Cape Cod Fishing Report - August 27, 2015

This time of year, in the waning days of August, fishermen scan fishing reports looking for four words, and it’s my pleasure to write them for you this week—the albies are in.

Reports of false albacore around the Vineyard and off the South Side of the Cape circulated this week. What started as rumors of schools spotted off Edgartown Harbor has blossomed into photos confirmed catches.

The center of the albie run is currently Martha’s Vineyard. Peter from Larry’s Tackle reported that albies have been spotted off Edgartown Harbor. The crew at Coops had also heard of the Edgartown Harbor albies, and added that some fish have been seen off the Elizabeth Islands as well. On the South Side of the Cape, fishermen have found albies off Centerville reported Bill at Sports Port.

No albies in Buzzards Bay just yet, reported Tom at Red Top. But there are still stripers in the Canal. The action has cooled off from the frenzy of late last week, when good numbers of 10- to 25-pound stripers moved in from Cape Cod Bay and ran the whole length of the Canal feeding on peanut bunker and mackerel reported Tom at Red Top. Fish are still being caught in the Canal, but with the primary bait being 1- to 2-inch peanuts, even the smaller stripers have been picky. Bucktail jigs are working well, both at night and during the day, and small metal lures like the Crippled Herring are taking fish as well.

Some stripers are being caught from shore on the South Side. Jeff at Forestdale reported a few fish were caught by fishermen using surf clams as bait. Fishermen on the South Side continue to have success targeting brown sharks after dark. Cut bluefish have been the best baits, but dead eels are the old standby.

Surf sharkers are picking up a few bluefish as well, but for the most part, blues are a little scarce on the South Side beaches. There have been some snapper blues out toward the mid-Cape reported Bill at Sports Port, but Jeff at Forestdale said snappers have been tough to come by in his neck of the woods. Even without the snappers, fishermen are finding fun light-tackle action with scup.

Just a reminder that black sea bass season is closed. It was a great run this year, with plenty of big, hump-headed sea bass taken from Buzzards Bay and the Sounds. Bottom fishermen are left with scup and fluke. Scup are biting well around rough bottom, and fluke are being caught in the deeper areas of the sounds and off Martha’s Vineyard.  Captain Pete Przygocki of Castaway Sportfishing reported fluke fishing is hot around Nantucket. He’s also finding squid in the deep holes of Nantucket Sound.

One shore angler lucked out with a 20-inch fluke from the Popponesset channel this week reported Jeff at Forestdale. A few more fluke were caught out by the Spit.

Since the albies arrived, the nearshore bonito have thinned out reported the crew at Coops. The Hooter and the Bonito Bar are the places to go if you are looking for bones. Hedge Fence, another perennial bonito hotspot, has been quiet reported Jeff at Forestdale.

Cape Cod Bay is still producing stripers. While some fish between 29 and 36 inches have been taken by trolling tube-and-worm rigs in the daytime, the best bet continues to be eel fishing in the dark.

Off Provincetown, bluefish are in thick, and being caught by boat fishermen, with the fish occasionally moving within range of surfcasters.

Off Chatham, some stripers have been caught in the rips, but the action is much slower than in years past.  John of Fish Chatham Charters said the bass have been in the rips on certain tides, and that he’s been having the most success by casting soft plastics.

Some giant bluefin are coming from Stellwagen Bank reported Tom from Red Top. Tom also said the Canyons are on fire. There had been a nice bite inside the canyons at the Shipping Lanes reported Peter from Larry’s on the Vineyard, but those fish seem to have pushed back into the canyons.

John of Fish Chatham Sportfishing has been enjoying a decent tuna bite east of Chatham. On Wednesday, he landed a 68-inch bluefin and released one in the 60-inch class. It’s been mostly a troll bite on squid bars with the fish spread over a wide area. There are lots of sharks out there as well, reported John. Most are blues but there are some makos mixed in.

There are some 20-pound stripers being caught from the surf on the South Side of Martha’s Vineyard reported Peter at Larry’s. The crew at Coops reported that fishermen targeting brown sharks have been catching the occasional nice-sized striper. Brown shark fishing from the Vineyard surf is going strong, with a shark or two being caught each night.

Best Bets for the Weekend

With the full moon this weekend, striper fishing should improve all around the Cape. The Canal will have breaking tides starting on Saturday, and the stronger currents all around the Cape should put stripers in a feeding mood.

With stable weather patterns forecasted through the weekend, the albie fishing should continue to improve. Last year’s peak was in the first week of September, and it looks like we’re setting up for a similar run this year. Baitfish are stacked up all over the Cape, and the strong full moon currents could provide the spark needed to ignite the albie blitz.