Besides the much colder temperatures, very little changed on the Cape fishing scene this week. The saltwater fishing is only headed in one direction, with stripers, tog, and tuna all moving out, leaving freshwater fishing to fill the void until next spring.
Schoolie stripers were reported along the Elizabeths by Evan at Eastman’s Sport and Tackle and in the Canal by Jeff at Red Top.
OTW’s Anthony DeiCicchi and his brother Dave nearly limited out on tog last weekend on a short Saturday morning trip. The largest was about 7 pounds. Tog are still holding on rocky structure in Buzzards Bay and along the Elizabeth Islands, but as temperatures drop, the fish will be moving offshore. In addition to targeting deeper structure, anglers can improve their chances with coldwater tog by using white-legger crabs over green crabs.
Freshwater fishing is very good. Trout are biting well, as are bass and pickerel.
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain for Cape Cod.
Some very large bass are feeding in the ponds right now. The largest we heard of was the 22-inch 7.5-pounder caught by Josh Cabral.
Smallmouth will be moving deeper in response to the cooling pond temperatures, but they are still shallow enough to target with jerkbaits and swimbaits. In a few weeks, they’ll set up shop on deepwater structure where blade baits and drop shot rigs will be the key to catching.
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain for Cape Cod.
Fishing Forecast for Cape Cod
It’s going to be a breezy weekend, which will make the tog fishing a challenge. If you’re looking to fish the salt, working the beaches for stripers is your best option. Otherwise, the ponds are the best option. Breezy conditions can be great for both trout and bass fishing. In story conditions this time of year, I like throwing stickbaits for trout and Rat-L-Taps for bass.