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JAWS - The last interview with Frank Mundus
JAWS would never have happened if it wasn’t for Frank Mundus. Without too much prologue and to put it in a nutshell, the salty prodigal character of Captain Quint in the blockbuster movie JAWS and entire hoopla in 1978 was built upon Captain Frank Mundus and his boat the Cricket II.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 710 min read
The Saltwater Insider
Unfiltered coastal lifestyle intel on fishing, food, booze, gear info and reviews told straight up from the Saltwater Underground.
As a professional sportfishing writer and traveler for 28 years, I’ve been around the world to over 40 countries and the entire coastal US in pursuit of angling; a lifetime dedicated to writing about incredible fishing, drinking at salty bars, dining on fantastic coastal cuisine and living an underground lifestyle outside of the norm. In the new world of non-qualified influencers posing as experts or traditional outlets bought off in backpockets of overseers, I’m really tired of listening to garbage and writing within boundaries and Bullsh$t. Here's the real low-down as I see it for unfiltered fishing intel, reviews of seaside gear, food, drinking and travel destinations to make the most out of your coastal experience.
Herding Sheepshead
As a New Jersey based angler, any time I would travel south to Florida or North Carolina, I would always be intrigued by the allure of sheepshead. It wasn’t hot and heavy action, but word would get out that the “exotic” sheepshead were being hooked, and they were not small - averaging 8 to 12 pounds. Fast forward to present day, and Jersey is putting up some of the most notable IGFA line class records when it comes to sheepshead.
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 285 min read
Spanish Inquisition
I never thought I would state these word but let’s call it like it is – Spanish Mackerel are now a staple species providing a reliable fishery in New Jersey. That statement is pretty incredible as I cannot remember a time in the past when Spanish were thick enough to make daily trips targeting them.
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 184 min read
Jersey Surf Pompano
The Jersey surf always offers up some summertime surprises. This was my log entry for October 12, 2016 - “Unbelievable! Lavallette. High at 4:50 PM, seas 4 to 5 foot heavy water solid, greenish blue. Fished at 2 PM with clams, light east 5 knots, at 3:15 bagged clammed 28-inch striper and then, rod tip was freaking out with something small on it - POMPANO!”
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 155 min read
Treasures of the Crystal Coast
Down along the southern Outer Banks, North Carolina, the barrier islands stand apart in character and spirit, so much so that they go by a different name – the Crystal Coast. The sleepy tourist beach town of Emerald Isle simply sounds like it belongs here. I checked into a sublime, aquamarine-sided beachfront home on Emerald Isle, quaintly nicknamed Susie’s Hideaway, tossing my bags on a plump couch and opened the sliding window doors to feel the rush of the Atlantic surf bre
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 118 min read
Tricking Trophy Tautog
Blackfishing is a game you just can’t bluff. You’re either horrible at it, fair, or possibly even “good”, with room only left for one half of one percent of tog anglers to be considered excellent. Battling one of the most cerebral fish in the ocean isn’t easy and consistently trophy-catching toggers tend to be silent assassins who speak lightly, keeping their secrets tight to the chest.
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 116 min read
Spreader Bar Tuna Tactics
Northeast canyon tuna gurus are notorious for deploying spreader bars to raise all species of the Thunnus subgenera; including yellowfin, bluefin and bigeye. Captain Craig Angelini of the Canyon Runner, Point Pleasant NJ, is a familiar name in the offshore community as the Canyon Runner always seems to find its way onto the winner boards at major offshore tournaments. Angelini talks a little about spreader bar tuna tactics that put him on top of the pack:
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 113 min read
Proper Tuna Popping
Here it is, the moment you’ve been waiting for. Up ahead, the water is exploding with tuna smashing bait schools in a frenzy in such a fashion that you can barely stand, knees buckling with incredible excitement and heart pumping so much you may just white out.
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 113 min read
Bucktailing Back Bay Fluke
Late spring and early summer was legendary in the flatfish books. Since Superstorm Sandy relocated me to Ocean City, I had some new territory to learn, and applying some tried and true tactics, I targeted the OC backwaters and bagged more 2 to 8-pound back bay fluke than I had in my lifetime of fishing. I was absolutely floored.
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 16 min read
Hatteras Heavyweights
“Typical Hatteras seas, 6 to 8 foot Northeast and pretty nasty, but let’s give it a shot,” steeled up Captain Dan Rooks of the 50 foot custom Carolina Tuna Duck as 30 knot winds howled through the outriggers dockside and hot coffee got cold quick at 4:30 AM on a late February morning.
Nick Honachefsky
Aug 17 min read
Jersey Sheepshead
Bob Misak tread precariously along the slippery, moss-laden boulders of Barnegat Inlet’s south jetty, rod in hand and bucket of Asian crabs tied along his waist.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 86 min read
Rocking Florida Jetty Snook
Forty knot southeast winds drove torrential rains into our faces, soaking us to the bone a 2 AM in the middle of the night. Crazy Alberto Knie and I were working one of Florida’s inlet jetties, punching 1-ounce bucktails through the spitting snot, fully realizing nobody with any sense of sanity would be out on the jetty rocks targeting snook at this ungodly hour and conditions.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 86 min read
Land-based Flukin’ Score from the Shore
Leave the boat tied up at dock, the shoreline is the place to score with flatties! During the past decade or longer, I think I’ve caught more keeper class fluke from the surf and land-based platforms than from a boat.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 46 min read
Spring Surf Black Drum
Black drum fishing has literally been booming in New Jersey this spring as the Garden State got an invasion of the Clydesdale’s they haven’t seen in decades. Historically, the Delaware Bay on the south side of the state is the world class arena to target black drum as it lays as the world’s main breeding ground for the species. Boomers average 50 to 80 pounds and reach upwards of 80 to even 95 pounds or more inside the D-Bay, though myriad smaller bay systems along the coast
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 44 min read
Metro Mahi - Jersey Pot Hoppin
Not known as a conventional mahi hot spot, the New Jersey coast blossoms with dolphin activity from July through September; and the pelagic scrappers aren’t a long drawn 80-mile hour run to the canyon edge.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 32 min read
Side Tracking Bluefin Tuna
Sidetracker Spreader Bars allow small to medium caliber boats to troll up to 10 rod spreads for bluefin in the 50 to 250-pound range.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 35 min read
Half Day Tuna
Incredibly, tuna trips in NJ have been so red hot you can score your limit of bluefin in nearly the same time you’d spend on a half day fluke trip. Here’s how to make it happen.
Nick Honachefsky
Jul 35 min read
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