Bi-State Shad Fishing Contest - News/Events

Pennsylvania & New Jersey Delaware River – April 23rd to 26th 2026

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Online Application

Address:
715 Buttermilk Road
Hellertown PA 18055-9779

Phone:
610-762-0440

Email:
eric@shadfishingcontest.com

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News & Notes:

Welcome to our website, courtesy of D.C. Helms Inc. Phillipsburg, N.J. Online registration. Please note that you can only register and pay for one person at a time. Follow the online instructions to choose either adult, or kids option, and shirt size. We are asking that contestants try to pick up your contest t/shirt, either during the contest, or Monday April 27 2026 6pm, at the awards ceremony, located at the Phillipsburg boat launch.

Fishing Guide Services:
See a list of fishing guides below or Visit our links page

2026 Get Together Dates

Saturday January 10th @ 6pm Riverside Barr & Grill 5801 S. Delaware Drive Easton, Pa.
Saturday February 21st @ 6pm Pizza Village (formerly ILL GAETTANO’S ) 665 Columbus Ave, Phillipsburg, NJ
Saturday February 28th @ 6pm Tiptons Tavern 3231 Belvidere Rd Phillipsburg, NJ 08865
Saturday March 7th @ 6pm Italian American Social Club Pursel St & Mill St Phillipsburg
Saturday March 14th @ 6pm Banquet Alpha Vol Fire Hall 1109 Lee Ave Alpha, NJ 08865
Saturday March 21st @ 6pm Hootz Bar & Grill 12 River Road Phillipsburg, NJ
Saturday March 28th @ 6pm Huntington Vol Fire Dept, 1 Maple Ave Phillipsburg, NJ Buy, Sell, Show, Tell
Saturday April 4th @ 6pm The Richmond Hotel 8491 N Delaware Drive Bangor, Pa
Saturday April 11th @ 6pm The Gulch Tavern 1821 River Road Upper Black Eddy
Thursday TBD

Shad Contest Update: 2026 Shad Contest Dates Are April 23, 24, 25, 26

2026 Banquet Date is March 14th 2026 6pm @
Alpha Vol Fire Hall 1109 Lee Ave. Alpha, NJ 08865
$30 Adults, kids age 15 and under are free
As always, we are loking for donated goods, and gift baskets, for our silent auctions, and tricky trays.

Important News:

The PFBC attended the October Delaware River Shad Fishermen’s Association meeting, and announced that there will be no new restrictions on shad fishing for 2026. The young of year shad numbers were very good again in 2025, however, the adult netting at Smithfield beach, is still below average. It was made very clear to us, that the shad fish catch reports, are more important than ever, as they will be a part of decision making for 2027. I was also informed that we will need to fill out 2 forms this year. The original form that is sent with my annual permit, and the fish catch report that was designed in conjunction with the PFBC, and the DRSFA. The FCR that is provided with my annual permit, will only be used for the 4 days of the contest. The other form is to be used for all shad fishing trips for 2026. More to follw. I have not received my approved permiit, and fish catch report from the PFBC yet, but as soon as i get it, i will post it up. I am also going to attach an email that i received from the PFBC on Tuesday. Here it is.

Hey Eric,

Just wanted to check in. It is looking like 2026 will be an action-packed year for Fish and Boat. We have secured funding to hire a contractor to perform a Delaware River Creel Survey for 2026. The contractor will hire creel clerks to drive routes along the river stopping at access sites to interview anglers about their catch and opinions. This creel survey will be crucial because in 2025 we continued to see 2 out of the 6 management benchmarks fail and it now looks with a bad year in 2026 well have 3 out of 6 in failure (I have a report written but it needs to pass the editors before it is released to the public). The Delaware Shad Coop Policy Committee is meeting in July to discuss what actions to take due to the creel survey occurring March – July. The contractor we hired will be able to give us some data to help the Policy Committee make a decision in July even though a final report will probably not be available until 2027.

With all that said it will be crucial for angler participation in the survey. Are you planning to have the Bi State shad tournament again this year? If so, I can arrange my schedule to attend and discuss like the last 2 years but also promote/inform anglers about the creel survey if you would like.

I also have a draft for the diary angler creel survey for 2025 but the editors are still working on it. Hopefully it will be out within the next month.

We had 100 fish catch reports sent in for 2025. The PFBC was happy to see a big increase from 2024, but would like to see at least 150.

As you can see by the email above, 2027 could see more restrictions, or even a total shut down of recreational shad fishing, which would leave us with no shad contest. Please do your part, and provide the PFBC with the shad catch reports. And as always, if you have trouble, or are not comfortable with filling them out, just log your information in a notebook, and get it to me. I will then submit your info to the PFBC.

Thank you for your attention to this matter

Eric Fistler

FYI: Pennsylvania law requiring the cleaning of boats, trailers, and fishing gear, to prevent aquatic invasive species from being transferred to other water ways.

Please fill out our Shad Fishing Tally Sheet PDF

If you are looking to book a shad fishing trip for 2026, the following guides are sponsors of the Bi State Shad Fishing Contest

Finseeker River Guide Service
Tim Keebler
215 262 4811
fishbonzkeebler@gmail.com

Big D River Guide Service
Dieter Scheel
610 574 7519
BigDRiverguide.com

Lambertville Area

Rusty Balls Tackle & Guide Service
Rusty Held
484 239 4723
rustyballstackle@gmail.com

Easton Area

Bi-State Shad Fishing Contest - News/Events

Contest Info

Prizes

News & Events

We Support

News & Events

News & Notes:

2026 Get Together Dates

Please fill out our Shad Fishing Tally Sheet PDF

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