South Jersey also has its fair share of good fishing
RON NUZZOLO Fish On
Fishing to the beat of a different drum and timing was everything. I joined my good friend Keith Bush fromMonroe and his party for their second annual drum trip aboard the Lone Star from Cape May. With big bass and blues being caught in the Raritan, I traveled two and a half hours south to CapeMay to seewhat the big fuss was all about.

At 4 p.m., we approached a small city of about 100 boats in the fleet just 25 minutes from the dock in the Delaware Bay. As we positioned in for the night, every boat as far as you could see had fish. The bite was on before we could even drop anchor. It didn't take long before the first rod screamed off the back of the boat, and 20 minutes later the first 75-pound drum was aboard. That was just the beginning: one after the other we had fish on.

The sunset was picture-perfect as every boat in the fleet continued to fight these powerful fish into the light of a full moon. The bite continued till about 9 p.m. when everyone had their share of fighting drum from 50 to 75 pounds. Keith Bush, Darren Bush, Peter Louie, Sammy Vocchio, Paul Cutrupi, Kyle Hutchinson, Ronnel King, Mark Gassoso, Rudy Gontek, Kent Bush and I had at least one fish for the night.

High hook went to Darren Bell fromOld Bridge, who landed three, all over 70 pounds, andAnil Singh, a first-timer fishing with a rental pole off to the side, landed three and lost two. The trip was an incredible fishing experience, especially when you hear the actual drumbeat sound that is produced by these fish. Drum run until about the end of June in the Delaware, and if you're not going to eat them, then tell the mate to cut it loose for another day. These are big fish,with only about 15 percent of the body weight being edible. The fight is worth the release. A fish in the 60- to 70-pound range is estimated at 20 years of age, and with no commercial value, they should be around for the next generation to enjoy. The fight on drum this size was eight out of 10, with a yellow-fin tuna being a 10. I had a great time and look forward to next year's trip.

Fromthe surf:Along the shore, veteran surf fisherman Paul Danielczyk reported that the blues are close to the beaches and the striped bass aremaking theirway out of the bays and heading to the ocean side.

FromSandyHook south toOrtleyBeach, the surf has still been very rough to fish, with waves pounding the shoreline and making it difficult to hold bottom or work a plug, but there are reports of short bass being taken on the outgoing tides, using clams and/or bunker.

From Seaside Heights to Island Beach State Park, it is pretty much the same, but if you try using bunker and clams, you will probably be rewarded with a decent-size bluefish or a striped bass since they are starting tomake theirmove to the ocean.Especially watch this coming week as the full moon should produce some notable catches.

If you are adventurous and have the time, try an hour before and after sunrise and an hour just before and after sunset, since the striped bass like to prowl in close to the shore at those times of the day.