New Jersey fishing forecast for Feb 25 - Mar 4

[Destroyer]

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February 24, 2011By Jimmy Fee:

Governor Christie finally got around to signing the bill allowing for a free registry for New Jersey saltwater fishermen this past week. This means that saltwater fishermen in New Jersey will be exempt from the $15 fee the federal government is charging to anglers in states without a fishing license.

So once you take care of your free registration, you might want to hop aboard the Ocean Explorer to get in on some of the best codfishing that has taken place in New Jersey waters in years. While the fishing isn’t as fast as to our north, guys sailing aboard New Jersey headboats are taking home a few keeper cod and ling apiece. In February, beggars can’t be choosers, so if you want to wet a line in the salt, these two species may be your only option.

In freshwater, as of Monday, Laurie from Dows Boat Rental on Lake Hopatcong was reporting 12 inches of ice and good fishing. Some slab crappies north of the 1-pound mark have been caught in the past week. Late February and early March used to see some great crappie fishing for me when these speckled panfish would school up and get ready to move close to shore for the spawn. For the remainder of the ice fishing season and for the weeks following ice out, action with crappies should be fantastic.

Once the ice does release its grip on more New Jersey lakes, targeting crappie with a hair jig under a float could make for some impressive catches. Other noteworthy fish pulled through the ice at Hopatcong this week were a couple 5-plus pound walleye and a number of 4-plus-pound pickerel, which I’m sure were a nice change of pace from the yellow perch that have been dominating ice catches for most of the season.

Other lakes are stuck between ice fishing and ice out, preventing anglers from doing fishing of any kind. It won’t be long now until the lakes are open and anglers will be casting cold-water presentations for lethargic largemouths and pickerel.

In South Jersey, more lakes are open and allowing for casting, in particular Union Lake, one of the region’s more popular bass waters. Jigs and suspending jerkbaits, both fished very slowly, have been the ticket, though spinnerbaits are reportedly taking some fish as well.

We are within a week of the opening of striped bass season in New Jersey back bays, but with the cold water temperatures, anglers may have to wait a bit longer before they start seeing keeper striped bass.

Best Bets for the Weekend

Looks like some warmer weather is expected in New Jersey over the weekend, and it may put ice fishing on hold until next winter. If you want to sneak in one last ice fishing trip please make sure there is enough solid ice to support your weight. The best is yet to come this fishing season, so there is no reason to take unnecessary risks.

For saltwater, headboat cod and ling are the only option, at least for another week. Once we get into March, more boats will resume sailing and more species will be added to the menu. Striper season opens in 7 short days, and hopefully the weather will be mild enough to warrant trying for the Garden State’s most beloved gamefish.