Cape Cod Fishing Report - June 18, 2020

Small bluefin tuna and bigeye tuna are being caught in the Canyons, according to Steve of Chaser Offshore Fishing. Of greater interest is the number of school bluefin tuna that have moved into the Dump, where Steve planned to fish on Thursday. Steve was encouraged by the large number of sand eels south of Martha’s Vineyard. The presence of good numbers of these slender baitfish bodes well for fishing for everything from stripers and blues to bonito and bluefin.

The cod bite Steve had been fishing close to shore seems to have fizzled out as the water warmed up. Fluke fishing appears to be improving, however, according to Pat at Eastman’s Sport and Tackle. Bigger fluke are being caught around the Vineyard in deep water, and keepers are being caught by fishermen around the shoals and rips in Vineyard Sound. For black sea bass, Pat recommended skipping the wrecks to focus on deeper rocky areas. Captain John from Fish Chatham Charters had great sea bass fishing in Nantucket Sound on Wednesday, and Captain Mel True of FishNet Charters is continuing to catch sea bass in Buzzards Bay.

Captain Ross of Cape Cod Charter Guys is still putting clients on sea bass limits while waiting for the striper fishing to improve, which is has, slowly, in some areas. In other areas, the fishing has slowed as the stripers move around ahead of Sunday’s new moon.

Captain John of Fish Chatham said there are schoolies with a few keepers in the Monomoy Rips, feeding on small squid. The good fishing on Middle Ground seems to have slowed, as more bluefish have moved in and bass have moved out. On Thursday, Middle Ground was covered in mung, which didn’t help the fishing.

Billingsgate Shoals is producing more stripers, with some keepers. Captain Mel of FishNet Charters caught tons of 20- to 25-inchers there on topwater recently, and according to Chris at BlackBeard’s Bait and Tackle, keepers are being caught by anglers trolling Hoochies, tube-and-worm rigs, and umbrella rigs.

The surf fishing on the Outer Cape beaches had been very good, with some good-sized fish, but Chris said seals had moved in and put a damper on that fishing.

More keeper-sized fish are being caught off Race Point and Herring Cove.

The big bass in Buzzards Bay that had been providing seemingly the only trophy-fishing opportunity around the Cape have moved, reported Captain Mel True. They may have moved into the Canal, where, according to Red Top, the fishing has picked up in recent days. Quality fish, some too big to keep, were being caught in the middle and west end. White and pink jigs have been the best lures.

Fishing Forecast for Cape Cod

The striper fishing is bound to improve. There’s plenty of bait, the water temperature is perfect, and the new moon is Sunday. This week, we had some of the slowest tides of the month, which probably accounts for the slowdown in bass action. As the tides gain strength, the fishing should improve for the stripers that are already here, and there should be more bass moving up from the south.

Cape Cod Bay already has a few white sharks snatching hooked stripers off lines, so be careful when landing fish there. Cape Cod Bay could be the best bet for seeing improved action this weekend. As of Thursday, it was mostly small keepers on the troll and smaller fish feeding on the surface, but big stripers are bound to move in, either from the Canal or the ocean.

This week last year, the big invasion of short-finned squid provided memorable fishing in the Canal and Cape Cod Bay. There’s been no word of those squid yet, but it would be the third year in a row they moved in, and brought some big stripers with them. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

On the South Side, the bluefish are still providing fun action, as are the schoolies. Topwater at dawn and dusk is a good bet for both species.

And the tuna fishing is attracting a lot of attention, especially as the striper bite fails to meet expectations. There have been fish reported East of Chatham, and south of the Vineyard, from 30-inchers to 60-inchers.

And last but not least, there’s freshwater. Both largemouth and smallmouth are attacking topwater lures in the evenings, making for some very fun fishing. Use hollow-bodied frogs around lily pads for the largemouths, and walk-the-dog baits for the smallies.

As an added bonus, it’s “Free Saltwater Fishing Weekend” in Massachusetts. That means you can introduce a friend or family member to fishing without them having to purchase a saltwater fishing license. And if you haven’t yet bought your license, you can do so online. Your purchase of a Recreational Saltwater Fishing Permit directly funds improvements to saltwater fishing access projects and other programs that support marine recreational fishing in the Commonwealth.