Fog, Wind and No Fish

Recently I met Matt Trucks in South Amboy for what was supposed to be a morning of fishing for bluefish (and possibly a striper or two). It was forecasted to be a decent day, but on the way to the launch, there was a little rain and some light fog. I arrived at 5:30 a.m. and while the rain had stopped, the fog seemed to be getting thicker. I figured the fog would eventually burn off.

A few minutes later, Matt showed up and we started to get ready. A lot of waves were rolling in and when I looked out from the launch, I could see Perth Amboy and Staten Island through the fog. While we were getting everything ready, another angler with a Hobie walked past us. After wishing each other good luck, he disappeared into the fog to go launch.

Although the angler used the paved walkway, we couldn't see where it lead, so we chose to walk down the side of the old boat ramp from which we could see the beach. We needed to get across the sand and mud, but I could not get any traction with my water shoes. It was very hard to walk and drag the kayak through the mud and muck, even with my Wheeleez cart. When we finally got to the water’s edge, the wind picked up and the fog became really thick. We could no longer see Perth Amboy or Staten Island, so we decided to wait it out for a bit and smoked a cigar.

After about 2 hours of waiting, we still could not see through the fog. In fact, there were several boats just a few hundred yards off the beach that we could hardly see. Soon we saw the guy with the Hobie heading back in. He said there were a lot of blues, but it was rough and he was getting beat up from the wind and waves. He was also wet and shivering because he didn’t dress for the current conditions.

The conditions required at least waders and a dry top, but he was only wearing shorts and a sweatshirt. After he left, we waited a bit longer and then decided to pack it in.

We headed over to Keyport to see if it was any better there. First, we went to the public boat ramp and then to another launch we know. While the wind was considerably less, the fog was still very thick. There was also a lot more boat traffic than in South Amboy. I thought about launching, but all I could think of was the poor visibility and the possibility of boats getting too close. I didn't want to take a chance in the dense fog, so we decided to call it a day. Matt went home and so did I.

After a cup of coffee and a pork roll sandwich, I decided to go freshwater fishing. I headed to Marlu Lake and launched at about 11:30 a.m. or so. I fished all afternoon and didn't catch anything. I only had one hit on a soft plastic worm and one on a jerk bait – that was it. Around 3:30 p.m., I headed home.

Even though my saltwater fishing plans were scrapped and I “got the skunk” in the freshwater, it was still a good day out. Time on the water is time well wasted. Hopefully I can get out one night this week after work. Then on Saturday, I have the second HOW (Heroes on the Water) event of the season.