Southside Loaded with Bass and Blues

Cape Cod Bay Bass on Mackerel

Canal Tides Look Promising

 

The fishing forecast is looking good with a wide range of options for anglers from the South Coast to the Outer Cape for the long Memorial Day Weekend and beyond. Unfortunately, the weather forecast is a little trickier. Between blues on the south side, bass in Cape Cod Bay, great tides in the Cape Cod Canal and freshwater fishing, there will be opportunities no matter which way the winds decide to blow.

 

Massachusetts South Coast and Buzzards Bay Fishing Report

The big news from Buckos in Fall River was a report of a 53-pound striper caught from shore this week and weighed in at the shop. The striper fell for bait in the Little Compton area. This big bass, and a few other weigh-ins from Rhode Island shops, are good signs that there are some truly big bass starting to trickle into the Narragansett-Westport area. Otherwise, it’s been a mix of schoolies and 10- to 20-pound keepers around upper Narragansett Bay, with the keeper fish mostly following around schools of bunker.

Along the South Coast, it’s a good mixed-bag right now all the way to Bird Island off Marion. Scup are prevalent, while bluefish and bass are chasing bait of all sizes. There has been some action this week under terns, which is a sure sign that the bass and blues are chasing small baitfish such as sand eels to the surface.

Sea bass fishing is good and getting better. Capt. Bob Belekewicz out of Kingman Marina in Red Brook Harbor has been doing well by finding sea bass schooled up on slightly deeper structure, but the fish should be pushing into the ledges, rockpiles and channel edges closing to shore as waters continue to warm. Cut squid is the top bait for sea bass and scup, but bucktails and small metal jigging lures will help you pick out more keeper sea bass.

Striper action has been slow, in general, in most of the Cape-side Buzzards Bay harbors and along the beaches. The fish are going where the bait is, and right now there seems to more bait, bass and blues on the south side.

 

Cape Cod Canal Fishing Report

It’s been quiet in the Canal ever since the first good push of 10- to 20-pound fish moved through quickly to feed on the mackerel in Cape Cod Bay. According to the folks at Red Top in Buzzards Bay, most of the reports this week have been of keeper-sized fish to 20 pounds, mostly toward the east end. Toward the west end, there have been some big bluefish in the mix, up to 10 pounds.

Many folks are hoping that will all change this weekend. Slack low tide coincides with first light/sunrise beginning this weekend, which could bring fish to the top, and a shift to north/northwest winds could push mackerel from Cape Cod Bay into the Canal… what remains to be seen is if a fresh school of bass will arrive. If they do, plenty of anglers will be waiting to greet them just before sunrise with pencil poppers, Polaris poppers, Magic Swimmers, and Stick Shadds.

 

Cape Cod Bay Fishing Report

For the past week, Cape Cod Bay has been the hotspot and the most fishable water when the winds blow out of the south. Mackerel have been off the East End of the Canal, off Barnstable Harbor, off the Brewster Flats and in deeper water off Billingsgate Shoal – but not all of these places at once. Captains using radar have had the best luck finding diving gannets attacking sea herring and mackerel from above and bass feeding below. Most of the bass are in the 30- to 36-inch range. Jigging up macks on Sabiki rigs and live-lining them is productive, but soft-plastic Slug-Gos and Hogys on weighted swimbait hooks are also working well. Watch your electronics and make sure that you are getting your baits down to where the fish are.

There have also been bass inside Barnstable Harbor and in the creeks, reported Jeff at Forestdale Bait and Tackle in Sandwich – a good option for light-tackle anglers and small-boat guys who might need to find sheltered areas to fish if the wind picks up this weekend. Inshore, the fish seemed to be feeding on sand eels, so go with smaller artificials and sand-eel-imitating flies. For bait fishermen, fresh chunked mackerel is your best bet from the bayside beaches, suggested Dan at The Hook Up in Orleans. The Brewster Flats have also been fishing well.

 

Outer Cape Fishing Report

Out at Nelsons Bait and Tackle in Provincetown, they’ve weighed in keepers from Wood End to Race Point and ocean-side beaches such as Ballston Beach this week. Nothing huge yet, but good numbers of fish over 30 inches hitting everything from swimmers (Mambo Minnows) to live eels.

 

Southside Cape Cod Fishing Report

The sounds are lacking squid – something everybody from commercial captains, to offshore anglers hoping to stockpile bait, to folks hoping to snack on calamari is complaining about. However, there is still enough inshore bait to draw in the bluefish, bass, and occasional weakfish along the south side.

South Cape Beach has been fantastic at times for bluefish from 3 to 8 pounds, reported Jeff at Forestdale Bait and Tackle in Sandwich. Oregon Beach and Loop Beach have also been very good, while Waquoit, Popponesset, and Cotuit are all holding bass, including some big ones that are feeding on abundant herring and pogies. From the beaches, long casts with metal lures – Kastamasters, Point Jude Tins, Krocodiles, and Deadly Dicks – have been necessary at times to reach the blues, unless a southwest wind pushes them in tight or they venture close just after sunset. Topwater plugs with single hooks are also working at times – Surface Tensions, Roberts Rangers, and Tsunami Pencil Poppers are all good bets. Boaters drifting the flats have been enjoying good days when the wind allows. After dark, striper fishing has been good for small bass under 18 inches and bigger bass in the 30-inch range. Along the beaches. Plastic swimming plugs or fresh chunks of squid will produce fish.

Sea bass fishing hasn’t lit up in the sound yet, and although fluke opened this week, there aren’t any new reports. Scup fishing has been good, and one patron brought in a massive 4.2-pounder to Sports Port in Hyannis this week.

On Martha’s Vineyard, the bluefish bite continues to be good on Chappaquiddick and bass fishing has improved up-island, reported Coops in Edgartown. Lobsterville Beach, Menemsha Pond and the channel are all giving up fish. Weakfish have been reported in Edgartown Harbor, and although its been a poor squid season without much to catch around the docks at night, there are recent reports of bass chasing squid out of the water at Middleground.

 

Fishing Forecast

Much depends on which way the winds decide to blow this Memorial Day weekend, as a stalling front could leave us with wind out of the south on Saturday or blowing hard out of the north before everything clears out in time for the holiday on Monday. The good thing about the Cape is that there is always an option. The south-facing beaches are a good bet for bluefish, while Cape Cod Bay has been the place for action on keeper-sized bass. The bays, harbors and rivers are all holding fish if the wind keeps you from heading for open water. Surfcasters should consider setting the alarm early and checking out the Cape Cod Canal. And then there’s always the freshwater fishing – trout fishing is excellent but won’t last too much longer, while the largemouth bass fishing is exceptional with bass heading shallow to spawn.