FISHING THE MANASQUAN RESERVOIR – By Ray Merckx
Fishing the Manasquan Reservoir
By Ray Merckx – Sports Writer for The Sentinel of Gloucester County Weekly Newspaper – Published Print Edition Week of 5/16/2019
This past weekend, I had the opportunity to fish the 770 acre Manasquan Reservoir located just off Routes 9 and 195 in Howell Township, Monmouth County. I have never fished this lake before and glad I took the trip to experience what fishing is like a little further north of our local area.
This was my third tournament of the year with the Barrington Rod and Reel Club, and I was able to fish with long time member Russel Noe. Russ has been to Manasquan quite a few times and gave me some pretty good insight on what to expect on our hour long ride to the lake. He told me that the reservoir is over 40 feet deep in some spots with a lot of structures around the entire half of the lake. With both largemouth and smallmouth bass, along with hybrid striped bass and tiger muskie, I was excited to explore the new area.
When you first get to the Manasquan Reservoir, you need to make sure that you have a lot of items with you or you will not be allowed to launch your boat, canoe or kayak. Anyone using the ramp at Manasquan must provide their drivers license, registrations and insurance cards for your vehicles, trailers and boats, along with paying a $7 ramp fee per day. Anyone on any boat, canoe or kayak must wear a life vest at all times along with having a valid NJ Freshwater Fishing License while fishing. The reservoir is also an electric motor only lake and any outboards are requested to have their props out of the water, removed or covered while in the water. By the time we launched at 6:40 am, there were already over 30 kayakers and 15 boats ready to fish for the day.
I would have liked to explore the Reservoir a little more than what we were able to do. Higher winds in the morning hours kept us strictly to the southwest side of the lake which made it a little tough to get across as the winds were blowing from the Northwest. Yet staying within the tree line that skirts around this huge reservoir, made for great cover from the wind and helped keep the boat in a spot so you can try and fish.
The clarity of the water was clear with a greenish tint, and the water temperatures were in the low 60’s most of the day. Being a South Jersey angler, I am use to our darker cedar stained water and a novice when it comes to fishing clear water. At first I tried my usual black and blue jig with a crawfish trailer, along with gold colored spinnerbaits. With no bites, I decided to throw a 2.8 inch swimbait in a greenish color and caught my first crappie. Looking back, I wish I had just stuck with the swimbait all day as I caught all of my fish on it. Switching to different colors and baits on my other rods kept me from catching more bass and other species. I have a little bit more knowledge now for fishing the Manasquan Reservoir and will be better prepared for my next trip in August.
Mostly of the anglers who fished on Saturday (5/11) reported very little fish being caught yet some managed to catch some decent sized bass. In fact, our club had close to 20 bass caught between ten boats with three being the most caught by any angler. I was fortunate to catch 2 largemouth bass weighing in at a total weight of 3.65 pounds, 3 crappie and 1 pickerel. Unfortunately, my boater Russ got skunked but still had a fun time.
If you have never taken the trip to the Manasquan Reservoir, I would recommend fishing it with someone who’s fished it before. Be sure to follow the rules that are posted and come prepared by making sure that all of your equipment is working properly. Another plus side about Manasquan is that if you do run into trouble, the rangers will come out and assist you. They can even give you a tow back to the ramp if needed. Plus there is a bait shop right at the ramp with a lot of supplies that you may have forgotten or need.
Manasquan is one freshwater fishing spot I wish was closer. The hour and a half ride may not seem worth it to some, but it gives you a great opportunity to try your fishing skills on a new body of water which can help make you a better angler.