Last Sunday, Capt. Larry Backman and the crew aboard Skipjack pushed off the dock in Falmouth Harbor around 8am to head for the productive squid grounds off Popponessett and Cotuit. Before the weather kicked up on Sunday afternoon, anglers on boats from all over the Cape made the most of a calm morning.
If you have never caught a squid before, there are two things you need to remember. First, squid ink is potent stuff. You will get squirted at some point, so don’t head out there dressed in your Sunday best. Second, squid have sharp beaks underneath their tentacles. Do not stick your fingers anywhere near the beak!
Squid are voracious predators, and they prey on a variety of baitfish. They’ll attack live herring and even go after chunk baits. To catch them, you will need specialized squid jigs that have a row of upturned barbs instead of hooks. You can find squid jigs at most of the local tackle shops.
A popular day-time squid jig consists of two Yo-Zuri squid jigs tied above a bank sinker. Lower it to the bottom and gently jig just above the bottom as you drift along for the best results. As was evident on Sunday, early May is the best time to do it in Vineyard Sound, with many boats targeting 20 to 30 feet of water in the area from Cotuit to Falmouth Harbor. You will see quite a few commercial trawlers out there at this time of the year, and they will give you a good idea of where to concentrate your efforts. Jigging around eelgrass beds can be especially productive.
Compared to squid runs over the last few years, the bite has been steady this year — hopefully a good sign for the upcoming season. After only 3 hours of fishing, the Skipjack crew boated nearly 100 squid. Some hit the frying pan later that night but the majority were vacuum sealed for use as swordfish baits during the upcoming the canyon season.
This was a great article. Got me to try this for the first time on Saturday. As with all other fishing there is a learning curve. Anchored up, two fishermen in a boat next to me must have caught 200 squid before I caught one. Then I started catching a few. And then some more. Are squid line shy? I was using fluorocarbon but I think 40′ or 50′. A leader with bank sinker at the bottom. Two dropper loops – one about 12″ from bottom, and another 12″ higher. put yozuri squids (tied with clinch knot to jig and loop for loop to loop at the other end) on. Dropped to bottom and bounced with the tide. When I felt a tug I reeled in. Everyone else had nearly-freshwater light spinning rods. I was using my standard fluking rod (stiffer Lamiglas 7′ rod) with Penn Squidder. Thanks for any tips that might help for next season. They averaged 14″-16″ with one at 18″. thanks.