In this day and age there aren't many recreational fisheries where the question isn't "if", but "how many". Yet, that's presently the case on far offshore wrecks where anglers can catch great numbers of jumbo sea bass and porgies -- but only before the sea bass season closes after Dec. 31. That fishing was exactly as advertised when I sailed Sunday night with Capt. Howard Bogan on his Jamaica from Brielle to fish not far from the canyons on Monday. The forecast was fine, but the wind when we arrived in the dark was 15-to-20-mph with a short, steep swell that made fishing on the bow (which I prefer in order to avoid tangles) a challenge. Though sea bass sometimes bite well before daylight, this wasn't one of those occasions as I caught only a 13-incher (the minimum is 12 1/2 inches) and a 2-pound bluefish before the bite turned on with full daylight.Bogan played his two spread anchor lines like a master violinist, dropping back on one and taking in on the other to move the boat over the entire wreck so everyone got into the action. There were bites all day even though Bogan never left the wreck. A few sea bass limits were bagged, though I fell just short of the 15 allowed. Yet, not many are required for more fillets than a family can eat for weeks when they range up to the 22-incher that topped my catch -- which also included 10 porgies up to 16 inches. A couple of pollock ran off with the pools, as Cai Chen of Harrison had a 15-pounder, and Jim Maher of Point Pleasant a 10-pounder. There was also a white hake of about 6-to-8 pounds, and a most unusual hook-up of a fluke well over keeper size that had to be released. The only bluefish caught were small, and there were (fortunately) very few spiny dogfish. With the season coming to an end, the Jamaica is sailing every night at 10 p.m. to fish the next day, except for Christmas Eve and that day. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations. N.J. Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council member Chris reports the sea bass catch numbers from the last survey wave are high enough that we may be facing a 33 percent cut in quota next year. The striped bass season died out with a thud. Capt. Bobby Bogan checked to the south on Saturday with his Gambler from Point Pleasant, and then up to the channels on Sunday without even marking bait. Capt. Russ Binns ran as far north as Elberon with his Mar-Lin from Toms River on Sunday, and declared it to be a dead sea without even birds flying around. The Gambler has an offshore sea bass trip this weekend, and will switch to bottom fishing shortly. Even with no striper action off the beaches, there should be at least a pick of shorts in the surf this month and well into January. Yet, all I've had lately are negative reports from surf fishing shops. Therefore, I was delighted Wednesday afternoon to release a 20 1/2-inch striper that hit a 6-inch Tsunami Halographic Swim Eel during a brief attempt at Sea Girt. Considering the apparent lack of bait in the surf, that bass looked healthy and was heavy for its length, though I couldn't get another bump while working the area hard. Looking back at the same day last year, I had three striper releases at Point Pleasant after having released 12 shorts the day before. That fishing continued past the New Year up to my last bass on Jan. 29. Water temperatures were normally cool at that time, as they are now. Betty & Nick's in Seaside Park is listing a surf temperature of 45 degrees. It seems to be a matter of "no sand eels, no bass". Just two years ago it appeared as if climate change was really upon us as waters over 50 degrees continued into January and legal stripers were caught throughout January from northern jetty tips at night. It was a lot cooler in Thursday's northwest wind when I returned to the surf at dusk, but the effort was worth it as a 19-incher hit the Tsunami eel, followed by a 14-incher with a round belly. A little later, a bass identical to the previous evening's 20 1/2-incher hit in the wash. Chuck Many of Annandale follows big stripers south during the winter by moving his Ty Man from Highlands to Cape Charles, Virginia. He fished live eels off the mouth of Chesapeake Bay there on Monday with Nelllie Greer of Bethlehem, Pa. and Barnegat-area bass pro Mike Greene as they released cows of 43, 40 and 37 ounds. Greer broke through the coveted 50-pound bass barrier the next day with a 53-pound release to break his personal record of 48 pounds set last summer in Raritan Bay. Three others of 38, 42 and 43 pounds were releaed. No great volume, but well worth waiting for a bite as every spawn-laden bass is a big one. Capt. Stan Zagleski continues to catch blackfish from his Elaine B. out of Highlands. The pattern has been bigger tog in shallower waters, and then more volume in the depths with only a few keepers. Some fares bag four or five that range up to 7 1/2 pounds. Bob Matthews, at Fisherman's Den in Belmar Marina, reports blackfish up to over 12 pounds plus a few ling, sea bass and lots of dogfish from offshore trips while striper fishing has been tough in the surf. The Paramount from Brielle is running 10 1/2-hour Marathon trips for ling, cod and porgies from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The seasons for both striped bass and tautog have closed in N.Y. waters. Those still looking for a Christmas gift for an angler suffering from cold feet in the winter can't go wrong with the ThermaCELL ProFlex heated insoles. They feature wireless control of the heat, and the rechargeable batteries can even be charged in the car on the way to fishing. Check my blow at nj.com/shore/blogs/fishing for Christmas gift ideas for fishermen, including new products from last week's Folsom wholesale fishing tackle show in Atlantic City.