The Coast Guard has removed buoys marking what used to be the channel through Little Egg Inlet, but the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is coming to the rescue. The DEP Division of Coastal Engineering will be arranging for the movement of 1.5 million cubic yards of sand in order to provide a channel with a depth of 25 feet in time for the boating season. Beach Haven skipper Lindsey Fuller sent an e-mail this week warning that there was only 6 feet available to boaters who could follow the opening -- and that the Coast Guard removal of buoys might leave those using the inlet in danger of not being covered by their insurance policies. Little Egg Inlet is one of the widest inlets along the Jersey Shore, but also the most dynamic. Surprisingly, it's never been dredged. The constant shifting of sands has always created a channel that could be used by boaters following the buoys placed by the Coast Guard and frequently moved according to nature's dictates. Yet, sand has built up in recent years to the point that navigation can only be ensured by dredging. The situation had become so bad that owners of larger boats were reluctant to enter the Beach Haven Marlin & Tuna Club's White Marlin Invitational, and the economic consequences for the area were a major consideration in not abandoning the traditional inlet. The fluke season remains up in the air, though more public officials continue to offer support to the effort to maintain status quo for 2017. As noted last week, the Christie administration is standing firm for status quo even though the state will be out of compliance with the ASMFC regulations that include  19-inch minimum. A bipartisan group of congressmen has joined in that effort by sending  a letter to U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross regarding the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's (ASMFC) vote to approve devastating restrictions on New Jersey's fishing community. They asked Ross to delay any reductions or changes in summer flounder fishing quotas until a new stock assessment can be completed and a new approach can be crafted. Under the rule, the summer flounder Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) would be reduced 29% in 2017 and 16% in 2018. The recreational and commercial limits would both be reduced by approximately 30% in 2017 and 16% in 2018. The letter was signed by Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Reps. Frank LoBiondo (NJ-02), Chris Smith (NJ-04), Tom MacArther (NJ-03), Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Bill Pascrell (NJ-09), Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05), Donald Payne, Jr. (NJ-10), Leonard Lance (NJ-07), and Rodney P. Frelinghuysen (NJ-11). A similar letter had been sent during the end of the Obama administration to the then Secretary of Commerce, but she ignored the request. There is more hope now because Ross grew up in Weekhawken, and the focus of the Trump administration has been on jobs and business improvement -- which is emphasized in the state's letter. The Somerset Saltwater Expo is coming up from March 17-19 at the Garden State Convention & Expo Center. I'll be presenting a striped bass seminar on Saturday, March 18 at 11:30 a.m that will also feature photos by striper pro Chuck Many plus a free Tady metal lure to each angler attending. Any young angler wondering whether hard work in school pays off should check out 10-year-old Keegan Rothman of Northfield. His father, Ron, rewarded his honor role efforts with a fishing trip to British Columbia last year that resulted in his releasing an estimated 600-pound sturgeon -- and then followed up this winter with a trip to Zihuatenajo, Mexico that produced a blue marlin release estimated at 600 pounds. It's almost sure that no other 10-year-old has ever gotten off to such a spectacular start in fishing, though Keegan is also an experienced bottom fisherman with huge sheepshead and blackfish to his credit plus honors in last year's N.J. BeachNBoat Tournament. Art Berkman of Pompton Plains broke the ice with the first legal striper reported from Paritan Bay. His 32.5-inch bass hit a 5.8-inch Keitech plastic cast from shore on a 3/4-ounce jig head. Ironically, I was also using a Keitech Wednesday in a Fort Myers,Fl. pond-- though that 3.8-inch Pro Staff Special  was only attached to a hook and cast as a surface lure with light spinning tackle. Joe Melillo reports from Castaways Tackle in Point Pleasant that winter flounder fishing in Manasquan River and northern Barnegat Bay took a hit with the cold weather, but remains good in Shark River. School stripers continue to hit small lures in the surf north of Manasquan Inlet. The Dauntless got out of Point Pleasant on Monday and into lively bottom action. There were some cod and pollock up to 7 or 8 pounds, plus lin to 2 pounds -- along with dogfish, bergalls and eels. The Dauntless is sailing from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily when the weather is right. My blog at nj.com/shore/blogs/fishing has returned to a daily basis whenever there's some news.