Well that was a fast transition from the dry hot fall to an ice cold wet winter. I’m not a fan but the striped bass fishing is better. Hunters are out and about more for waterfowl and whatnot. Surf tags are now on sale but no one seems to care. When you don’t limit something, it is amazing how fast the interest drops. Maybe this will motivate some actual surf anglers to come back and fish Delaware. Most of them (us) are going to Assateague and farther south to the Outer Banks where the fishing is still producing decent catches. The reservation system kills the desire to try and fish weekends in Delaware. Not only did this chase away surf anglers but it decreased business in bait shops, too. We call that a reverse economic impact. If you have to plan a trip ahead of time, you may as well plan it elsewhere and enjoy the fishing. I know all this because I talk to hundreds of people about these subjects weekly on my social media networks.

Duck hunters are out enjoying the cold finally. Wednesday morning it was 24 degrees. I’m not ready for these sudden cold temperatures.

The cold also makes the striped bass much more active. New Jersey is seeing many a striped bass around the beaches. Delaware is seeing a fair share of striped bass but you have to go hunting for them. We are not seeing Jersey blitz conditions. But schools of migratory bass are passing by Delaware, either close to shore or way out front in the EEZ.

Make sure you are not traveling in the EEZ returning to port with striped bass on board that are illegal. Even if you caught them legally, being in the EEZ with striped bass is a big no-no. This usually happens when anglers cruise to Jersey to fish and then come home straight across to port. You have to stay within the EEZ at all times if you have striped bass catches on board.

Also make sure you look up the slow zones for fin whales. NOAA has added some days to those. I won’t get started on the real cause of whale deaths. Public opinion is sideways these days on emotions and ignore the facts. Ship strikes and fishing gear are to blame for most whale strandings.

Tautog are being caught at the inlet regularly, with some decent keepers. It’s hard to find live sand fleas, if at all. Tuna are still a hot catch offshore, the weather is not however.

The bait shop owners are all at a tradeshow this week if you are wondering why some shops were closed midweek. Wholesalers or distributors host tradeshows for the shops to see new products from their vendors and to put in orders for the season. The public can’t attend these shows and you wouldn’t like it anyway. Nothing is for sale, it is display only.

I’m looking forward to following the first Pomp Up Surf Fishing Tournament in Florida this weekend. The Shoreline Showdown Surf Fishing Tournament Series will have its final round this weekend and then the championship on Sunday. This has been a fun tournament series to follow, presented by Fishbites and hosted by Fishbites Trading Post this weekend. The Pomp’n Ain’t Easy brand is doing some fun things in the middle of events for the hosts. You never know where this crew will pomp up next.

If you haven’t restrung those rods for large fish catching, now is the time to get it done. I have spools I can switch out now from mono to braid for fall fishing. I use the mono in summer to catch the summer taco fish. There’s no reason to destroy expensive line for small fish. I try to not use my good casting rods and reels for bait fishing anyway. A basic setup for the surf is all you need for summer fish unless you plan on catching large fish all day. Then gear up for big fish landings.