May 15 Report. Keyport, New Jersey Striped Bass. Ling

Hallie Loren Sportfishing: May 15 Fishing Report & Weekend Openings!

First off, it was a beautiful day to be out on the water!

The Striped Bass fishing started out slow. We marked plenty of fish on the machine, but they were tight-lipped and just didn't want to play today. We ground it out, managed to get one in the boat, and then shifted gears to the ocean to hunt for opening day Black Sea Bass.

Upon arriving at our usual early-season grounds, we found a decent fleet of party, charter, and private boats, but the bite was non-existent across the board. Not one to sit around waiting, we kept moving and searching. After marking very few fish on the grounds, we made the call to head out to deeper water—and that’s where the action picked up! We salvaged the afternoon by putting a dozen Ling and Tautog (Blackfish) in the cooler before it was time to point the bow back to the marina.

That’s fishing—every single day on the ocean is a different puzzle to solve, and we don't quit until we find 'em!