It’s the time of year that angler effort starts to dwindle, making fresh reports a little tougher to come by on Cape Cod. Still, there’s plenty of saltwater action to be had around the Cape.
Striped Bass
Schoolies are still thick all around the Cape. The Canal has been the center of the schoolie activity, with fishermen having the best luck casting bucktails, tins, and soft plastics according to Jeff at Canal Bait and Tackle.
Red Top reported similar action, with good numbers of stripers up to 28 inches taking Crippled Herring, soft-plastics, small poppers, and minnow plugs.
The South Side of the Cape is producing schoolies and small keepers. Schoolies are biting throughout the day on small soft plastics and topwaters in the bays and harbors. The best shot at a keeper-sized fish is after dark with eels around the outflows.
Schoolie bass are feeding along the Cape Cod Bay beaches in big numbers reported Bill at Sports Port. Small plugs or flies have been working best. Keepers are around, but most fish have been 16 to 24 inches.
On the Vineyard, stripers are around, according to the report from Larry’s Tackle, but most fishermen have been preoccupied with the lingering run of false albacore. The largest bass weighed in at Larry’s after the derby has been 29 pounds.
Schoolie bass are being caught on the backside beaches. The bonus of walking the outer beaches this time of year is the off-chance of seeing a white shark hunting the surfline for seals.
False Albacore/Bonito
Albies were feeding in the East End of the Canal on Wednesday reported Jeff at Canal Bait and Tackle.
My last albie encounter was Monday morning on a South Side jetty where albies were sporadically popping up. Whether the albies will still be on the South Side once the winds and seas subside remains to be seen.
Before the storm, albies were turning up in some unusual places, deep inside harbors and backwaters, feeding on the remaining concentrations of spearing and peanut bunker.
There’s still good albie fishing on Martha’s Vineyard, and it seems likely that the run will extend into November.
John at Eastman’s Bait and Tackle said bonito have been turning up a little more frequently as albie numbers thin out. The bonito, he said, have been there all along, but have been getting crowded out by the albies since September.
Bluefish
Jeff at Canal Bait and Tackle reported plenty of small blues in the Canal. Quite often, some of the last blues to move through in the fall are the biggest we see all season—and they seem to have a knack for finding my last few eels when I’m out looking for a late-season striper.
Bigger bluefish have been reported on the Vineyard where Larry’s weighed an 11-pounder this week.
Tautog
Tog fishing is going well in Buzzards Bay and the Canal according to the report from Red Top. Fish to 5 pounds were taken in the Canal. Green crabs are the best baits, and most shops have a good supply right now.
Trout
The fall trout stocking finished up earlier this month, with Cape ponds receiving a few thousand fat rainbow trout. Holdover brown trout also start moving shallow this time of year, after riding out the summer heat in deep water. The mild fall has delayed the trout activity, but these rains and some colder nights should turn them on for some of the best fishing for big trout of the entire season.
Fishing Forecast for Cape Cod
Keep it light this weekend, to enjoy the small bass, blues, and false albacore. The Canal may be the best bet for action, and with lighter crowds now, it’s a much more pleasant fishing experience than it was at the height of the summer crowds.
It’s time to start mixing some freshwater fishing back into your routine with trout fishing improving, and largemouth and smallmouth bass feeding heavily.
Hi,
Going for the big striper in the canal with an eel.
Got the fever. I get My Intel right here. It never let’s Me down.