While Labor Day is a bit late this year, those of us who live and work in the Cape Region can't hardly wait to get our roads and beaches back. The influx of summer visitors is welcome because it is very good for the local economy, but by September, having Route 1 as a parking lot has gotten a little old. During the summer, my wife and I try not to use that thoroughfare on the weekends.  

Thankfully, DNREC decided to lift the reservation requirement for several of the drive-on beaches during the summer. Now if I decide to fish on a Saturday or Sunday or on a holiday, I can use one of the exempted beaches. Once Labor Day is in the rear-view mirror, all beaches will be open.

We have had a period of unusually mild weather for the end of August. Should this continue (I doubt it will), we could see some early fall fishing. More than likely, we will get another shot of excessive heat and that will keep water temperatures high, jellyfish in the surf and our summer fish visitors here for a while longer.

Look for sheepshead and triggerfish at the Outer Wall, Ice Breakers and Indian River Inlet on sand fleas, green crabs, fiddler crabs and peeler crabs. The fishing pier at Cape Henlopen State Park should have the same fish on the same baits along with spot and croaker on sand fleas and bloodworms.

Moving to the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal, I have done very well here in the fall with nice-sized spot and croaker. No fancy bait, just worms and Fishbites. Once you find a concentration of either fish, stay on the same drift until it peters out.

As far as surf fishing, fall is when this is at its best. Blues, stripers, red drum and flounder will be moving either down the coast or offshore, and the exit of mullet and small menhaden from the back bays and tributaries will attract all of these fish to the surf line. Also, as the water cools, our uninvited guests, the jellyfish, should depart.

It has been a while since I have seen a bluefish blitz along the Delaware coast. It is possible we could see this happen this fall. If not with blues, perhaps with stripers chasing mullet or menhaden on the surface and running the baitfish up on the sand. I get so excited just writing about it that I begin to shake all over.

Moving away from the shoreline and out to the ocean, we should have better sea bass and flounder fishing as fall moves on. Last year, I fished the first week of December out of Ocean City, Md., on the Angler head boat and not only limited out, but for the first time in my life, I won the pool. What a great Christmas present!

All of the ocean reef sites, including the Del-Jersey-Land Reef, should get better as the fall moves on. If you should find yourself on a head boat, sit next to me and I will be sure to cull out all the short sea bass while you catch all the keepers.

Moving back inshore a bit, the Old Grounds and sites 10 and 11 can be very good locations for croaker and flounder. Several years ago, I was asked by a good friend to go on a charter with him and several of his friends who had never fished in the ocean. We headed to the Old Grounds and while my friend wanted to catch flounder, everywhere we went we caught big croaker. Finally, my friend realized that his friends were just as happy catching big croaker as they would be catching flounder. The end result was a cooler full of fish.

On another beautiful fall day, I was invited on a deep-drop trip to catch tilefish. It would be my first time catching these fish and I was really excited.

We left the dock at o’dark-30 and had a beautiful run out to the canyon on a glass-smooth sea. Our first drop proved unsuccessful, but the next one was much better and I hooked up right away.

As I was hand cranking the fish up, I began to feel light headed and soon I knew I was about to pass out. I handed my rod off to another person and slid down to the deck. When I regained consciousness, I was lying flat on the deck with my shirt open and one of the other fishermen was checking my heart rate. Turns out he was a doctor.

At that point, they blamed it on sunstroke. Later we discovered my blood pressure dropped too low. The rest of the day I ran the electric reel.