Getting out for the early bite is usually so important for the Shore striped bass run that even some party boats are moving up their sailing times in order to be on the grounds when stripers are most likely to be feeding. Jim Hutchinson Sr. reports for the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association that "There are pods of bunker to be found the length of Long Beach Island. It is just a matter of traveling along the beach and looking for their telltale signs. The only tough part has been the strong winds lately churning the wind surface and making spotting difficult. Once the bunker pods are found, sometimes there are bass under them, and sometimes there are not. Sometimes the fish under them are feeding, and other times they are not." That sums up the problem all along the Shore. In order to get into the early bite last Saturday, I left Manasquan at 6:45 a.m. with Joe Reap on his Reeper II along with Joe Hall and my nephew, Bob Correll of Bay Head. The bite had been to the north in the Bradley Beach area the day before, and there was a steady stream of boats heading that way. We did mark some fish, but never saw a sign of bunkers for bait all the way up to Shrewsbury Rocks. We ended up running back to the south later in the morning before reading bunkers off Mantoloking -- where there was no indication of stripers under them. Yet, while looking for some marks further off, we spotted a bit of bird life. Those birds were only picking over small rainfish ( bay anchovies), but we then saw a massive school of fish moving under them in the clear waters. I wasn't sure whether they were bass or blues, but when a live bunker was sent out a striper took it. Reap was then able to get ahead of picking birds so we could cast poppers and raise bass in the 20-pound class. That produced another bass on a bunker plus three on big pencil poppers while others were raised. The sun was still high in the sky, and I figured it would get better as the sun started going down -- but one of our crew had to get back. Capt. Russ Binns had already been one of the more successful skippers that day by trolling four bass from his Mar-Lin out of Toms River before he found those stripers when they were attacking the rainfish later in the day. His crew caught 10 bass on poppers and left them biting. The volume of stripers we saw that afternoon indicated the fall migratory run was well underway. Now, it's just a matter of being out there when the bass are feeding.  Early and late in the day is normally the best bet, and jumbo blues are   likely to take over, if hey are around, when the sun is high. So far, the blues have been mostly off the northern Shore. Nellie Greer of Bethlehem, Pa. and I fished Monday and Tuesday with Chuck Many of Annandale on his Ty Man from Gateway Marina in Highlands as we caught stripers of various sizes from the back of Raritan Bay to the Hudson and East rivers. The largest release was my 32-pounder on a live bunker Tuesday in the East River, where I also hooked a 13 1/2-inch striper on a big pencil popper that had the large rear treble hook completely in its mouth. Sandy Hook Channel has been producing stripers on eels at night, but came alive during the day on Wednesday as both blues and stripers attacked bunker schools coming through. Miss Belmar Princess reported that there was surface action almost all day Thursday with jumbo blues and a few stripers up to 30 pounds mixed in. Tank Matraxia of Lyndhurst and his crew fished Thursday in Raritan Bay with Johnny Bucktails out of Keyport as they chased birds all morning. Matraxia said there was nothing over 15 pounds, but they limited out and he put ALS tags in 16 bass.  He estimates that they caught at least 40 bass and a 5-pound blue by casting shads as the fish stayed up with little boat traffic. At Brielle, the Jamaica will make a last canyon tuna trip on Monday at 7 a.m. Some spaces may be available by calling 732 528-5014. The Gambler from Point Pleasant hasn't had good striper and bluefish results the last couple of trips, but did well during Wednesday's canyon run. A big swordfish was boated at night, and there was a tuna bite at daybreak with big albacore and a few yellowfins mostly on sardines with a few on jigs. There are openings on Tuesday night's canyon trip. Call 732 295-7569 for reservations. The Jamaica II has been catching big numbers of large sea bass on all of their extended trips. There were many limits of both sea bass and winter flounder on last Saturday's 14-hour wreck trip plus some limits of porgies.  Surfcasters have been struggling with a large swell that's created a rough surf. At Seaside Park, Grumpy's Tackle reports a slow pick, with the best results usually at night. John Occhipinti weighed in a 37-inch, 18.6-pound bass Wednesday on a clam. Betty & Nick's is sharpening angler's skills with Friday night Fish Talk sessions provided by surf pro D.J. Muller from 6:30 to 8. The cost is $5 at the door, and free coffee is provided. This Friday's subject is Four Fish Opportunities. Joe Melillo had several striper weigh-ins early in the week at Castaways Tackle in Point Pleasant. Local resident Todd Sutphen had a 24 1/2-pound bass from a boat, while Tim Dennis of that town added a 26 3/4-pounder. Kelly Mitchell from Toms River used a teaser in the surf for a 12 3/4-pounder, and Adam Wright of Brick had an 11-pounder on a plug in the surf. Bob Longo of Brick clammed a 14 1/4-pounder in the local surf.  Bob Mathews weighed a 28-pound striper at Fisherman's Den in Belmar Marina after Ed McSherry of Freehold trolled it on a bunker spoon. Matthews is looking forward to the opening of the blackfish season on Nov. 16. The two-fish winter flounder limit remains easy to come by from the Belmar docks. Capt. Gary Dunn of the Irish Jig at Beach Haven reported a 48-inch snag & drop striped bass that tipped the scale at 43 pounds. The Jersey Coast Anglers Association holds their Sportsperson of the Year Dinner on Sunday from 4-8 p.m. in Crystal Point Yacht Club, Point Pleasant. Tickets are $75, and can be ordered by calling Dan Miller at 609 641-7821. For additional reports visit my daily blog at nj.com/shore/blogs/fishing.