Welcome back to winter. It is snowing in Pennsylvania — so much for flip-flop weather. Allergies are about to rage soon, too. At least it is decent enough to fish and even catch.

Bunker are in schools along the coast. The schools are being pushed up by seals trying to feed. Then the birds move in and add to the frenzy.

It would be nice to see some striped bass on them and resident fish will be around these schools. The big bass will feed off the parts left behind by the seals. One reason bunker heads are great for large striped bass, they like to cherry-pick the leftovers. It’s an easy meal for a cow striped bass.

Sand fleas are still easy to find with a little digging on the warm days, but not days like Wednesday. The weekend isn’t looking much warmer.

Spring is coming — the trees and plants are showing signs. My grass is starting to grow, but I’m not too happy to see that. I’m not a yard guy. I should say, that stuff that grows naturally in your yard that isn’t grass in Sussex County is turning greenish again. Soon it will be time to mow the weeds and dust of late summer. I found a tick the other day. I am not ready for this.

Charters are getting reservations for black sea bass coming in May. Get scheduled now. The number of anglers has increased the past two years. I imagine charter business has as well. This year will be tough with those go-juice prices. I’ll take sitting on a beach fishing at $5 a gallon instead of a bunker for a million, Alex.

Pro tip, the cheapest gas is surf fishing and pond hopping, minus that whole tag thing.

The best surf fishing in the summer season is weekdays — early mornings and late evenings mostly, but the tide is king. Plan accordingly this year.

It is weird, but the weekdays we do just fine. Weekends are terrible, but doable. I mean, I just can’t put my finger on the difference. The out-of-staters aren’t taking all the fish, hardly anyone is catching surf fishing on weekends. It must be something else.

The Delaware River Shad Fishermen’s Association is having an open house on March 26. It should be an interesting event to check out and learn about the shad fishery. That action is coming, but for now the action is watching the shad anglers online foam at the mouth as the river water temperatures increase, slowly.

Pickerel have been fun for freshwater anglers. The waterways are warming up. Get your gear ready. Fill in the missing parts with some local tackle makers. Clyde’s Cranks are now available in Treading Water in Milford and A Bit More Than Bait and Tackle in Laurel. Bob will also be at the Delmarva Outdoors Expo at the end of April with show specials, I hear.

DS Custom Tackle has a new high-low, six-aught circle hook rig for striped bass. Look for it in all their store partner shops in Delmarva. It’s perfect for all you “striped perch” anglers.

The winter flounder season is still on and I have yet to see one of those mini flatties. I haven’t tried either, I’ve been too busy making the gear to catch the fish instead of fishing the gear to catch the fish.

Be safe out there. The water is still very cold. It is deceiving on a warm day.
Dress for winter in the morning, strip down for spring at noon, then summer hits about 3 in the afternoon. Then suit back up for the evening fall, and nighttime winter cool-down. March is an angry month.