Massachusetts Fishing Report- October 12, 2023

As we enter mid-October, striped bass and bluefish encounters are less about numbers, size or consistency but rather the thrill of still connecting with what we enjoy. There still is the surprise factor with blues pummeling plugs as far north as Plum Island or a 46” striper shoving aside what appears to be an an acre of schoolies and grabbing an Albie Snax. Fisheries we can expect to actually get better from here on out are tautog, smelt and sweetwater.

Massachusetts South Shore/South Coast Fishing Report

Shorts, Ts, water sandals and baseball caps are now things of the past aboard the Little Sister as Captain Jason Colby enters the next phase in his quest for tautog. Should you jump aboard his boat, stocking caps, bibs and deck boots are the recommended garb now as morning temperatures dip below 50 degrees. The good news is that any semblance of a morning chill tends to be short lived once that first white chin pulls drag. Two yak buds of mine joined me on an open boat trip last Thursday aboard the Little Sister and in spite of my friends being very accomplished and versatile anglers, I knew that this would be an experience like no other for them. We left the trip with lessons learned, bags of fillets and newfound love for tog both on the rod and on the dinner table. Suffice to say, my buddies Billy Eicher and Steve Langton will be back. More good news is that unlike other salty quarry this one lasts into December!

Captain Brian Coombs of Get Tight Sportfishing continues to channel his inner Cousteau as he’s now docking his Jones Brothers CC at Tiverton and is all in on the tog thing in Buzzards Bay. Blackfish had not been Brian’s bailiwick but he’s gotten up to speed pretty quickly thanks to his Humminbird side scan and an experienced mate! Limits of fish up to 9 pounds have been easy-peasy, and when fishing Rhode Island, he’s able to keep black sea bass as well. The skipper has even gotten into the spinning rod/jig thing which some, myself included, find infinitely more fun than bulky bait rigs fished off of conventional gear. As water temperatures continue to drop expect more and more cod to figure into the catch.

The South Coast as well as the South Shore are featuring fall feeds of bass and blues and those fish are not fussy. Most of the action consists of schoolies and slots but every once in a while along comes a cow to show junior who is boss. The blitzes are fast-moving with yesterday’s stellar spot usually giving way to better location on that day. Whether you’re a boater, yaker or surf fisher a pair of binoculars and full tank of gas should be standard issue now.

Greater Boston Fishing Report

Pete Santini of Fishing FINatics in Everett told me of the sad news of the passing of Barry Gibson. For decades Barry was a friend and ally of the saltwater sportfisher as a writer, editor of Salt Water Sportsman, and member of numerous regulatory boards as he fought the good fight for the recreational angler. Early on during my writing experience I had the pleasure of meeting him and despite being a bit intimidated by his pedigree quickly found him to be humble, personable and just a great guy to hang with. He will be greatly missed; tight lines forever Barry!

Johnny “Plankton” Hoffman has been having success trolling the new Santini Tuscano tube around Gallops Island. Some anglers were been having similar success trolling the tube by the Five Sisters as well Revere Beach where those trolling sessions have been interrupted by bass/blue blitzes! Shore anglers have been getting into the mayhem with topwater plugs cranked in quickly accounting for gators as well as slot-plus stripers. Expect feeding flurries to continue as long as there are blues and lingering linesiders downstream of wherever there are herring runs such as at the Weymouth Back, Charles and Mystic Rivers. Cunner, tog and butterfish can be found among the wooden jungle of wharf pilings throughout Charlestown and East Boston. L

Lisa from Fore River Fishing Tackle in Quincy told me that solid blues, such as Charlie Murphy’s 9 pounder, are still being caught from area beaches! That’s definitely a harbinger that the harbor still has game. Another hint that we have a ways to go is that pogies, bass and blues can still be found inside Quincy Bay with recent reports coming from the Town River Yacht Club. The fish are not all small either as evidenced by a 46” bass taken on a tube-and-worm. David Do, who practically grew up in the shop, has been getting smelt off the Hull Public Pier. As blue and bass numbers wane expect the smelt bite to improve and mackerel to have more of an inshore presence.

Massachusetts North Shore Fishing Report

Leave it to Tomo of Tomo’s Tackle in Salem to pluck out a 46” beauty from what appeared to be a school of small stripers! Practically in the shadows of the shop in Pickering Wharf, Tomo was having some fun with 23” fish when along came a 46” that looked to make a meal out of his Albie Snax! Pogies are moving out of the mooring field of Salem Harbor and into deeper water in the sound. That bait can still be found along with bass and blues but you’re less likely to see the tell-tale flips and more likely to spot them on your fish finder. You had better get while the getting is good because water temperature is dropping off a cliff with one local area plummeting from 62 degrees to 57 in just one day! There’s been action off Juniper Cove, Winter Island and Beverly Cove. Cod can be caught near Kettle Island Ledge as well as the oft-steady Saturday Night Ledge. Mackerel have been moving back into Beverly and Salem Harbor with a good report coming from the mouth of Salem Harbor this week.

Martha from Surfland Bait and Tackle in Newburyport had encouraging news and it had nothing to do with Massachusetts! Anglers from Maine who can no longer find eels there are making the trip to the shop for serpents which can mean only one thing – they still have stripers. More hope can be gleaned from boaters who are still picking off blues and bass just offshore while trolling mackerel and gold/orange Rapala CD14s. I usually don’t hear of the smaller version of this venerable plug as much as the CD18 but at least one crew is finding that the smaller size more closely approximates the size of the current forage. The tube and worm has been effective off the islands and shoreline of Cape Ann as well Plum Island Sound and the flats of the Merrimack River. Expect dramatically less fellow anglers trolling that tube since most marinas are closing as of this weekend. Shore anglers are grabbing bass up to 34” on bait off the Wildlife Refuge with Parking Lots 1,3 and Sandy Point all productive. One of the better spots according to Martha is off lot 3 where there is a deep spot referred to as Kettle Hole.

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Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

As waters cool the white-chin feeding window widens making tautog a top pick along the South Coast with the best bite between 30’ and 80’ of water. Bring along some bass and blue friendly gear with you since blitzes are par for the course. At best we probably have one week left of pogy schools hanging tough in Quincy Bay and possibly Winthrop. Fishing among big bait for bigger bass and blues simply makes sense. With most bass and blues now beating it out of the Bay State, smelt and mackerel have moved in closer with Hull, Hingham, Charlestown and Winthrop among the better options. Blitzes off Winthrop and Revere Beaches are still a reality as is the possibility of a big bass in Salem. Trollers dragging plugs off Plum Island have recently come up with both blues and bass and with more fish purportedly up north – the end is nowhere in sight. As fall waxes, freshwater increasingly should be in your forecast. Timing is good with trout trucks visiting numerous designated ponds and lakes, Wachusett tributaries now holding trout and salmon and not many anglers bothering with either!