Liberty State Park

Liberty State Park sits on Upper New York Bay in Jersey City, with the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and the Manhattan skyline across the water. It's one of New Jersey's most overlooked fishing spots: schools of bait move in and out all year, and just off the shoreline a drop-off leads into a channel where bigger fish travel. Entry is free, and a two-mile waterfront walkway gives you plenty of shoreline to fish.

When to fish

• Spring and fall: striped bass, often chasing bait right along the shore, with bluefish mixed in. For dedicated anglers the striper bite barely stops.
• Summer: fluke along the entire shoreline, plus weakfish and porgies.
• Late fall into winter: tautog on the jetties.
• After dark: the most productive time in season; the gate closes at 10 p.m.

Where to fish

• The waterfront walkway: the main shoreline, where a drop-off into the channel lies within casting range.
• The south-side jetties: hold tautog from late fall through winter; the state plans to restore them.

How to fish it

For stripers, use bunker, bloodworms or minnows, or throw plugs, soft-plastic shads and paddletails; match the size of the bait that's around. Bluefish and stripers both hit metal lures. For fluke, drift killies or peanut bunker, or use soft baits; live peanut bunker is the top bait for weakfish. For tautog on the jetties, use green crabs or sand fleas.

Getting there

The park is at 1 Audrey Zapp Drive in Jersey City. The gate is open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and there's no entrance fee. Trailered boats launch from Parking Lot 2 with a daily or seasonal permit (the seasonal permit also works at Leonardo State Marina), and kayaks and canoes can launch free at the East Jetty by Parking Lot 4. Fish consumption advisories apply in these waters, so check them before keeping fish. Anglers 16 and older must register with New Jersey's free Saltwater Recreational Registry.