ESPN Saltwater

Editor's note: Capt. Chris Gatley can be found with his fishing clients chasing striped bass in front of the Statue of Liberty, or heading offshore to the Atlantic Ocean canyons off the NJ/NY coast for tuna. His articles on cutting-edge fishing techniques can be found in The Fisherman Magazine, and he's a regular presenter at key sports shows during the winter months (when he's not pursuing whatever he can find in East Coast rivers).

The hottest trend going this week falls on Surf fishing action at Island Beach State Park in New Jersey. If you enter the water to cast, you had better count your toes when you come out. A growing group of guys are targeting brown sharks from land and doing extremely well. Just the other night, my friends went four for six on nice 5-foot brown sharks.

"This is a nice alternative till the stripers migrate down the beach," Mickey Melchiondo said.

If you go, take along some fresh bunker. This colorful cast of characters prefers to use fresh bunker heads but when the bite is really hot, any piece will work. If you go, outfit yourself with a 12-foot surf rod and big reel as brown sharks will take tons of line.

Their best action is when targeting sand bars and cuts at night but these guys will tell you it is a waiting game. If casting lures from the sand is your bag, try the T-Hex jig by AOK Tackle. This jig has been quietly taking lots of fish this summer and it casts like a rocket, allowing for extra distance off the beach.

Striped Bass

Striped bass are probably the most sought inshore species in the northeast, with plenty being caught annually at the 60-pound mark.

Right now, fish are holding offshore in deeper, cooler water where anglers cannot target them thanks to the EEZ.

The Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is a sea zone over which individual states have special rights over marine resources. It stretches from the edge of the state's territorial sea out to 200 nautical miles from its coast. Basically, the EEZ aids in protecting our striped bass populations. As water temperatures cool, look for this specie to migrate closer to shore.

Fluke

Fluke fishing is wrapping up in some states over the next week or so. Some northern states have already closed their fluke fishing for the year.

Right now is a great time to catch your trophy flukasaurus if you live in New Jersey, Delaware and Virginia. The entire New Jersey coast is yielding lots of keeper fluke while fish up to 8 pounds being caught daily.

Some harbors and back bays are producing plenty of peanut bunker for bait. But, with this warm weather, don't expect the bait to drop out of the bays just yet. For that reason, bucktails such as Spro's four ounce version tipped with smelt or tuna belly is a wise choice for taking your flukasaurus, especially along the oceanfront.

Keep in mind that Berkley Gulp Alive! produces numbers of fluke, too. If you are in the market for Gulp products, I suggest purchasing a mullet version. Mullet will soon be dropping out of estuaries, creeks and running the beachfronts. We may be a bit early on this trend but it is nice to be ready just in case.

Seabass

Seabass fishing in New England is off the charts. Targeting hard bottom areas and wrecks; party boats and recreational anglers are catching huge numbers and some good-sized sea bass. These tasty fish are eating jigs such as the Lucanus jig.

It is important to note that clams and squid strips are most often used and taking fish, too. It comes down to styles of fishing and how you personally like to fish.

This week will produce great seabass action as fish will be on the chew after Hurricane Bill. As the waters cool, look for Tautog or 'Tog' to pick up, especially along the jetties surrounding Cape Cod.

Tog is seldom a target specie in this region but the fish are big and plentiful. We may be a week or two early here but if fishing is slow, it may be worth a look. Don't forget your green crabs if you go.

Weakfish

Our weakfish (named for having soft mouths that easily tear free from lures) along the northeastern seaboard has dropped off dramatically since the late 1980s. Spotty catches will always be reported from Long Island Sound down into Virginia.

Once a prolific sport fish, weakfish populations crashed due to overfishing and the resurgence of the striped bass. When you can find weakies, they often fall to lightweight jigs on feeding flats or along channels.

In my area, Raritan Bay, Jamaica Bay, the Hudson River under the Verrazano Bridge as well as Sandy Hook are hot spots. We typically see a run of 'weakies' in August, lasting through September. These 1-7 pound fish may arrive this week following the storm aftermath.

Fishermen targeting weakfish should cast net peanut bunker for bait or purchase sand worms. Drift these baits along shipping channels and adjacent flats is a sure fire trick.

Personally, I like to use a three-way rig where my lead dropper line is 20 inches in length. To the other swivel, I attach a premium 4/0 octopus hook on a 21-23 inch leader. On my charter boat, my customers will present this rig vertically. I use enough lead to present this rig vertically.

More

If that is not enough, false albacore and bonito have arrived in decent numbers. From the southern shores of Cape Cod to Montauk to Central New Jersey, these fast moving pelagic (living in open oceans or seas rather than waters adjacent to land or inland waters) can be found in decent numbers.

Right now, false albies are mixed in with juvenile bluefin and skippies in New Jersey but holding offshore a bit. However, anglers along the southern shore of Cape Cod were seeing these 'Little Tunny' busting bait along the beaches.

My friends in Montauk saw albies busting bait off the lighthouse over the weekend, but the bite was tough. When these fish are keyed in on small baits such as rainfish, I have found that using a small Spanyid brand jig in the 15-gram weight gets them to bite.

The Spanyid jig is small, yet heavy enough to cast when using 10# Power Pro. Plus, this jig has some width to it, slowing its descent, which is key. When albies do not take the jig, I pull out my 7 weight fly rods and place very sparse clouser minnow flies on 6-pound fluorocarbon tippet. This presentation will take even the finickiest of fish.

Tuna

Inshore bluefin tuna along Cape Cod, Northern Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine are really big right now. The fishing heated up over the past three weeks so it stands to reason that after the hurricane t will be 'Game On!'

Plenty of fish up to 200 pounds are being caught daily. Some fishermen are using live bunker (also called 'Pogies' in the north) while others are dropping butterfly jigs. The key is to be ready for anything.

I would outfit a heavy rod with a serious reel such as Shimano's Stella SW series. This outfit will cast either a chugger style popper such or a soft plastic sand eel imitation. Ron Z sells a jig head specially designed for tuna. The hook is stout and the hook point is thin yet strong for optimum penetration. Targeting such large tuna requires special gear.

Twin disk drags on the Stella are a pre-requisite while your lures must have through wire construction, premium stout hooks and heavy duty split rings. Gear must be durable enough to withstand the massive force that a mean, angry bluefin tuna is going to throw at it.

If you do not fish this area of the country, what you need to know is that this region right now will produce a 200-pound tuna on one cast and could easily produce a 500- to 700-pound tuna on the next. When she hits, you need to be ready.

Fishing this area with inadequate gear is unfair to the fish and the adjacent anglers around you. Just Be Prepared!

Marlin

Our Canyons are producing plenty of white marlin. Once the Hurricane Bill cloud cover loosens early this week, we will see how and where the water temperature breaks set up. If you intend to run offshore, troll rainbow spreader bars, cedar plugs, green machines and daisy chains while searching for fish.

Your spread will need some ballyhoo as the white's are appearing on naked or un-skirted ballyhoo. The other lures attract the white marlin but they want the ballyhoo. Let's hope this hurricane stirred things up a bit offshore, putting yellowfin tuna on the chunk bite. Canyon charter boats fishing at night are catching some swordfish, including a 225-pound swordfish boated this week by the crew of the Jenny Lee of Brielle, N.J.

Lastly, Dr. Julie Ball of Extreme Sportfishing in Virginia (and the IGFA) informed me that the Cobia bite has been outstanding this year. This week, anglers fishing the Chesapeake Bay area should target buoys and bridge pilings for the best action.

Anglers chumming for Cobia stand a great chance within Bay waters. Bluefish Rock and Latimer Shoal are favorite cobia hotspots, so start there.