Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay Fishing Report 8-23-2012

Bonito Bonanza

Though the air was noticeably cooler over the past week, the water is still very hot. Striper fishing is challenging in many parts of the Cape, but bluefish, fluke, and bonito fishing is all very good. False albacore have been caught and bluefin are still tearing it up off Chatham.

“The bonito bite is as good as it’s been in a long time,” reported Justin at Coop’s Bait and Tackle on the Vineyard. While the inshore waters and Vineyard Sound don’t have much in the way of bones, the shoals and the Hooter are lit up. Trolling minnow-style plugs like Rebel Fas-Tracs and Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow Deep Divers has been best. Last Friday, I fished the Hooter with Neal Larsson and Anthony DeiCicchi and bluefish outnumbered the bonito 4 to 1. By hitting the MOB every time we hooked a bone, we were able to zero in on areas where the ratio was a bit better. The blues were so thick, that even bumping the trolling speed up to 7 knots didn’t keep them away. Triple headers were the rule of the morning. Other boats at the Hooter and nearby shoals have been finding better numbers of bonito and even a few false albacore in recent days.

Anglers are having good luck casting for bonito at the Bonito Bar using Crystal Minnows and slim metal lures like the Acme Kastmaster XL.

Fluke fishing is going strong, with keepers even coming out of the Canal. Mike at M and D’s was fishing with his daughter on the Big Ditch when she hauled a 23-inch doormat out of the currents. Vineyard Sound is still giving up some solid flatfish. The deeper holes around Lucas Shoal and off the Vineyard still hold the best shot for a doormat.

While shore fishing is challenging around most of the Cape, anglers are hooking into some of the biggest fish of the year from the beach. Brown sharks are prowling the south side of the Cape, and anglers soaking cut bait or dead eels in the overnight hours are hooking up. Sharks are transient and could show up anywhere, but higher percentage spots are near an outflow or harbor entrance, as these areas typically have a higher concentration of bait. Mike at Bad Fish Outfitters in Falmouth said a friend of his caught a half-dozen browns off the beach one night this week.

Striper fishing has been tough in the hot water, and has been made tougher by the fact that one of the best summertime baits, eels, has been tough to come by lately. Trolling with wire has been most productive, especially at spots like Quicks and Robinsons holes. Middle Ground has a few bass as well.

The Canal continues to fish well according to Mike at M and D’s. He’s been doing well bouncing sand eels, with a good number of keepers. Anglers are also doing well with plugs and jigs during the early mornings and afternoons. The afternoon hotspot has been the east end, while action in the mornings is popping up in a wider variety of Canal locations.

Bass fishing around the Vineyard is mostly a nighttime game, but anglers are still picking a few fish off the beaches. On the south side of the Cape, this salt ponds have been producing a few bass after dark. Remember to scale down your offerings to catch these backwater bass. Cape Cod Bay anglers are still picking off the occasional big fish by trolling tube and worm rigs. Covering water is essential to finding these highly mobile schools of stripers.

There are big numbers of bluefish off Race Point and the outer Cape. There are all the 3- to 6-pound blues you could want around Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. The snapper blues present in all harbors and salt ponds right now are big enough to enjoy on ultra-light tackle. They can be brought home to eat or dropped into deep water on a three-way rig in hopes of converting the small bluefish into a big fluke.

Bluefin fishing is still good according to Dickie at the Hook Up. Captain Eric Stewart is still trolling up good numbers of smaller tuna east of Chatham. Some bluefin are popping up south of the Vineyard at the Claw.

Also at the Claw, some white marlin are still cruising around, but according to Justin, it’s sporadic. The Dump has the occasional yellowfin, and there are plenty of chicken mahi at both the Claw and the Dump for anglers to enjoy on light tackle.

Freshwater fishing is good. Smallmouth bass have been active this week in a few Cape ponds, where tube jigs have been working. Also trout are still being caught in deeper water. Mike from Bad Fish even reported a holdover broodstock salmon pulled out of Peters Pond this week. Largemouth bass fishing is pretty good during the day, and even better at night.

Best Bets for the Weekend
If you’ve got bass on the brain, checking the Falmouth salt ponds at night or Canal in the afternoon or morning is the best bet. With the mostly slow striper fishing, however, might be a good weekend to dust off the freshwater gear and take a crack at some smallmouths. Tube jigs in motoroil seem to be working best. Mike at Bad Fish said 20 feet of water was the smallie sweet spot.

If you have the range to get to the Hooter or Bonito Bar, go. This bonito fishing has been steadily improving since mid-July, and is as good as it gets right now. Bringing along some deep-diving minnow plugs and bump up that trolling speed to thin out the number of bluefish.