Updated: Thursday, May 28, 2026 · Next update: Thursday, June 4, 2026
This New Jersey fishing report covers late May, when the fishery hits its late-spring peak. Striped bass lead, at full strength from the inlets through the surf, and with summer flounder season open as of May 22, the bay fishing comes on hard. Bluefish build rapidly. Mixed weather is the condition to plan around: expect windy afternoons, so fish the productive dawn windows.
What’s Hitting
Striped bass fishing is excellent in the surf and in Raritan Bay, where big fish sit on bunker pods. Fluke come on strong in the bays after the opener. Bluefish of 8-12 lb push through the back bays and along the beaches, with a few big alligators over 15 lb mixed into the bunker pods.
The Delaware Bay black drum run is past peak, with fish still in the upper bay. Weakfish are spotty; the surf adds a few fluke on bucktails and the occasional weakfish at night.
Where to Find Them
Stripers run the surf from Sandy Hook through Long Beach Island, feeding aggressively in the wash on sand eels and migrating menhaden. Manasquan Inlet, Barnegat Inlet and Great Egg Inlet hold fish on the moving tides, and Old Orchard Shoal and the Reach are reliable in Raritan Bay.
Fluke spread through the Manasquan River, Barnegat Bay, Great Bay and Great Egg Harbor, with the Manasquan River channel, the Barnegat Bay channels and the IBSP back bay the consistent producers. Nearshore fluke sit on wrecks and reef structure in 30-60 feet. Black drum turn up at Crab Alley and the Cape May rips, and weakfish in the Mullica River and Great Bay system.
Tides & Conditions
Dawn tides are the top window in the surf, and inlet stripers feed on the moving tides. The new moon arrives June 5. Water temperatures climb through the 60s, with the back bays already in the low 70s, and fluke dominate through August.
Tackle & Tactics
Surf stripers hit white or bone pencil poppers, SP Minnows and Atom 40 Junior plugs; fish cut bunker on circle hooks at anchor for bigger fish. At the inlets, live eels on heavy spinning gear are the top approach for keeper-class and over-slot fish, and white or chartreuse bucktails with Gulp! Swimming Mullet trailers are the artificial standard. In Raritan Bay, troll tube-and-worm or live-line bunker on circle hooks.
For fluke, use a 1/4 to 1 oz bucktail tipped with a Gulp! 4-inch Swimming Mullet in white, chartreuse or pink, and go to 1.5-2 oz bucktails on nearshore structure. For blues, cast diamond jigs, white bucktails and Got-Cha plugs to breaking schools, or troll tube-and-worm and umbrella rigs; live bunker on stingers draws trophy fish. Black drum eat cut clam and live bait, weakfish take Fin-S Fish and small bucktails on light tackle, and surf blues hit cut bait and metals.
Local Intel This Week
Barnegat Light State Park puts shore anglers on Barnegat Inlet. Cape May Harbor is the launch for the Cape May rips, and Atlantic Highlands Municipal Harbor for Raritan Bay.
ASMFC striper rules apply; verify NJ DEP regulations as inter-state coordination continues, and check fluke rules at trip time. Use circle hooks with bait, pinch barbs if releasing fish, and release oversized breeders. Check current state and federal regulations and seasons before keeping fish.
This Week’s Tip
Match bucktail weight to depth and current when drifting fluke along the channel edges: start light in slow, shallow water and step up toward 1 oz as depth and current increase, so the jig stays on bottom. Fish the dawn surf for stripers first, then fluke mid-day.
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