Posted on October 5, 2020 Giants in the Mud Hole! It’s been many years since there was a real giant bluefin tuna fall run in the Mud Hole, but Capt. Arthur Stokes is expecting something will be happening after spotting them out there on Sunday. That was a trolling trip, and the tuna didn’t respond, However, the traditional fishery was a chunking bite. Stokes was a friend of the late Dean of N.J. Giant tuna Fishing, Capt. Bob Pisano. Bob was always the first to experiment with chunking, and enlisted other pros to join the search as he directed them to try various spots to get the fishery started, Pisano’s ashes were deposited out there, and I’m sure that he’s up above doing what he can to revive a once great fishery from the very beginning of that sport. Stokes noted that he found a patch of blue, 67.5 degree water that had lots of turtle life in it along with the giants. Most of us have blamed the lack of what had been large quantities of ling and whiting in the Mud Hole for the failure of giants to return. We used to be able to catch live baits on the spot. but in recent years we haven’t been able to get through the spiny dogfish which may even rise up in the chunking slick. Hopefully, the remaining old pros will put in the time necessary to determine if we have a giant fishery again. Bob Matthews reports from Fisherman’s Den in Belmar Marina that an angler chumming successfully in Shark River for large kingfish also caught the first winter flounder of the season there despite the very warm waters. What a difference a day made for Capt. Ron Santee Jr, over the weekend while fishing for porgies on his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands. Saturday’s porgy bite was good in the morning before the afternoon current was too strong and shut it off. It was just the opposite Sunday as there was little caught until the end of the day when the fish he’d been reading turned on as the current increased. Doubleheaders came up all around the boat, and everyone went home with plenty of fish. A couple of blackfish were included along with some blowfish, winter flounder and even fluke. Tuesday’s weather starts with south winds at just 5 knots, but increases in the afternoon to 10-15 southwest with gusts to 20 knots.