Massachusetts Fishing Report – September 8, 2016

Everything may be relative, but ogling a photo of a truly big bass relegates most every other stripers to ho-hum status. While most in the harbor were regaling in snagging pogies and catching 25-pounders (certainly nothing to sneeze at), a few stealthy anglers flipped their circadian clocks and slung serpents when most had long since gone to bed—and they caught stripers most can only dream about.

It’s no secret that Boston Harbor has been hot. But what’s hot for some might be merely lukewarm to others. Jeff “The Riddler” Lopez has long been one of Boston’s best bass fisherman. In fact, it’s no stretch to say that he taught much of Boston how to catch stripers from a kayak! Of all the lessons learned through the years from chasing harbor stripers (even into the winter months), the most valuable was most likely that the biggest bass feed after dark. He, along with a few pals, put that knowledge to good use over the weekend and caught what for most would be bass of a lifetime – the pictures say it all! Far from an accident, he tapped Pete Santini of Fishing FINatics for the biggest examples of Anguilla rostrata (eels) he could find, and the 20-inch serpents ended up being just what those big girls wanted. I don’t know for sure where Jeff and pals caught those fish, but I’m fairly certain the spots have been written about in this column many times in the past!

South Coast Massachusetts And South Shore Fishing Report

Not surprisingly, the arrival of September in Westport has coincided with the arrival of bigger stripers. Eels at night over rock piles inside and outside of the harbor are now yielding 25-pounders where 25-inch fish held sway for Captain Colby and his crew aboard Little Sister Charters. And it’s bound to only get better and the fish bigger. Those focusing in on fluke will find mixed sizes, including the occasional 6-plus-pounder, migrating out toward deeper water, 60 feet plus, as the fish begin to transition as summer wanes. Pink along with natural Gulp 5-inch squid threaded above the hook of a three-way rig have worked well for me. Look for the true dynamos of Buzzards Bay – the tautog – to begin crunching crabs in earnest by the end of the month.

Finally, there has been some pogy love and blitzes for the South Shore, according to Pete from Belsans Bait in Scituate. Egypt Beach and Mann Hill Beach recently went off as double-digit blues massacred pogies up against the shallows. Surf sharpies were reveling in waging war with jumping, head-shaking big blues in the suds of these beaches.

Striped bass are beginning to invade estuaries, marshes and rivers at night and anglers are targeting then with eels. Damons Point and the Herring River have been standouts. From now through October, bridges spanning rivers, estuaries and embayments are not to be ignored. Splatting an eel onto the surface or working a jig/soft plastic into the shadow line of a bridge can be deadly for big bass.

For mackerel, be prepared to make a haul as far out as Stone Ledge. As water temperatures cool, expect the macks to cruise closer to the coast.

Greater Boston Fishing Report

If you’re betting that Hermine would have an effect on the harbor, you were right. It looks like it improved the fishing! Pogies can not only be found in the usual places, but they’ve been chased by bass into the Town River, upstream of the Tobin Bridge and in Crystal Cove as well. And, there appears to be even more pogies now! Dave Panarello and sidekick – Mike “K” – on Wednesday found acres of this big bass bait from the Lower Middle all the way into the mouth of the Charles River. It was described to me as “you could walk on them”! Like a magician’s trick, a pogy on the line seems to morph without problem into a 25-pound striper. The biggest bass, however, seem to stick to shallower water as opposed to chasing down the fleet-finned pogies in deeper water where they have more room to escape. The shallows of Point Allerton, Brewster Spit, Rainsford Island, Hypocrite Channel, Sunken Ledge, Moonhead Island, Spectacle Island and the Lower Middle have all been arguably better for bigger bass. If you’re lucky enough to have had your fill of 40-inch fish and would like to have a shot at something crowding 50 inches, let those pogies loose among structure in shallower water. I’ve also heard of anglers doing well pitching their pogies around the structure of both the new and old Deer Island light structures.

And of course, you can do a lot worse than hit these same areas at night with the biggest eels you can find!

Massachusetts North Shore Fishing Report

Pogies are the conduit to catching cows on the North Shore as well. An anecdote from my friend Joe Holey had me wishing I was there to snap a photo. A buddy of his in the Lynn area took full advantage of his lunch break recently. Far more rewarding than a ham and rye, this guy slipped into his kayak – dress clothes, necktie and all – and proceeded to find himself in the midst of a full-blown bass/bunker blitz. It was a fruitful lunch hour which resulted in five 30-pound stripers in the middle of the day. You have to love September!

The rocks off Nahant are now swarming with mixed sizes of bass that are feeding with purpose. A “crunchy” chunk of pogy tossed among the white-washed shoreline is not likely to be ignored.

Tomo of Tomos Tackle in Salem said that a live pogy is a bass best bet among the Beverly/Salem area. Mackerel occasionally move into Misery and Baker islands, probably as a result of being set upon by nomadic bluefish schools. You can count on a 30 to 40 squid outing off the Marblehead Commercial Pier, the Beverly Pier and Salem Willows. For those who prefer not being preoccupied with pogies, the tube-and-worm continues to catch plenty of stripers from Preston Beach in Swampscott through Phillips Beach and all along Marblehead Neck. Pogies are also present in the Manchester/Magnolia sections of Cape Ann with aggressive stripers not far away. The back shore of Gloucester should be good now that seas are settling. This is a prime place to intercept southbound September stripers.

Blues should still be a probability off Folly Cove, Wingaersheek Beach and off Thacher Island well into October.

Mike from Surfland said that Hermine has temporarily turned the Wildlife Reservation into the “weed” reservation. Regardless, with beach buggies now having the run of the reservation the majority of angling attention has been now devoted to the Parker River reserve. Most beach buggy enthusiasts fish with seaworms – it’s just the norm – and they have been catching well off Parking Lot 3. Some have taken to tossing eels off Parking Lot 6 at night near Emerson Rocks and not surprisingly they are into a better class of fish.

A few tinker mackerel have been found by the boat brigade most likely near Speckled Apron, Breaking Rocks or by Hampton Shoal Ledge. If you find yourself by the latter, consider Hampton Harbor. A Granite State Charter Captain I know of has been putting patrons into quality fish there all season long. The key has been a live mackerel fished on the bottom with a 1- or 2-ounce egg sinker. Pogies are still occasionally pushed up against the “front beach” with the feeling being that it’s a result of a bluefish attack.

Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

Hermine seems to have incentivized striped bass into switching into fall feeding mode. If Westport is more to your liking, odds are good that you’ll find 25-pound-plus fish feeding with purpose in the river as well as that side of Buzzards Bay. Pogies in the Scituate area have been the trigger for a toothy attack off the beaches, with surf fishermen having a blast catching gorilla blues among the suds. Post-storm intel on the harbor have pogy numbers at a seasonal high with some of the bigger bass prowling among the schools in shallow water. The North Shore is hardly immune to the snag a pogy/catch a big bass mentality either with Lynn, Salem and Cape Ann all having success. Marblehead features a nice tube and worm alternative. If you prefer your September four-wheeling with the family and soaking some seaworms in the surf, then the Parker River Wildlife Reservation is calling to you.