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Ocean / Inlet

Back Bay

Late May Reset: Full Moon Sunday, Multiple Species Coming Alive

The nor'easter hit the brakes on things this past week but the warm weather moving in should flip the switch fast. Bigger bass are still around out front, just more scattered and tidal dependent now that water temps out front are flirting with 60 degrees. The stacked overlapping waves of fish from early May have thinned but quality stripers are still in the mix. Work the moving water at first and last light and let the tide do the work. Flounder action stalled hard with the cold snap but expect that to come around quickly as conditions warm up. The sod banks are waking up too. Schoolies and blues are getting active along the grass edges and that bite is only going to build as the water climbs. Weakfish are starting to show on the big tides at dawn and dusk. Sheepshead are also starting to pop up this week and crabs on bottomsweeper jigs will get it done for those fish. Sunday's full moon is the event of the week. Bass and weakies both respond strongly to it and the lunar push should trigger a blue crab shed cycle so shedder bait could be deadly if you can get your hands on some. As temperatures push above 60 start targeting kingfish and spot on bloodworms. The calendar is loading up and the fishing is only going to get better from here.

SunMonTueWedThuFriSat

Good Really Good Journal Solunar major Minor

Each tide event is scored 0–100 based on how good it is for striper fishing. Days with higher scores have more events with gold/teal dots. Tap any day to see the full breakdown.

Tidal Range26%

Time of Day22%

Season15%

Wind (boost)11%

Moon Phase11%

Pressure (boost)7%

Temp Trend (boost)7%

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💧 Water Clarity Forecast

Cape May County · NJ Shore

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About Striper Tides

Striper Tides is a free fishing forecast app for Cape May County, New Jersey. It combines NOAA tide predictions, solunar windows, moon phase data, water temperature, wind, and wave conditions into a daily fishing score for 12 spots across Cape May County's ocean inlets and back bay channels. Updated every day of the fishing season.

Built for striped bass, flounder, and weakfish anglers fishing the Jersey Shore from Corsons Inlet down to Cape May Point.

Ocean & Inlet Spots

Corsons Inlet

Barrier island tidal inlet between Ocean City and Strathmere. Strong tidal current on the drop makes this a top producer for striped bass and bluefish during spring and fall migrations.

Townsends Inlet

Shallow inlet between Avalon and Sea Isle City. Productive for early season stripers and fluke on moving tides with back bay access on both sides.

Hereford Inlet

Wide, fast inlet between Stone Harbor and North Wildwood. Known for large fall striper runs and strong current that holds bait through the outgoing tide.

Cape May Inlet

Major inlet at the southern tip of New Jersey where Delaware Bay and the Atlantic converge. Year round bluefish, weakfish, and striped bass with heavy bait migration in May and October.

Cape May Point

The southernmost tip of New Jersey and a prime striper migration corridor in spring and fall. Surf and jetty access with strong rip currents forming on the outgoing tide.

Back Bay Spots

Grassy Sound

Shallow back bay channel near Wildwood Crest. Warm water concentrates flounder and stripers early in the season when ocean temps are still cold.

Stone Harbor Back Bay

Protected channels behind Stone Harbor with good weakfish and flounder structure along the marsh edges on the incoming tide.

Avalon Back Bay

Strong tidal flow through the channels near Avalon. Stripers stack up on the outgoing tide in fall and it is one of the more consistent back bay spots on the chart.

Sea Isle Back Bay

Sheltered flats with good flounder action from late April through June. Warming water arrives here before the ocean, making it one of the first spots worth fishing in spring.

Townsends Back Bay

Productive channel running behind Avalon and Sea Isle City. Consistent weakfish action in summer evenings around new and full moon tides.

Cape May Back Bay

Warm, shallow back bay near Cape May Harbor and one of the first spots to fish for flounder in April. Doormat fluke and weakfish through July.

The Thorofare

The main back bay channel connecting Cape May Harbor to the back bay system. Strong current, deep holes, and consistent striper action on the outgoing tide.

Species & Seasons

Striped Bass

Present in Cape May County from March through December with peak fishing in April through May and October through November. Best action on the first and last two hours of moving tide at dawn and dusk. Solunar windows add an additional bite trigger during major and minor feeding periods.

Flounder (Summer Flounder / Fluke)

Season runs April through July in Cape May County. Early season fluke target warm back bay flats before ocean temps come up. Doormat flounder move through the inlets in May and June on light incoming tide over sand bottom structure.

Weakfish

Active May through October across the back bay channels and inlets. Moon phase is the key driver. Weakfish feed most aggressively on the large tidal swings around new and full moon.

Sheepshead

Show up in Cape May County late May through September around structure, pilings, jetty rocks, and bridge footings. They target crabs and barnacles and are notoriously hard to hook. Fiddler crabs and fresh shedder crab are the top baits. Bottomsweeper jigs tipped with crab also produce. The bite picks up as water temps climb through June and they can be found in both the inlets and the back bay around any hard structure.

Kingfish (Northern Kingfish)

A surf and inlet bottom fish that arrives in Cape May County when water temps push above 60 degrees, typically late May into September. Found in the wash of the surf, around inlet mouths, and on sandy bottom in the back bay. Bloodworms are the classic bait and they are one of the best eating fish on the Jersey Shore. Often caught alongside spot and small weakfish on the same bottom rigs.

How the Forecast Works

Each tidal event is scored 0 to 100 based on seven factors: tidal range, time of day, season, moon phase, wind conditions, barometric pressure trend, and water temperature trend. Scores are normalized across the full scoring range so the best events of a given period rise to the top.

Solunar windows are calculated from the moon's position and phase for Cape May County coordinates (38.93°N, 74.86°W). Water clarity is estimated from wave energy, tidal range, wind, and recent precipitation. All tide data comes from NOAA CO-OPS stations with subordinate station offsets applied for back bay locations.