Cape May - Cape May, NJ Fishing Report on 18th Jul, 2023

Ran Jim, Shay, and Colby down onto the beach today to try the surf. We were greeted with some thick fog. Things looked good otherwise. I set out four rods to ply the waters. And there they sat. An hour, not a touch other than us hauling them in to change the baits. Decided to make a move to the Bay side. Walking off the beach one of the wheels popped off the cart. The lynch pin holding the tire on somehow vanished. Luckily I had some wire and made a quick fix of the situation. Another angler walking onto the beach asked how we did, to which I replied, nada. He said it was the same yesterday. So, adding things up in my head, I read we had some upwelling and a front push through, then of course we have the New Moon. And the water looked quite cloudy. Thus, no fish. We arrived on the Bay side and set back up. Three fun fish rods, two for sharks and rays. The action was more immediate. We started off with a kingfish, then a spot, then a spike weakie. Then a doggie. And the action continues just like that. Steady pick of mostly spot, weakies, and kingies, with a few doggies in the mix. A bit later one of the big boy rods went over. Shay pounced on it and whipped a nice little brow sharks tail. We got the hook out and took a few pictures for posterity, then got it swimming again. Once the tide turned back out the bite slowed considerably. We picked a few more fish, but no where near as many as earlier. Then the crowd started to thicken, so we called it a day. Had a great time with Jim and the boys. They kicked butt and took names today. Solid fishermen. Hopefully they check out some of the spots I showed them and find some more fish before they head back home... Tight Lines!