Which species to target 4/18-4/20

[Tightlines74]

Hi all, my son (14 years old) has a thing for "checking off" different species fish that he has caught off his "list". With that I'm looking for a bit of advise on what would best to target this coming weekend and where ( just general location ) not looking to blow up anyone's spots, in fact i have done some scouting on the Raritan and Passaic rivers and i'm open to trying the Big D as well. Species he is looking to check off next are Pike, Musky, Striped Bass and Shad and we will be fishing from the shoreline. If voting in poll for other, please advise on which you would target. Thanks in advance for any/all advise.

[kcritch]

Not sure what the flow will be liek after that rain but if Shad is one of his targets it seems like this is about as good a time as you're going to get. They seem to be running in the D pretty good.

Best of luck.

[Tightlines74]

Thanks kcritch i appreciate the advise. I've always been content with trout and LMB but seeing how happy he was getting his first SMB a few weeks ago is making me wana add more fuel to the fishing fire and get him checking off more species of his list.

[Doug Vitale]

Originally Posted by Bent Rod

Hi all, my son (14 years old) has a thing for "checking off" different species fish that he has caught off his "list". With that I'm looking for a bit of advise on what would best to target this coming weekend and where ( just general location ) not looking to blow up anyone's spots, in fact i have done some scouting on the Raritan and Passaic rivers and i'm open to trying the Big D as well. Species he is looking to check off next are Pike, Musky, Striped Bass and Shad and we will be fishing from the shoreline.

I'm a big advocate of fishing from boats instead of the shore (other than trout fishing in streams). In boats you can cover so much more water and get to spots that you simply can't reach from land.

For muskellunge, try to rent a boat at Lake Hopatcong. Then again, you could go to the Delaware and kill two birds with one stone (shad and striped bass).

[Tightlines74]

Originally Posted by Doug Vitale

I'm a big advocate of fishing from boats instead of the shore (other than trout fishing in streams). In boats you can cover so much more water and get to spots that you simply can't reach from land.

For muskellunge, try to rent a boat at Lake Hopatcong. Then again, you could go to the Delaware and kill two birds with one stone (shad and striped bass).

Thank you Doug Vitale, I hear ya with fishing from a boat, I like your idea about 2 with 1 stone on the Delaware.

[catfishonthelake]

April is a tough month for muskies, maybe the toughest. Wait until mid-may when the water is a little warmer and they're done trying to do their thing. Not impossible, but plenty of other stuff biting.

[ScowardNJ]

There is only 1 time of year when the shad run and its looking pretty solid right now as long as the Big D settles down. If you can scratch the shad off the list you will have plenty of time left this spring for your striper, or you can wait for the fall run. The Passiac Pike is out there pretty much year round. Haven't caught a Musky yet but I'm pretty sure they are a year round fish also. Good luck!

[Tightlines74]

Originally Posted by catfishonthelake

April is a tough month for muskies, maybe the toughest. Wait until mid-may when the water is a little warmer and they're done trying to do their thing. Not impossible, but plenty of other stuff biting.

Thanks catfishonthelake, I appreciate the advise on musky. That's part of my problem, not knowing when is best to target which species since fishing for anything other the trout and LMB is foreign to me.

[Tightlines74]

Originally Posted by ScowardNJ

There is only 1 time of year when the shad run and its looking pretty solid right now as long as the Big D settles down. If you can scratch the shad off the list you will have plenty of time left this spring for your striper, or you can wait for the fall run. The Passiac Pike is out there pretty much year round. Haven't caught a Musky yet but I'm pretty sure they are a year round fish also. Good luck!

Thank you ScowardNJ. I think your post sealed the deal with the 1 time of year shad run ( pretty solid right now) and we can target other species later in the year. Thank you and good luck to you and other the other posters who voted and replied!

[Poncho]

Shad may be a bit tough. Big D cam up 6 feet, crested last night and is starting to drop. Cold front may put them in lock jaw mode plus extra debris in water sucks too. If no more rain later in weekend may be better for shad.