking for any advice on making a trip to IBSP for stripers and albies possibly this fall. Living in south central pa i used to fish for trout and tie for trout A LOT! Got a taste of tropical salt and chesapeake bay salt and just have never really been excited about trout again.
Does anyone else on here live in SC pa and make the trip to jersey? Any general advice, how rough is the drive? Can you (legally) sleep in your car? I have all the fly recipes and gear that i need, just looking for any basic logistical advice or mistakes to avoid.
Thanks
Daren
 
Not from SC PA but it can't be that bad of a drive. Buy the three day beach buggy permit. Not suppose to sleep on beach but I hear you can sleep in the parking lots. Never did it (sleep in the parking lot) thats just what I hear. There are also plenty of wallet friendly rentals since it is way off season. There is nothing more enjoyable then the beach in November.
 
Daren wrote:
Hey Guys,
Does anyone else on here live in SC pa and make the trip to jersey? Any general advice, how rough is the drive? Can you (legally) sleep in your car?
Daren
Click to expand...

Daren,
I live in SC PA and have made the trip countless times. Coming from Gettysburg, the drive time is about 4hrs (I take my time and stop a lot). I don't think its a rough drive but this is entirely a matter of perspective. I usually hit the mid coast; if you hit the upper NJ coast, in my experience, the traffic is much heavier because, obviously, you're closer to NYC.
I used to sleep in my car when I was younger and usually did this on side streets in residential areas (don't know if it was legal or not). Not sure if you can sleep in your car at IBSP (guys do sleep in 4WDs during the night as long as they are "fishing"). My advice would be to find a decent hotel. I like the Windjammer when visiting IBSP. Older now, I don't care to rough it and need a good nights sleep for the drive home. Oftentimes, if you're willing to find a hotel a bit further inland, you can save a few bucks. However, I like to get up and walk out of the hotel and to the beach for early morning fishing and feel this is worth an extra ten bucks or something.

The best advice I can give you is to avoid the shore between Memorial Day and Labor Day; costs are higher during those months, the beaches are more crowded, and the fishing is not as good. The best months are May and late Sept-mid Dec..

Also, be willing to catch the skunk. Surf fishing (especially with fly gear) is very hit or miss. While its great to watch videos of blitzing fish, the odds that you will see that are slim. Hit the shore enough times over the years, and you'll eventually luck into such an event. It just shouldn't be expected every time. Have realistic expectations.
If you look back the Reports forum, some of us have posted a fair number of fishing reports from IBSP and the NJ shore.
 
Good info above by PD and FI.

The past few years the surf fishing on the NJ shore has been tough.

IBSP is a decent place to try. Like above, I also suggest you book one of the more inexpensive motels.

The traffic is a bear, so try to schedule your drive around the AM & PM rush hour.

As far as when; judging from the results in the past few seasons, mid November has been the best time to hit the beach. The bite earlier has been tough. One of the keys is monitoring the ocean water temps. When water temps are in the 50's is prime time for the striper run.

Here are some links to monitor with temps and reports:

http://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/catl.html

http://www.bettyandnicks.com/fish.shtml

http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishing_reports.cfm

http://www.fishermanfreds.com/report.html

Also stay tuned to PAFF. We often have members taking trips to the shore in the fall.

Good luck.
 
THanks for the great info guys! Looking forward to the leaves falling off trees already.
Out of curiousity, any of you guys who ride over to jersey ever try delaware coast instead, specifically cape henlopen? From research and google earth, etc it seems that area could provide some of the same fishing opportunities as jersey and points north.
 
Daren wrote:
cape henlopen? From research and google earth, etc it seems that area could provide some of the same fishing opportunities as jersey and points north.
Click to expand...

Yes, it does.
I used to fish Cape Henlopen/Indian River Inlet fairly frequently. However the last time I was there I was rear-ended (car was a total loss, no injuries thankfully) - this was 1994. By the 1990s I had mostly switched over to the NJ shore. For me, the drive time was almost exactly the same and I just preferred the NJ shore. I was mainly interested in stripers and seemed to have better luck in NJ.

So what I know about DE is dated - but I'd guess Indian River Inlet still gets a good late fall striper run. The spring weakfish run was very good in DE back in the day as well, and is probably still a good bet for weaks.
 
You need a license to fish in delaware.
 
Having been one who has made a ton of trips to the NJ shore in the fall - sadly, I'm at the point where I'm not sure how many more runs I will take until the fishery returns. The fishery is a shadow of its former self. The decline in the past 10 years is staggering imo. It's a shame 'cause I would be there and spending my money. But if the fish are not there, neither will I.

I can't speak for the boat fishery.

Besides the decline in the predators, I can't remember the last time I saw consistent rafts of peanut bunker.
 
VCR I can't argue the numbers with you but it has been my experience that surf fishing is the biggest crap shoot in fishing. Some years the fish just don't come into the surf in great numbers or regularity but they are always within a mile or less of the beach. I mostly fish from a boat and only surf fish when it's to rough to take the boat out. I have had great fishing from the boat the last 3 or 4 years but not so well from the surf.
 
Agreed about surf fishing. The last few years fishing the beach has been really an exercise in futility during the striper run.

The last good year surf fishing, for me anyway, was 2011.

I'll get the reports and I will give it a go again this fall. Hopefully the tide will turn.
 
Yes, 2011 was described by many NJ old salts as the best autumn bass run they'd seen in their lifetimes. However, the big 2011 run was very late, mainly in Dec. I made it to IBSP and found huge crowds and caught only one bass, if my memory serves me correctly. So even during times of great fishing, a foot bound FFer can certainly miss the action. There are some reports/discussion here on PAFF of the big 2011 run, if you wish to go back and read about it..

Many surf regulars do indeed believe that inshore striper fishing has declined in recent years. This view is especially prevalent in New England. Folks in southern ME are really singing the blues. Many surf regulars I talk to feel the problem (as VCRegular mentions above with bunker) isn't lack of bass, but rather lack of baitfish to draw the bass close to shore.

However, an optimistic point is the 2011 Chesapeake Bay YOY year class, which was way off the charts - among the best years in decades. These 2011 fish are just now reaching decent sizes and should contribute a strong shot of fish into the mix soon.
 
I suck at fishing saltwater. The chances of me finding fish are the same as a blind man finding a size 20 dry fly hook on a football field.

That said, some stripers are being caught in the IR inlet. I'm heading back out.
 
first off no sleeping in trucks from 12 am till 4 am on I.B.S.P., no sleeping in parking lots unless you have a yearly pass and only in upper bathing beach till after oct 15th. stocks go up and down all the time. seems like a 7 year cycle most years. this year is looking good so far. takes years of fishing there to learn the secrets to consistently catch fish. have to put in your time. I have since 1964 fished there.
 
Fishidiot wrote:
Yes, 2011 was described by many NJ old salts as the best autumn bass run they'd seen in their lifetimes. However, the big 2011 run was very late, mainly in Dec. I made it to IBSP and found huge crowds and caught only one bass, if my memory serves me correctly. So even during times of great fishing, a foot bound FFer can certainly miss the action. There are some reports/discussion here on PAFF of the big 2011 run, if you wish to go back and read about it..

Many surf regulars do indeed believe that inshore striper fishing has declined in recent years. This view is especially prevalent in New England. Folks in southern ME are really singing the blues. Many surf regulars I talk to feel the problem (as VCRegular mentions above with bunker) isn't lack of bass, but rather lack of baitfish to draw the bass close to shore.

However, an optimistic point is the 2011 Chesapeake Bay YOY year class, which was way off the charts - among the best years in decades. These 2011 fish are just now reaching decent sizes and should contribute a strong shot of fish into the mix soon.
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I follow the reports and talk to anglers nearly every day. No doubt the surf fishing has declined. New regs this year decreasing the harvest of stripers by 25%or more on the east coast may help in the long run, but most SW anglers feel that not enough has been done.

With a lower population, one must search for fish. Boat anglers have the advantage of being mobile to find the bait and fish. Surf anglers are left to chuck it and chance it on the beach.

Like VC above, many surf anglers that have successfully fished for years and even have houses at the shore have given up. I still hold hope that the tide will turn.
 
surf line has changed in the last several years, maybe keeping the bass off shore
 
sandfly wrote:
surf line has changed in the last several years, maybe keeping the bass off shore
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A lot of theories about that. Some say the beach replenishment has pushed the bass offshore. Since Sandy Hook and IBSP don't get beach replenishment, that theory doesn't explain much. Some blame Sandy (Hurricane Sandy...not you...lol).

Anyway, the problem exists all up and down the NE coast, so I am in the camp that believes it's more of a population density problem than a changes in the surf itself. You now need GPS and sonar to find and catch fish. Anyway, hoping for better days.
 
no deep water close to shore, to flat not enough holes to hold bait and fish. I think sandy (other one) flattened the NE. coast line. we need a few good nor'easter's to gouge out the beaches again.
 
sandfly wrote:
surf line has changed in the last several years, maybe keeping the bass off shore
Click to expand...

This combined with the washing out of everybodies honey holes has greatly affected the already randomness of surf fishing throwing the fish and fishermen into a funk.
 
There are less fish. The body of fish is smaller. lack of cuts. Troughs. Bars. Structure. Does not matter when there is a lack of bass. Even the mega conservative - slow to react/not proactive ASMFC - has acknowledged there is a decline. Hence the 25% reduction afishinado mentioned.
 

When SurfCowboy dismounted, shot his horse and walked away....I knew it was the end. :cry:
 
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