Hi Folks,

Even though most fish are still on the small side, there are still some nice fish cruising the back bays. There are plenty of spot to had and all you need is a piece of bloodworm or FishBites artificial bloodworm on a #8 or #10 hook and 10 to 15 feet of water. On light tackle or to keep the kids happy, these guys keep you busy. They also make great bait for a trip to the inlet. Plenty of flounder are scattered about but most are on the short end of the measuring device. Croakers

Are still around according to reports in the store but I could not find any on Friday. Some stripers are being taken in the inlet and the end of incoming tide remains the most productive with nighttime or early morning being prime.

In the ocean you can find some keeper flatties at Site #10 along with the DB Buoy area and the Old Grounds. Some sea bass are also being taken but the pickin’s are slim. When fishing for the flatties be sure you are on the bottom and don’t forget the “big bait, big fish” rule. Offshore action is still happening but has slowed in recent weeks.

Marie Grabowski fished Indian River Inlet using white GULP! to score a 22 inch flattie. Barry Downes of Pottstown, Pa. used minnows in Rehoboth Bay to trick a 5-pound 3oz flattie that measured 24 ½ inches. Steve Marando boated a 4 pound 10 oz. flounder and Ryan Marando scored a 2-pound 7oz flattie.

We had a pretty good turnout for the Rick’s Bait & Tackle / Sea Side Gas & Grill Offshore Tournament with 16 boats entered. First place in the marlin release category went to the boat “JOKEN” with 3 releases. Boat “STACEY” finished second with 3 releases also but scored after “JOKEN”. Third place went to the boat “MOONDAWG”. The dolphin division results had the boat “REELENTLESS” taking 1^st and 2^nd with fish of 19.4 pounds and 18.4 pounds. Third place went to “MOONDAWG” with a 17.8-pound fish. The results for the tuna division end with “STACEY” taking 1^st & 2^nd with fish of 53.6 pounds and 50.8 pounds. “MOONDAWG” took 3^rd with a tuna of 50.2 pounds. Congratulations to all involved and look forward to a bigger and better tournament next year. Keep checking on our striper tournament, which will run from October 1^st thru November 30^th. I would also like to thank Scott and Cathy Fluharty and Ron and Andrea Krause from Sea Side Gas & Grill. It is always a pleasure to work with a group of fine folks. When you are fishing the backs bays be sure to stop in and fuel up the boat and the belly. They have the best gas & grub on the water!

News from Pat at rattle and Reel Sports Center on Long Neck Rd. is that fishing remains the same with small flounder, some croaker and a few blowfish being taken.

Capt. Bill Baker of Bill’s Sport Shop on RT. #1 in Lewes reports that this week there's reports of keeper flounder, lingcod and sea bass southwest and southeast of "B" Buoy. Croakers and spot are being caught at the Cape Henlopen Pier. Croakers and kings are being taken from the surf. Indian River Inlet is giving up croakers, flounder, and spot. A customer just reported 3 keeper flounder in the Broadkill. Linda and Jack Brzoska from DE caught 6 keeper flounder to 23" and 5.34 pounds in Rehoboth Bay.  Minnows and John Gunderman's bucktails did the trick..
Fishing off the beach seems to be picking up. At three R's, Don Perrot picked up a nice 22-inch flounder and some keeper blues. Jimmy, his fishing neighbor, had a couple of blues plus a 55-inch black tip shark all on fresh mullet.
Our neighbor Michelle, at "Seacoast Salon", caught a nice croaker with her pink rod-her first, but it will not be her last.  She also used fresh mullet for bait.
"Pumping Hard" out of OC stopped by to say he was at the Poorman's today trolling ballyhoo, and came away with 10 yellow fin and 2 white marlins. 
Bill Baker, Jr. went to the entrance of Baker's Channel on the Indian River end with Ellen, Mikey and Sarah. They picked a total of 16 flounder with 1 keeper on spec rigs and Gulp! Alive. Heard from David Koster, "Portraits in the Sand";  "You were right on your reports- the Bluefish were hitting on the incoming tide.  My boat broke, so I mounted a rod holder on the wave runner and fished off the point of Cape Henlopen. The birds were diving in all over and the bluefish were right there.  The Point is still closed for the beach access, but you can get there by boat.  Have a great weekend and happy fishing!"

Capt. Joe Morris at Lewes Harbour Marina said croakers cooperated for Delaware Bay bottom fishermen. Anglers had been picking at hardheads over the past few weeks, but finally, appreciable numbers were caught. Boats fishing the northwest portion of Reef Site 8 had the most success with decent sized fish. Clams, bloodworms, shrimp and FishBites were favored offerings. Spot, blowfish, kingfish and snapper blues, along with an occasional keeper flounder were mixed in with hardheads. Captain Charlie’s group on Tranquila enjoyed good action Thursday, putting 70 tasty panfish in the box. Patrons on the Angler, Indian and Pirate King had plenty of croakers over the weekend. Anglers seeking spot have done well from the Cape Henlopen Pier and in the Lewes Canal and Broadkill River. Bits of bloodworms and FishBites on small hooks or sabiki rigs did the trick. Bay boaters targeting flounder found fair numbers of flatties on Reef Sites 6,7 and 8. However, there were usually limited windows when wind and current combinations allowed favorable drifting. In the ocean, where the effects of current weren’t so strong, Reef Sites 9 and 10, and rough bottom of the Old Grounds continued to yield flatfish. Bob Bryant, Sr., Bob Bryant, Jr, Brad Hawkes and Steve Reynolds drifted Site 10 Monday for 12 keepers, including a 5.5 pounder for Bob, Sr. Joe Walker and crew worked Site 10 Tuesday and wound up with 9 quality fish in the box. Among the catch was a 7.14-pound citation fluke for Tom Coyle, and a 6.05-pound doormat for Bob Bryant. Captains Brent and Dave took Katy Did to Site 10 Wednesday where their flukers captured 12 keepers while bouncing bucktails. In offshore action, billfish were reported by boats trolling Baltimore and Washington Canyons. The Katy Did had 4 white marlin and a yellowfin in the Baltimore Sunday, then rounded the day off with deep dropping for some nice golden tilefish. Captain Alan Steele and the guys on Big Herring trolled the Hot Dog Tuesday for 9 yellowfins and a pair of dolphin. A few wahoo have been showing up inshore. Adam Grove got a 27.6 pound ‘hoo while trolling near the Tea Cup.

Bruce at Capt. Mac’s on RT. #54 reported bigger flounder being taken.

The keeper / throwback ratio is starting to turn in the angler’s favor. That’s a good thing! More mullet are starting to show up which should improve all fishing. Surf fishing is also picking up with more kingfish, spot, and blues showing up. Offshore action is spread out all over the place for the trollers. Chunkers can find the bite at the Hot Dog or Hambone using butterfish or sardines.

‘Til next week, have fun and be safe!