The striper fishing is grinding to a halt on Cape Cod. Other than a few fish still funneling through the Canal, things have gone quiet around the Cape.

Saltwater

The slowdown isn’t unique to stripers. Across the board the saltwater action is hitting the skids. Tog are moving to deeper water, tuna are thinning out and sea bass and scup are but a memory. There were reports of bluefish in the Canal Thursday morning, courtesy of AJ at Red Top Sporting Goods.

A pair of 1000-pound tuna earned themselves a one-way trip to Japan this week reported AJ. One was caught east of Chatham while the other came from Cape Cod Bay. While certainly not a high-percentage option, if you have the proper licenses, a weekend spent fishing for giants could turn out to be a pretty nice payday.

Christian at Falmouth Bait and Tackle reported that cod fishing is good, particularly the grounds about 17 miles southwest of Nomans Island.

Freshwater

As the saltwater slows, the freshwater continues to heat up. Trout fishing is good and getting better in the upper Cape. Todd at Falmouth Bait and Tackle weighed in a 2.1-pound brown trout this week taken from an undisclosed pond. Jeff at Forestdale Bait and Tackle heard of trout to 3 pounds coming out of Peters Pond. Most of the trout, Jeff said, have been rainbows up to 15 inches hitting PowerBait, but there have been several 18- and 19-inch fish caught on shiners, lures or nightcrawlers.

Mid-Cape ponds have not been quite as productive for trout reported Dan at the Hook Up. Some trout are being caught, but not in the numbers Dan would expect at this time of year. Dan did report that a 24-inch broodstock salmon came from Sheeps Pond in Brewster this week. The fish had survived since last winter’s stocking. As of now, it doesn’t look like there will be a broodstock salmon stocking in Massachusetts this year, or any year going forward as the Atlantic salmon restoration project that supplied the broodstock has concluded. If anything changes, we’ll be sure to post it on OnTheWater.com

Smallmouth bass fishing is still great reported Jeff at Forestdale Bait and Tackle. Smallies to 5 ½ pounds were pulled out of Mashpee-Wakeby this week, with plenty of them weighing in excess o 2 pounds. A live shiner fooled the 5½-pounder, but jigs and tubes are also working for the smallies.

Largemouths are biting too. For your best odds at finding a quality largemouth, shallow ponds will be your best bet. Look to ponds like Santuit in Mashpee or Glen Charlie in Wareham. Glen Charlie also has a good population of crappie, which feed heavily this time of year.

Best Bets for the Weekend

If you haven’t put away the saltwater gear, you could look for your last striper in the Canal. The mornings are probably your best bet, but the fish could bite all day. Bring some light tackle and small diamond jigs as mackerel and small pollock usually invade the East End of the Canal this time of year.

For freshwater, if it’s big trout you are after, Peters Pond, Spectacle Pond or any of the Nickerson State Park ponds will be your best bet. Although Dan at the Hook Up reported the trout fishing slow in the mid-Cape area, the cold nights this week may have put the trout in a feeding mood.

For smallmouths, Mashpee-Wakeby or Long Pond in Harwich would be my picks, while for largemouths, the smaller shallower ponds probably have better fishing right now.