Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay Fishing Report 2-28-2013

Freshwater Picking Up

Cape Cod fishermen can look forward to 40-degree weather for the next 10 days, according to the recent forecast. The warming temperatures and the recent rains have effectively ended the ice fishing season here on the Cape, not that there was much of an ice season at all. The constantly fluctuating weather kept the ice on most ponds to iffy to fish for most of the winter. As the ice thaws, fishermen are finding more open water opportunities and catching some good fish.

Christian at Falmouth Bait and Tackle said the action is picking up in freshwater. One customer found success at the John’s Pond boat ramp working Rat-L-Traps slowly along the bottom. A lift and drop retrieve drew strikes from the largemouth. Trout fishing has been spotty, but it’s promised to improve in the next few weeks as the Sandwich Hatchery trucks deposit this spring’s trout.

Dan at the Hook Up hit Peter’s Pond on Monday and found good action with rainbows, some as large as 2 pounds, and a salmon in the 5-pound range. The salmon hit a nightcrawler, as did some of the bows. That was the only positive report from Peter’s. Stan at Red Top in Buzzards Bay said he’s been selling shiners to anglers headed for Peter’s, but none have returned with any good news about the fishing.

Big pickerel are biting in some of Barnstable’s Ponds according to Dana at Riverview. There have been picks in the 4- and 5-pound range taken on jerkbaits.

Best Bets for the Weekend

March is a great month for freshwater fishing on Cape Cod. The pickerel are ravenous, the largemouths are waking up from their winter torpor and begin hitting lures once again, and holdover and stocked trout are an easy mark. Get your gear ready and seek out some open water this weekend. Shiners under a bobber should be an automatic for pickerel or largemouths. If you want to stick with artificial, fish them deep and fish them slow.