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Raritan Bay Fishing Report

Updated Mon, Nov 9, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

The bay between New Jersey's Bayshore and Staten Island, fished under New Jersey's marine rules for striped bass, bluefish, fluke and blackfish.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Next tide
Low 4:14 PM
Air / High
48 / 57 F
Wind
WSW 13 mph

Sources: NOAA tides 8537121, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Monday
9
November 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Raritan Bay is in transition: bait on the move and predators following. Today brings clear skies, wind WSW around 13 mph, rising pressure near 1010 hPa and a high of 57. Tides: high 9:34 AM and 9:55 PM, low 3:33 AM and 4:14 PM: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:21 PM-1:21 AM and 10:57 AM-12:57 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassGood

Spring and fall are the shoreline seasons: ODWC points to windblown points, riprap and dams during the May shad spawn and the pre-winter feed.

BluefishFair

Fall turns the migration south toward the South Atlantic Bight, and fish feed along beaches and inlets on the way. Follow the bait and the birds.

Tomorrow: Similar at 61 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Tue, Nov 10, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Water and weather

Live readings.

Tides

NOAA station 8537121 (Perth Amboy, NJ). Fish the moving water either side of each change.

Mon
LOW3:33 AM0.1 ft
HIGH9:34 AM6.6 ft
LOW4:14 PM0.1 ft
HIGH9:55 PM5.5 ft
Tue
LOW4:12 AM0.3 ft
HIGH10:12 AM6.5 ft
LOW4:56 PM0.2 ft
HIGH10:36 PM5.3 ft

Belmar tide chart: the week and the month β†’

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp48 F
High / Low57 / 45 F
WindWSW 13-18 mph
Pressure1009.8 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain11% cloud, 7%
Sunrise / Sunset06:36 / 16:44
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Which day to fish Raritan Bay this week

The best day on Raritan Bay this week looks like Saturday Nov 14, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Nov 14 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Nov 9 β€” Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
11:21 PM-1:21 AM and 10:57 AM-12:57 PM
Minor period
6:46 AM-7:46 AM
Sun
06:36 to 16:44
Moon
New Moon, 0% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 22 mph
Rain chance
7%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Raritan Bay: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Spring and fall are the shoreline seasons: ODWC points to windblown points, riprap and dams during the May shad spawn and the pre-winter feed.

Bluefish illustration

Bluefish

Peak harvest: May-Oct, most in Jul-Aug (NOAA)

Bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) are sharp-toothed schooling predators that move up and down the Atlantic coast with the seasons and feed in surface blitzes on menhaden, silversides and squid. Fall turns the migration south toward the South Atlantic Bight, and fish feed along beaches and inlets on the way. Follow the bait and the birds.

When to come: the Raritan Bay calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Striped bass
Bluefish
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovNov, ~55 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Raritan Bay today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Sun, Nov 8

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 59 F, wind to 16 mph.

Sat, Nov 7

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 59 F, wind to 18 mph.

Fri, Nov 6

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 69 F, wind to 7 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used if we need to ask you about your report. No mailing list, no spam.

Before you go

License

New Jersey requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

New Jersey Saltwater Recreational Registry required (free, ages 16 and older). New Jersey 2026 marine limits (digest updated May 11, 2026, read 2026-10-05): striped bass March 1-Dec. 31, one fish 28 to 31 in.; summer flounder May 4-Sept. 25, 18 in., 3 fish; bluefish 5 a day (7 on party/charter boats), no closed season; weakfish 1 at 13 in.; tautog 15 in., with seasonal limits. NJDEP can change striped bass rules during the year: check the Marine Fishing Seasons and Regulations page.

Access

Shore fishing at Sandy Hook (Gateway National Recreation Area), with NPS parking permits where required. For boat launches, check NJ Fish & Wildlife's boat ramp listings and the county park systems of Monmouth and Middlesex.

About this water

A bay at the mouth of the Raritan River between New Jersey's Bayshore and Staten Island, sheltered by Sandy Hook; Middlesex and Monmouth counties, New Jersey.

Fishing Raritan Bay: the full guide

Where the Raritan meets the harbor

Raritan Bay opens east from the mouth of the Raritan River at Perth Amboy and South Amboy, with New Jersey's Bayshore towns (Keyport, Atlantic Highlands) on its south side, Staten Island to the north and the Sandy Hook peninsula closing it off from the Atlantic to the east. NOAA publishes tide predictions for points around it, including South Amboy, Keyport, Atlantic Highlands and Sandy Hook.

Seasons set by the state rules

New Jersey's 2026 marine rules shape the year here. Striped bass in New Jersey marine waters other than the ocean and the Delaware River are open March 1 through December 31 at one fish of 28 to under 31 inches, with non-offset circle hooks required when fishing bait. Summer flounder ran May 4 to September 25 in 2026. Tautog opens in four windows, with the most generous limit from November 16 through December 31, and bluefish have no closed season. American shad may not be kept anywhere in the state's marine waters outside the Delaware River.

Sandy Hook

The Sandy Hook unit of Gateway National Recreation Area allows saltwater fishing without a license, but anglers must be in the New Jersey Saltwater Recreational Registry, and the park requires parking permits in many lots and for after-hours access.

Common questions

Do I need a license to fish Raritan Bay?

No saltwater license, but New Jersey requires anglers 16 and older to register, free, in the Saltwater Recreational Registry. On the New York side of the line, New York's marine registry applies.

When can I keep a striped bass here?

Under New Jersey's 2026 rules for marine waters other than the ocean and Delaware River, from March 1 through December 31: one fish from 28 to under 31 inches, with circle hooks when using bait.

Can I fish at Sandy Hook?

Yes. The NPS allows saltwater fishing at Gateway's Sandy Hook unit; check the park's parking and after-hours permit rules first.

Is fishing good at Raritan Bay right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Sandy Hook12 miRaritan River18 miManasquan Reservoir20 miToms River33 miRound Valley Reservoir34 miLake Hopatcong39 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Tide predictions
NOAA CO-OPS 8537121 β€” Perth Amboy, NJ
Harmonic predictions, datum MLLW, local time. 12 high and low events returned for today and the next two days. A prediction, not a measured water level: wind and surge move the real thing.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 40.4700, -74.2200 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.