Massachusetts Fishing Report – August 19, 2021

It may only be August, but the behavior of striped bass is making it feel like fall. No longer are resident bass content with staging or “sleeping” as some refer to skittish, shallow water fish usually found at night. If there are not opportunities to feed, the stripers will not be there. Blues remain a factor in better numbers than we have seen in years and with abundant pogies as well as peanut bunker in residence, the “run” is shaping up to be a wild ride!

Massachusetts South Shore/South Coast Fishing Report

I’m not sure if Captain Mark Petitt of Fire Escape Charters can carry a tune, but if he could he’d be singing the blues! They remain thick from Race Point through Cape Cod Bay and trolling deep diving swimmers such as X-Raps are getting jarring strikes! For charters more interested in striped bass, the skipper is pointing his ride to the Three Bays for schoolies and slots and for bigger he’s been focusing between the North River mouth and Minot. You may have to search for mackerel but they are cow candy. With the giant bluefin tuna quota filled until September, many are looking for smaller “recreational” tuna and they can be found east of the shipping lanes.

Pete Belsan from Belsan Bait and Tackle in Scituate said that random blue blitzes on peanut bunker have been causing a stir on the South Shore. Resident bass remain in a summer time pattern with those working needles, darters and swimmers all having their fans and all catching fish off of area beaches such as Priscilla Beach, Peggotty Beach, Sand Hills Beach and Man Hill Beach. Rivers are delivering at night on flooding tides.

Captain Jason Colby is mixing cod into the black sea bass bite he’s finding between Buzzards Bay and Rhode Island Sound. They’re also finding big winter flounder out there, something that just seems natural while aboard the Little Sister. For the last leg of the season, crabs will be on board as the tautog bite steadily improves. The next potential target is mahi mahi among the high-liners near Coxes Ledge and other groundfish favorites.

Regarding groundfish Captain Bruce Calvin of Strike II Charters continues to pluck loads of scup and black sea bass out of Nomans Island.

Greater Boston Fishing Report

With the preponderance of pogies that are in and around the harbor, skilled skippers are finding that the bigger stripers are sometimes preferring a mack snack over the pogies.

Captain Sam Streubel of Boston Saltwater is finding that chumming is essential in order to keep the trips from becoming 3 hour jigging-for-mackerel sessions! Obviously, stripers are more fun, especially when they are a patron’s PB 50” which happens with surprising regularity aboard Boston Saltwater. With inshore water temperatures hovering around 70 degrees and mackerel and sea herring in deeper water, not surprisingly the big bass bite is out among the NC Buoy, the BG Buoy, Graves Light, and the Hull Ledges. From the dredges to the inner harbor you’ll find lots of pogies and slot stripers.

Pete Santini of Fishing FINatics in Everett hooked a huge thresher shark while on Stellwagen fishing for tuna. He described the massive shark, estimated to be around 450 pounds as “mean”. Fortunately the circle hook the anglers employed gained purchase in the jaw thereby facilitating an easier release. He also said that jigging up on the bank is almost impossible without catching cod. File that one away for mid-September when recreational anglers will be able to keep a cod at a minimum of 21” for two weeks. Meanwhile, anglers are hitting piers and docks at night with Bella Bobbers/worm combinations and catching well. The Santini tube and worm continues to crush them off Gallups Island, Lovells Island, George’s Island, and Spectacle Island. Surface feeds of schoolies through slot stripers pushing peanut bunker are becoming commonplace throughout the inner harbor. Squid are more of a player this year than in previous years. While I have no anecdotal evidence, the new Deer Island Pier might be a good place to find them as well as the pier by the Schraffts Complex.

Captain Brian Coombs of Get Tight Sportfishing is also in the mackerel-make-a-difference camp as he has been doing his best to acquire those prime baits for the big bass he’s finding among the outer Harbor Humps and out through Graves Light. Brian has an extensive network of buddy boats and has been getting tipped off of inshore fish as close as Revere Beach. When in water that shallow the fish are extremely skittish but they can’t pass on mackerel which makes the effort to obtain that bait so worthwhile.

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Massachusetts North Shore Fishing Report

Sam from Tomo’s Tackle in Salem told me that with plenty of blues around as well as peanut bunker, it’s hard to fault local fishing. Additionally, water temperatures on the incoming tide have been dropping to the mid to upper 60 degree mark and that has brought bigger bass back in close! Beaches off Lynn, Swampscott, Marblehead, and Beverly have been fishing better thanks to those cooler conditions. The Danvers River recently was awash with peanut bunker but with no discernible predation. Look for that to change soon enough. Thanks to the arrival of bluefish, the lure of the month just might be the orange/gold Rapala CD18 which is a magnet to those toothy critters. Trolling those off Nahant and Marblehead has been productive for blues which are averaging less than 10 pounds, but every once in a while a gator strikes. For bass from the surf, Sam suggests dark lures at night on a sandy beach, the profile of which really sticks out!

Garrett from Three Lantern Marine in Gloucester told me of a friend of his who caught a 36-inch blue off Magnolia and when asked what it bit, he replied that the blue was the one that ended up getting “bit” as his friend cooked it up and said it was delicious! Peanut bunker are present in the Manchester/Magnolia area but little is feeding on them yet. Eels at night off the Backshore and Cranes Beach have been effective. In the unusual category is a few winter flounder which have been caught off Niles Beach and the appearance of black sea bass off Cape Ann! If there were ever two odd couples the cool water-loving flounder and temperate preferring black sea bass are it!

Martha from Surfland Bait and Tackle said that blues are hit or miss off the Parker River Wildlife Reservation but when on, they are really on! The wrap remains the same, trolling Rapala CD18s in 30 to 50 feet is money for the blues. Shore anglers thus far are out of the bluefish sweepstakes but are managing to pick up schoolie to slot stripers with bait off the oceanfront. After a silent stretch, Joppa is starting to make striper noise on an incoming tide. Macks are tough but can be picked up by the Speckled Apron and Hampton Shoal Ledge.

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Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

It’s an odd year and a bit of a throwback time when blues are making as much noise in these parts as striped bass. To a person, almost all the shop owners I spoke to led with bluefish reports. For consistency and numbers, it’s hard to top trolling for toothies off Race Point. The North River through Minot is one of the better bets for a big south shore striper. Pogies, both big and small, are drawing fire in the harbor for everything from schoolies to slot stripers. While a tough find, mackerel are pure magic for the bigger deep water striped bass. Peanut bunker in the Danvers River are looking like fuel for the fall run which should be underway in its earlier stages soon! Blues are the big news off Plum Island with the tradition of trolling them up with big, gaudy Rapala swimmers experiencing a renaissance!