If you fished the first full week of August, you already know the story: fluke everywhere, and almost none of them 18 inches.
Tuesday, Aug. 5 - Joe M reported the river absolutely stacked with short fluke: two of them caught over 50 fish in three hours, biggest 17.5". He'd been blown out the day before - too rough for his 18-footer - so he stayed inside a mile and picked at blues instead.
Fred T found the same thing on the Axel, with the SE corner fishing a little better than the rest of it, and a few more fish over the Delaware Wreck.
Luis C fished the river that day for all shorts, after a day on the Axel that produced all shorts but one - a 23.5" fish that was the best report of the week.
Luis also passed along the rumor going around all week: north was fishing better than south.
Wednesday, Aug. 6 - Brian F ran up off Long Branch and fished 55 feet. Lots of action, nothing to bring home: two of them caught at least 40 fluke plus some sea bass, and every fluke was short. They wanted pink Gulp.
Friday, Aug. 7 - Joe M was out again with two others, working the Axel and the Sea Girt reefs. Forty fish, not one keeper, but plenty of medium sea bass to keep the rods bent. Both Monger boats were working the Axel that day too.
Paul S stayed in the river off Clarks and had 8 shorts, including three at 17" and a 16.5" - close, but no cigar.
Sunday, Aug. 9 - Sean W was out early and summed it up in one line: just shorts. He worked his way toward the mud hole looking for something better.
Frank C reported the same from the south side of the Axel - hundreds of shorts, and an amazing number of them in that 15 to 17 inch range. As he put it, eventually they'll all be 18", right?
Also on the calendar: Fred T fished the Shillelagh tournament on Saturday the 8th.
Not a week for the record book, but a whole lot of bent rods - and a healthy sign for next season if all those 15 to 17 inch fish stick around.