Miss Fortescue FISHING REPORTS-by Kathy
12/04/2011-Please pray for the family of Bunky Higbee, who passed away yesterday. Funeral information through Padgett Funeral Home, Bridgeton, NJ.
CLOSED FOR THE SEASON-THANK YOU FOR FISHING WITH MISS FORTESCUE...HAPPY, HEALTHY NEW YEAR-SEE YOU IN 2012.
12/02/2011-WILL BE UPDATING SITE WITH PIX AND OTHER INFO FROM THE LASTEST STRIPER TRIPS ASAP...K.
11/22/2011-Tomorrows forecast is not looking good and we are closed Thursday.HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Captain Jim will be OPEN BOAT this FRIDAY 11/25, SATURDAY 11/26, SUNDAY 11/27. FINAL 3 DAYS TO FISH.
OPEN BOAT THIS SATURDAY 11/19/2011
11/15/2011-Third time's a charm...finally after 2 cancelled trips John Martorano from Cherry Hill, NJ made it out with his group of fishermen.They couldn't have picked a nicer day for fishing. John took home a 30" striped bass, along with Charles Petitto of Mt. Laurel bagging a 37" and poolwinner Dave Nichols of Cinnaminson, NJ with a 40" striped bass. Check out the giant blue also bagged on the 2011 Fish Pix page.
WE'D LIKE TO WISH DEBBE A VERY HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY....SHE IS A LONGTIME CUSTOMER WHO CAN OUTFISH THE BEST OF 'EM! MANY HAPPY RETURNS TO THE DAY . HEALTH AND HAPPINESS TODAY AND ALWAYS. XO K&J
11/13/2011-Capt. Jim says "come on back anytime". Todays charter group was nothing but a good time with a happy crowd. Early morning wind conditions finally settled down. The poolwinner beat out all of the rest of the keepers taking home a 37" striped bass. Check out his photo, and a picture of the whole group on the 2011 Fish Pix page. Thank You for fishing with Miss Fortescue and we hope to see ya back next spring!
11/12/2011-A chip off the 'ole blocks.....Chrissy Bowker showed her parents Jim and Alice,how to catch them on their annual striper charter today. Altogether 4 keeper stripers...not too shabby considering very windy and cold morning conditions. Check out Chrissy and her dad...and the whole charter photos on the 2011 Fish Pix page.
11/06/2011-Ryan Williams of Oreland, PA, 10 years old, took home one of nine keeper striped bass onthe Dennis Tange charter today. Check out his picture on the 2011 Fish Pix page.
11/05/2011-Saturday's charter poolwinner was Mike Szwed, Franklinville, NJ with a 36" striped bass. Check out his picture on 2011 Fish Pix page.
11/02/2011-Just a great day on a calm bay today. Two keeper stripers and tons of tautog action. Still lots of throwback bass but the bigs ones are out there. Bob took the pool today. We are open boat tomorrow-FRIDAY...Capt Jim wants to go fishing!
11/01/2011-Weather is looking great for tomorrow-WEDNESDAY IS OPEN BOAT. High of 60 degrees and should be sunny.Closed boat on weekends now....still have charter dates available in NOVEMBER...call for details 856-447-3281.
10/27/2011-Tomorrows forecast is high of 54 degrees, partly sunny, and winds at 10 mph NNE. Looks like the rain will hold off until later. Check Dover weather for any changes, but it is looking pretty good as of now.
10/26/2011-Miss Fortescue left the dock today but it was very windy and rough. Plenty of throwback stripers but no keeps today.
10/25/2011-Wednesday's forecast is calling for temperatures in the low 60's and winds up to 17 mph!
10/23/2011-Another beautiful day and more tautog to take home.
10/22/2011-Ya snooze-ya lose.....Poolwinner Les Kyle, Jr. of Pedricktown, NJ took home a 31 inch striped bass today. And thank you for remembering my birthday!!Plenty of room on the boat. Captain Jimmy tells me they had 7 keeper stripers-all caught on bunker, and 8 keeper tautog today. I have some beautiful teeth for the next batch of earrings. Capt. Jimmy says he is heading out tomorrow...be there ! Check out the pix on 2011 Fish Pix tab.
10/21/2011-The past few days have been pretty windy but tomorrow is looking like a good day for fishing. Stripers are biting. Dress for the weather, tomorrow's high is supposed to be 62 degrees, but sunny.
10/09/2011-Feels like summer all over again. A beautiful day of fishing today. Blues and tautog. Poolwinner Nolan Green took home the biggest tautog, along with bluefish.
10/08/2011-Todays charter had a good time catching fish. Poolwinner was 14 year old Eddie from Philadelphia, PA taking home a striped bass.
10/07/2011-Poolwinner today, Les Kyle, Jr. took home a 70 drum fish....yikes Les....that duct tape works miracles! And, thanks to mate Donny for the tautog heads...6 beauties...more earrings to be made! Just a beautiful day after yesterdays winds...Closed tomorrow for a charter but come on down Sunday...we are expecting beautiful weather and have a few guys from today coming back for more action! GO PHILLIES!!!!
CLOSED BOAT-SATURDAY-OCTOBER 8, 2011
09/25/2011-Flounder season comes to an end with the last keeper flounder taking the pool. Mr. Ken Hitzelburger, Pittsgrove, NJ bagged a 22 inch flattie. Also, Nolan Green took home a nice flounder. Captain Jim said "anyone who listened to the weatherman blew it this weekend". Last weekend for flounder and nobody showed up Thursday or Friday. Thursday it was like a lake on the Bay with the sun hot enough for getting in the pool again and Friday had a slight drizzle early on. It never rained all weekend. Plenty of room on board. Thanks to the people who did fish. A mixed bag of fish are biting and because the Philadelphia weathermen said it was going to rain......Oh well... Wednesday we're going for weakies and blues and who knows what else....Check Dover DE weather or look at the live radar forecast.
09/24/2011-Can't say it enough....September has the best fishing. Nolan Greene took the pool today with his drum.....but had a cooler full and cleaned 46 blues! He also cleaned some perch for me! Great bluefish action for everybody. Miss Fortescue had some nice tautog on board, too.
09/23/2011-Weather wasn't what they called for but didn't make it out today.
09/21/2011-Ron Kayser from Pitman, NJ took the pool today with his 23 inch flounder. Catching keeper weaks, blues, and kingfish and had plenty of throwback action, too. Nice to see Dave make it down and hope the Mrs. is on the mend.
09/17/2011-We're having the best fishing this time of year and only had 4 people show up???Sorry, but not enough to get out today.Time to cut the grass Captain Jimmy!
09/16/2011-Breezy in the morning but turned out to be a nice day again.The fishermen came dressed for the weather. More keeper weakies, kingfish, spot, and blues. Poolwinner Les Kyle, Jr. took the prize with a big bluefish.
09/14/2011-Keeper weakies all over the boat today. Everyone had a full cooler today. Plenty of kingfish, spot, bluefish, and 4 keeper flounder. Steve Scheule of Woodstown, NJ took the pool with his flounder. September has always been a great month for fishing with plenty of room onboard. See ya this Friday.
09/13/2011-Open boat tomorrow. We're having some beautiful weather. Happy Birthday to Major Roane.
09/10/2011-Mixed bag on the boat again today with kingfish, blues, and flounder. Michael Hochhaus, 11 years old, from West Chester, PA was our poolwinner with his 19" flounder. Check out his photo on 2011 FishPix page.
09/09/2011-Another perfect September day trip. Plenty of kingfish, spot, and nice porgy with scattered blowfish, too. Plenty of room onboard.
09/06/2011-CLOSED MONDAYS AND TUESDAYS -NO OPEN BOAT -BUT ARE BOOKING CHARTERS FOR THOSE DAYS IN SEPTEMBER. Flounder season open until September 25th.
09/02/2011-Just a beautiful day on the bay today...little breezy in the AM but just a perfect September day. Captain Jim had quite a mixed bag again. Kingfish were plentiful today. Had some nice spot and some small blues, too. Major Roane took the pool for the 2nd time this week with another drum fish. Grilled up some drum fingers, kingfish, and two tasty blowfish.
09/01/2011-OPEN BOAT LABOR DAY WEEKEND-FRIDAY,SATURDAY,SUNDAY, AND MONDAY-GO FISH!!
08/31/2011-First day out after hurricane Irene turned out not so bad....wreck fishing produced keeper seabass, tautog,and drum. Poolwinner Major Roane of West Deptford, NJ 30 pound drum fish.
08/30/2011-Updated road closures in Cumberland County are posted on: www.co.cumberland.nj.us. It is just a perfect day here in Fortescue today and weather looks great for the whole week.
08/29/2011-Captain Jim says the boat is ready to go....Today is a beautiful day with plenty of sunshine and no humidity. All week looks good with temperatures in the mid-80's. CHECK FOR ANY ROAD CLOSINGS ALONG THE ROUTE YOU MAY BE TRAVELING TO FORTESCUE. GOOGLE "CUMERLAND COUNTY ROAD CLOSING", OR GLOUCESTER COUNTY, ETC. Our local paper is publishing this information daily and road closings are changing daily due to overflowing lakes/dams.
08/28/2011-Goodnight Irene! Fortescue got lucky..tree damage and missing shingles everywhere. The wind kept high tides at a minimum. The bay was looking pretty mean. Lost power 8PM Saturday until 2:30PM Sunday. Cooked breakfast on the grill and took a long nap! Capt. Jim is ready to fish!
08/27/2011-Miss Fortescue is securely tied up and Captain Jim is nervously waiting....Irene needs to get lost! Fortescue is directly in the path of the hurricane and at the same time will be having high tide and new moon. We have the kayaks ready . Be safe everyone.
08/26/2011-A few diehard fishermen showed up this morning but not enough to get out today.
08/25/2011-Another good day for flounder fishing...Mr. Bob Calloway from Mantua, NJ took the pool with a 3 pound flounder.
08/24/2011-WOW...what a day of fishing today. Major Roane took home 3 keeper flounder. Mr. Kenny Black took the pool with his doormat! Altogether 19 keeper flounder today. WEAKIES!!!!Total of 6 keeper weakies and lots of throwback action.....Capt. Jim is happy. Check weather for hurricane forecast for this weekend.
08/23/2011-There's a new kid in town.....check out Captain Jim's new buddy on the 2011 Fish Pix page.
08/21/2011-More unpleasant and unseasonal weather is putting a damper on fishing this weekend. Wedding congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Bill and Tamara Davis of Millville, NJ. What a beautiful wedding and reception. Check out a wedding picture on 2011 Fish Pix page. Keep Betty and Bunky, and the Higbee family in your thoughts and prayers.
08/17/2011-Nice crowd on the Miss Fortescue today....seven keeper flounder althogether...with plenty of throwbacks, too. Due to recent storms check Dover for weather conditions, not Philadelphia. Best days for getting out on the Bay remain Wednesday, Friday, and weekends. Striper Charters are being booked . Call early for best available dates.
08/16/2011-Looks like clear skies for tomorrow and no wind....good news for the Wednesday crowd. The past few days were dark, damp, and windy. The fish are just waiting for someone to catch 'em! Still a few spots open for the dinner cruise on August 27th...if interested see EVENTS tab above.
08/12/2011-"We had a phenomenal day on the Bay today". That's what Captain Jimmy tells me. Snap where the heck are ya when the croakers come to town? The happy fishermen took home 115 blues, 35 croakers, 20 spots and some keeper flounder, keeping the mate pretty busy. I should have called out sick....Thanx for the watermelon and tomatoes Les.
08/10/2011-Six nice flounder and 20 bluefish today....not bad considering wind conditions on the Bay. Poolwinner Steve Scheule of Woodstown , NJ had the biggest flounder today.
08/10/2011-Miss Fortescue Dinner Cruise to Bower's Beach, DE Saturday August 27th. Taking reservations limited to 30 passengers. Email 70lemans@comcast.net for all info/details.
08/08/2011-Mostly flounder this past week and smaller blues. Best days to fish are Wednesday, Friday, and weekends...check Dover DE weather for wind conditions, not Philadelphia. Book your fall striper charter now for the best available dates.
07/29/2011-Holy Croaker fishing Batman!!!Major Roane had the pleasure of taking home 50+ croakers today.....good thing he has a pick up and big coolers! Hey Snap...come on back....Poolwinner today Mr. Kenny Black, Drexel Hill, Pa. bagging a 27 inch, 7 1/2 pound flounder! Looks like all it takes is minnow and squid. Les Kyle, Jr. of Pedricktown took home a beauty, too...23" flattie. Everyone was busy bagging little blues in meantime proving the bay is doing just fine today. Photos coming asap....PS-The couple who recently requested price on the earrings and photo of poolwinner... Email us at missfortescue@comcast.net...will send response asap. Your 4TSQ sticker is on its way.
07/27/2011-I finally made it out with the Wednesday "regulars". Just beautiful weather today....Poolwinner Tony Mirarchi from Swarthmore, PA bagged a 24 inch flounder. Kenny Black from Drexel Hill, PA took home a beauty, as well as Steve Scheule of Woodstown, NJ. Mr. Joe Lamplugh from Franklinville, PA had the 1st fish of the day.....keeper weakie! Capt. Jim hooked a few himself today....croaker, porgy, throwback seabass and flounders. Major and I were very good at finding hungry oyster crackers.
07/23/2011-Guess nobody listens to the weatherman. We had a nice crowd today with 8 keeper flounder along with plenty of throwbacks...small blues, too. There was a beautiful bay breeze considering the steamy temperature.
07/22/2011-The heatwave didn't stop the local ladies of Cedarville, NJ from coming out and having a good time on Miss Fortescue. Seems like the women know how to bag flounder better than the guys today.
07/21/2011-6 keeper flounder today...small crowd due to this unbelievable heat but it was better on the bay than on land. Today is Nacho man's 17th birthday and sadly the day we lost him. He was a special dog to Captain Jimmy and I and we miss him so much. See photo below....
07/13/2011-Another beautiful day today...the wind finally calmed down. Only 11 people on board today but there were 8 keeper flounder. Jim Bowker, Les Kyle, Jr. had drum dinners, along with Poolwinner Dr. Steve Scheule of Woodstown, NJ, who had bragging rights with a 70 drumfish. Check out his picture on 2011 fish pix page.
07/06/2011-Congratulations to pool winner Keith Wilson, West Deptford, NJ for taking home a 23 inch flounder today. And thank you very much Farmer Les. You really know how to grow peppers and cucumbers!
07/04/2011-HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA! Everyone must have been having a party because we didn't make it out today.
07/03/2011-Early morning rain and wind ended up disappearing and we had 8 keeper flounder today. Also some small blues and even a kingfish!
07/02/2011-19 keeper flounder today...bring minnows...
07/01/2011-Happy 4th of July holiday...and it started out very happy for the Milstead Family. Poolwinner 11 year old Ashley Milstead of Mullica Hill bagged the 2 largest flounder of the day at 22" and 21". Eight year old sister Hailey knows how to hook 'em, too. Way to go girls! Check out their photo on the 2011 Fish Pix page. I think I saw a few envious old timers getting off the boat. Five keeps today but plenty of throwbacks...and intermittent blues, too.
06/30/2011-It is getting better everyday...had 20 keeper flounder today. Great to see Elmer back this year. Check out 2011 Fish Pix. Check weather for Dover, not Philadelphia when planning on coming to Fortescue. Flounder love minnows, too. Have a safe and happy holiday weekend.
06/28/2011-Mike K.'s charter today had a pretty rough day on the Bay. Rain and wind are not good when it comes to fishing but they managed to keep 5 nice flounder altogether.
06/24-26/2011-Great weather this weekend...just beautiful on the bay. Flounder action is picking up with plenty of room onboard. 9 keeper flounder on Saturday and 15 on Sunday. Croakers are here, many with nice size. Poolwinner on Saturday, Bill Ronn from Prince Frederick, MD had 3 keeper flounder, biggest 23 inches. Sunday's poolwinner Lisa Basye, Millville, NJ with 22 inch flounder.
06/23/2011-Lots of croakers being caught today. A few keeper flounder and more throwbacks...seeing throwback weakies.
06/18/2011-The Fortescue Marina lost a wonderful Captain and friend today. Capt. Jack Moore, who ran the Intrigue Charter boat,has passed after a very courageous battle. Capt. Jim knew Jack long before becoming the Captain of the Miss Fortescue. Jack helped him many, many times over the years. He was loved by all and will be surely missed. Our sincere condolences go out to his family.-K&J
06/17/2011-"You missed it Steve!" That's what Lucky Les Kyle, Jr. said after winning the pool today. Even got a few nice sized croakers today.
06/15/2011-Wind, wind, go away.....a little too breezy for optimum flounder fishing today. But we had a nice group of fishermen with mostly positive attitudes. 20 throwbacks with 3 keepers in the morning. Poolwinner Jason bagged a 22 1/2 flounder. The afternoon Harshbarger charter came prepared for a good time. The wind eventually calmed down and they took home 3 flounder. Check out the 2011 Pix page.
06/10/2011-Kenny, Les, and Gary bagged some drum today. Also caught were stripers, blues, and flounder. Things are picking up.
06/08/2011- Myron returned today to take home the pool with a 21 inch flounder.
05/28 and 5/29-Mr. Nolan Greene took the pool both days with flounder. Saturday was tough between slack tide and the wind picking up so fast, making it hard to catch. And of course Sunday, only 12 people show up and perfect weather conditions at the same spot produced at least 100 flatties, tons of throwbacks but some nice keeps, too.
05/27/2011-Our youngest passenger took the pool with a flounder today. Total 6 keeper flatties. More info later. Boat will be CLOSED MAY 31-TUES.
05/23/2011-10 flounder and 1 striper today.
05/22/2011-Nine keeper stripers today.
05/21/2011-We had a good turnout today and beautiful fishing weather...the only thing missing were keeper flounder. Plenty of throwbacks. Faithful fisherman Ken K. remembered me and came bearing gifts! Sorry I missed ya at the dock Ken but THANK YOU SO MUCH-K&J.
05/21/2011-They're back....this week drum up to 80 pounds have been caught in the Bay...book your charter soon.
05/20/2011-Guess that old saying 'ya snooze, ya lose' means something. Capt. Jim had 5 fisherman show up today, who went home with 10 keeper stripers, all caught on bucktail. There's nothing like grilled striper fresh from the bay to the dinner plate in a matter of hours...mmm good! Morning flounder fishing was a bust so it was off to find other fish.Major's new nickname is "The Fishfinder"! Check out pix on 2011 Fish Pix tab above.
05/13/2011-Only 8 fishermen today but we bagged 3 keeper flounder. Poolwinner Mr. Kenny Black, Drexel Hill, PA. It was windy and chilly. Good to see Kevin back in town today. Lucky Les wasn't.
05/11/2011-Happy Days are here again...the sky is blue and clear again....and we had 11 keeper flounder today! Congrats to Joe Priscelli and Carl Johnson for splitting today's pool each with a winning 20" flounder that pretty much were the same size! Steve's flounder was so big it broke his hook and Kenny missed a nice one too! Lucky Les and Major left happy today.
05/08/2011-HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!! What a beautiful day on the Bay today. Poolwinner was Erik Bretschneider, Pennsville, NJ with a 20 inch flounder. Still have drum charter dates available..book soon!
05/07/2011-HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAPT. JIMMY! It was opening day for flounder today but the wind was a little too much. Our poolwinner was Hank Lewandowski, Williamstown, NJ with a 22 inch flounder.
04/27/2011-Poolwinner "Bill from Philly" won with his 8 1/2 pound tautog. There was a total of 16 keeper tautog today, with many throwbacks. Sounds like earring material to me. Morning fishing saw no striper action. Seems they're very close inshore.
04/25/2011-Captain Jim says open boat this Wednesday, April 27th. Until flounder season begins on May 7th, when more fishermen/women come down, we will be fishing on Wednesdays and weekends up to that time.
04/11/2011-Flounder regulations are decided. May 7, 2011 through September 25, 2011-limit 8 fish at 18 inches. We have OPEN BOAT ON GOOD FRIDAY, APRIL 22, 2011.
04/03/2011-She's almost ready to go over....and will be in the water on Wednesday! There has been very good striper action here in Fortescue. Wishing Mr. Ken Black a very Happy Birthday from K&J!
01/19/2011-Had a visit from Les Kyle, Jr. this morning. He can't wait for the fishing to begin and has plenty of boxes of baggies to donate to the mate. Also, said if anyone is short on people for a charter, he's ready to jump on.
The end of an era....Nacho
7/21/1994-7/21/2011