Above: Despite rain, wind, and sometimes snow the largemouths have been biting well this week.
The weather didn’t crack 50 degrees this week, and may not crest that mark until early next week, but the freshwater fish of Cape Cod either don’t care or didn’t notice because the fishing continues to be excellent.
Of course, much of that excellence is due to the efforts of the Sandwich Hatchery crew. The ponds are loaded up with browns, brookies, rainbows, and tiger trout. The Red Top crew reports that they are selling more trout lures and baits than ever before. While bait-and-wait with PowerBait or worms is a good option, I like walking and casting with spoons or jigs. Kevin Blinkoff was out on Peter’s Pond in his kayak last Friday, and said the fishing was slow until he passed over a big school of brookies out in open water. He marked the school on his fish finder and caught quite a few before the fish dispersed.
Pickerel and bass fishing is excellent. They continue to feed well despite the colder temperatures. A wide variety of lures are working, including square-bill crankbaits, lipless crankbaits, jerkbaits, chatterbaits, and jigs. I’ve had a couple fish on big swimbaits, but none of the lunker largemouths I’ve been hoping for.
Smallmouth bass are beginning to move shallow, and are biting tube jigs and jerkbaits.
Holdover stripers are active as well, though no one has spilled the beans on where you might find them. The only other saltwater talk was from Red Top, where they have green crabs in stock for tog fishing, as that season just opened yesterday. So far, however, there have been no reports of tog caught, and it’s unlikely anyone has tried on account of the wind.
Fishing Forecast for Cape Cod
The wind situation is going to get worse before it gets better, but if you can brave the elements, the bass, pickerel, and trout will be biting. If you’ve been quarantining with your spouse and children, as I have, some sideways rain and blistering wind may seem like a refreshing change of pace.
In all seriousness, I hope everyone is staying healthy and sane given our current circumstances. We’re working to keep putting out fishing videos and stories to help provide a little distraction. Also, if you’ve been out social distancing and fishing, be sure to share your photos with us to include in the report and on our social media channels.
Please tell us where the holdovers are. I just want to see some bass. I can’t wait till it starts.
Be safe everyone.
Sorry bud cant tell yah,but i can tell you ive already caught a couple keepers this year.
Hint”find rivers that flow into the cc bays.
The stripers will be their
Thanks for the reports and hope you all at OTW and all fellow fisherman stay safe and healthy as possible
Thank you Bill – same to you.
With striper numbers plummeting, why would anyone want to go after 12 inch school bass – especially with double treble lures I see many early season fishermen throwing at them?
Striper numbers plummeting?
Thats wierd, i had a really good season last year.
Didn’t notice much of a difference.
Just curious are you hearing if the herring have decided to make a run for their lives. I hear of rumors but the OTW team has the scoop. If the herring are here can those linesiders be far behind ?
What’s with the herring run?
And the herring reqgs?
No herring can be taken in streams or rivers at all. If you get them in bay or ocean, you can keep them
River herring cannot be harvested, possessed or used in Mass.
You can go to the fish regulations posted on the mass.gov website.
All be safe.
River herring according to a Fed will not be allowed to keep for at least another year. Then they will re asses. …….. I wanted to know if any herring have reached any of our streams as yet.
yes sir they have been in the middleboro runs since mid march
Any reports on tautog yet ? Buzzards bay