Eeling in Ambrose and Sandy Hook channels is usually one of the most dependable means of hooking big bass in November and there have been decent numbers of mid- to upper-teen stripers plus a few in the 20s -- but rarely anything larger. Trollers also have been catching mostly short and slot bass, plus some blues.

There was an explosion of big blues yesterday under massive bird play from the middle of Island Beach State Park to Barnegat. Capt. Dave Riback of the Purple Jet at Canyon River Club in Point Pleasant said there were all the blues his customers could handle and they also managed 10 keeper stripers. Capt. John Brackett made the 15-mile run with his Queen Mary from Point Pleasant after two terrible days of jigging Sunday and Monday and just seven bass Tuesday. He was delighted to see the rods bending yesterday with blues from 6 to 16 pounds while they added six bass among them.

The western end of Raritan Bay has been loaded with short to slot stripers, though catching them was a real problem yesterday when I fished a couple of hours with Capt. Lou Grazioso on his Striper Mania from Highlands. There were dipping birds, swirling bass and some heavy readings, but getting hits on any of the lures was very difficult. Matt Calabria of Hazlet never had a touch dragging an eel through all those marks. There were at least 30 private boats working the back of the bay during a beautiful morning, but we saw only an occasional bass jigged though trollers scored with umbrella rigs.

It was a different story Tuesday when Capt. Rob Semkewyc had a great jigging bite in Raritan Reach as everyone aboard his Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands had their slot bass and a few over 34 inches while hundreds were released. Yesterday, he was able to jig only a few at each drop on heavy markings before switching to eeling out front.

Gene Graman of Middletown had a good eeling bite Monday in Ambrose Channel on his That's It from Highlands, but only managed six bass there Tuesday as a roaring ebb tide killed the action. Mike Wells of Point Pleasant and Tony Trigg from Brick found the same thing Tuesday while fishing with Grazioso. Four bass were eeled before the strong current, and others were jigged during a brief flurry just east of Ambrose when the linesiders were feeding on tiny rainfish and could be seen swimming beneath the surfacing schools.

Yesterday afternoon's ebb was perfect, as I was able to fish baitcasting tackle with just a 4-ounce sinker in Ambrose, but eeling was still a pick after a good start. Graman, Ron Halbert of Woodbridge and I caught seven bass up about 18 pounds plus two blues and two spiny dogfish.

Surfcasting remains spotty this week though there is more bird action offshore which provides hope for improvement. Though I plugged only one small bass early Tuesday morning at Manasquan, the highlight was watching a seal swim by to the south. On the way back from Highlands that afternoon I ran into hot action at Monmouth Beach where anglers were casting to peanut bunkers being blasted by mostly 3-pound bluefish and some bass. Those fish were fussy on poppers and swimmers, and it was hard to get through the blues though I finally landed a 26-inch bass at dusk on a Tsunami shad.

Capt. Marc Vitolo said yesterday morning's blackfishing was tough on his Skipper from Belmar due to anchoring conditions, but the afternoon was exceptional in just 26 feet. There were many limits, and Joe Krevenco of Linden won the pool with a 10`-pounder while adding a 9-pounder in his limit catch.

TOP CATCHES

Capt. Joe Bogan of Jamaica II from Brielle had a fine Mud Hole trip Sunday with lots of large ling plus some sea bass and school cod. Alex Pilewski of Trenton had 34 ling, eight bass and two cod. Monday's 12-hour blackfish special to southern wrecks as everyone limited with tog up to a 9 1/2-pounder by Tim Hart from Eston, Virginia. A new cod trip has been added to the schedule for 2 a.m. Dec. 5.

Capt. Jimmy Elliott has switched to blackfishing with Suzie Girl from Belmar and reports decent action this week. Matt Bisicomo of Allentown, Pa. had a limit up to the pool-winning 6 1/4 pounds yesterday. Elliott will be leaving Saturday night for an offshore wreck trip and has some openings.

Greg Bogan at Brielle Tackle reported a 16~-pound striper aboard the Paramount on clams by Roger Lee last week, while Landon Reto of Brielle beached a 5-pound weakfish and a 10-pound blue on a pearl 6-inch shad jig during a late afternoon effort in the Manasquan surf early last week.

Capt. Phil Sciortino had a fine charter with Tackle Box Sportfishing at Highlands last Wednesday for the Ehid family from Allentown, Pa. who eeled 12 bass up to 36 inches in the channels and also got into blues and small bass on jigs. Last week's weigh-ins at The Tackle Box in Hazlet included a 19-pounder striper on clams at Keansburg by Mike Kaczala , and a 15 3/4-pounder on clams at Sandy Hook for Dave Torrick from Cliffwood. Ken Rogers of Flemington used Tsunami poppers at the Hook for a 10-pound blues plus small bass.

At Highlands, Capt. Rich Newallis Jr. of Just One More did well jigging bass under working birds and also by eeling last week, but had to watch the main street in Highlands flood in 35 mph north winds Saturday.

Capt. Ken Dubman of K-Kat reported hot clamming last week for several parties. The Pete Myers party from Wayne had lots of bass on the New York side, though most were slots which are illegal there, and just two over 34 inches were retained. The Justin Heald group jigged a limit of slots in Sandy Hook Bay and added bass over 34 inches on eels in Ambrose Channel.