It’s official the “run” is – on! The rub in that is if you’re fishing an area newly vacated by those vagabond bass you’re likely to wonder what all the fuss is about! Mackerel are present in good numbers at the Isles of Shoals while offshore cod are a cinch!
New Hampshire Fishing Report
The Ned rig is knocking them dead in the Nashua River according to Joe from Granite State Rod and Reel Repair in Nashua. Dropping water temperatures and more water volume have been a tonic to a terrific bite! He’s also hearing of better smallie and pike fishing in the Merrimack River with white spinnerbaits accounting for some impressive gators!
According to Captain Bob Weathersby of Seacoast NH Sportfishing with the migration in full swing, anglers have to keep on the move to find the mass of fish but once found the fishing is excellent with some big bass in the mix. To pluck out the bigs from the schoolies, a live mackerel is a good choice and those macks are there for the jigging at the Isles of Shoals.
Offshore it shouldn’t take you long to catch a keeper cod with ledge, wrecks and rockpiles within a few miles of shore holding cod. While shark fishing is cooling off with dropping water temperatures Jeffrey’s Ledge still holds mixed sizes of tuna. Captain Andy of Adventure and Catch Charters is catching all the keeper cod his crew can handle in 240’ of water on Jeffrey’s Ledge. A few drag-pulling pollock are crashing the cod party once in a while. Anglers drifting throughout the Piscatagua River are still finding black sea bass.
Southern Maine Fishing Report
Scott from Webhannet Bait and Tackle/Boatyard told me that in addition to solid striper fishing there even has been a few bluefish caught! South of the shop at Long Sands Beach in York has been especially hot but good reports are also floating in from Moody Beach. Living on the banks of the Saco River gives Scott a gulls-eye view of the river and the volume of rain bait and feeding stripers shows no signs of abating! Anglers working the tube-and-worm had been doing well in both the Saco River and Webhannet River. Cod can be caught as close as Bibb Rock.
Fresh from chasing funny fish on the Cape, Captain Lou of Diamond Pass Outfitters has returned to his home waters of Casco Bay to find stellar striped bass fishing! The best part of all might be that the acton is taking place in the morning which at this time of the year is not an some ungodly hour! Because the bass now have a need to feed most everything thrown their way is working from spooks to soft plastics to live or chunk mackerel. In addition to the bay, reports from Scarborough Marsh through Kennebunk are similar – the bite is hot!
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New Hampshire And Southern Maine Fishing Forecast
The “run” can be a two-headed monster! One side is benevolent and when found the fishing is fantastic, the flip side is that the fish are concentrated and moving quickly which means that there is a lot of “dead” water! Seabrook thought Rye and out to Portsmouth has been anything but dead! For something different black sea bass are still present in the Piscatqua River and you should be able to find mackerel and cod near the Isles of Shoals! If you’re yearning for some Downeast fun, Long Sands Beach is worth as shot as is Casco Bay. Offshore sharks are waning in numbers which might explain the uptick in cod and pollock on Jeffrey’s Ledge.
The photo of a “cod” from Captain Andy charters is actually a white hake. They grow to about 60 #s , but 10- 20 #s are more common, with plenty of 25- 30 #ers as well. Try drop offs to deep water at Jeffries. They are fabulous eating if you know the Basque method of cooking them. They are the most prized fish for eating in Northern Spain.
When I was 18 { 60 years ago } , I caught one that weighed 63#s inside the Isles of Shoals . We weighed it on the loading dock scale at Frisbees in Kittery Point !
Thanks for pointing that out Jim! Your take on it, makes me want to catch one! That’s the beauty of the deep, ya never know what you’re going to catch!
-Ron