The Blowfish are Here by Ed Valitutto

Posted on August 2, 2021 by VHFC

Today August 2, my grandsons and daughter decided it would be a good day for blowfishing. Two days prior when fluking near the artificial island just south of Oyster Creek, I noticed several boats anchored and fishing for the puffers. That was our first and only stop. We were ~100 feet south of the island. I had barely thrown the chum pot over when Nick had his hooks cleaned – a very good sign. We had non-stop catching until both chum logs were gone along with the clam bait.

Total catch of keepers was 72 including several over 10″. My grandson Vinnie entered one into our FOM which I’m sure will be easily beaten but he was thrilled anyway. I used my new trolling motor to ‘anchor’ and even with a brisk west wind, we never moved or even swayed. I was very impressed with the holding power.

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Fishing Facts

Of the fifty United States, thirty-eight have a striped-bass record. New Jersey has the largest striped-bass record—a 78-pound 8·ounce whopper that was caught in 1982. The state with the smallest striped-bass record is Iowa. That landlocked striper weighed only 9 pounds 4 ounces and was caught in 1983.

There’s something fishy about beer these days. Fish Tail Ale is popular as ever, and New Jersey’s Flying Fish Brewery is one of the state’s largest specialty breweries. There’s also Washington’s Wild Salmon Organic Pale Ale, Florida’s Land Shark beer, Delaware’s Dogfish Head beer, and two versions of Stingray beer—a lighter version from the Cayman Islands and a dark beer from Canada.

The triangle fly is probably the most unusual of saltwater flies. It’s one of the few, if not only, flies tied to a treble hook. It’s also barely a fly at all, because hardly any material is used. It is complete after tying the two straw pearl twinkle flashes and the tiny tuft of natural squirrel, leaving an entire hook fully exposed. Incredibly this barebacked treble fly is a knockout when it comes to sea trout.