Our grandson, Tyler Strodel, is 12 years old. He is athletic, active and always grateful for any favor or gift from Gram and Pop (me). At 86 I have been chasing fish since age 6, and Ty shares my passion for the sport.

I have fished with Ty at his small creek in Saylorsburg, Pa., his campsite on the Delaware River, and in the Catskills where we hand tied trout flies, as well as on the beaches and inlet of Long Beach Island. Our only striped bass experience was under our Causeway Bridge for small stripers.

We hit the pot of gold a week or so ago during two trips off the beaches of Sandy Hook, Sea Bright, Long Branch and…