Massachusetts Fishing Report – May 15, 2025

With an improved flounder bite and stripers moving into Massbay with a vengeance, it can be vexing just what to fish for! For haddock you’ll have to haul out there a bit but once found the ground fishing is impressive. As for mackerel, while not inshore yet, offshore ledges have plenty.

Massachusetts South Shore and South Coast Fishing Report

I’m finding that fishing aboard Captain Jason Colby’s Little Sister can be a bit problematic. The issue is not catching fish but wondering what to do with all the fillets once the freezer is tapped out. On a recent trip out of Sesuit Harbor I lost count as to how many keeper blackbacks I wrenched out only a few miles out into Cape Cod Bay. And as for the average size – my goodness, it was reminiscent of the heyday of the harbor with numerous 18” specimens resulting in incessant calls of – “get the net”!

I’m using a modified version of my friend Pete Santini’s Zobo Rig with a pivotal upgrade to red 1/0 Mustad Ultra Point Croaker hooks. While the size hook may seem large, the shape is such that keeper flounder have no problem engulfing the bait and rarely is a fish not lip-hooked. The larger hook also secures a larger piece of clam which is useful if you’re targeting bigger blackbacks. Flounder are visual hunters with many feeling that a splash of color translates to more hits. Along with the red hook and yellow beads I paint my sinkers bright yellow. The design of the Zobo Rig helps also as it positions the top bait just above the bottom. I’m under the belief that the biggest, baddest blackbacks see that substantial clam snack bouncing along just above the bottom and they can’t resist! As for bait, clams are a better choice for bigger fish and a bargain compared to how pricey seaworms have become.

Pete from Belsan Bait and Tackle in Scituate said that there are a few schools of pogies present in the Three Bays as well as points north. Some opportunists have already taken to live-lining the bait and are into 20-pound plus stripers! Similar size fish can be found in the North River as they hunt down herring. A few surface feeds have also been taking place off beaches from Marshfield through Hull. Flounder have been caught in Scituate Harbor but no one there is talking of limits. Another flounder option is by the deep hole just past the bend near the mouth of the South River. Mackerel remain an offshore quarry with nothing consistently close in just yet. Captain Mark Rowell of Legit Fish has no need of his larger boat as his skiff is proving more than adequate to handle fishing the North River for stripers. Within a mile of the mouth of the river he’s finding slot fish willing to hit 4” Z-Man Jerk Shads. The pattern has been that white works well in roiled water while natural colors are more effective when the water’s clearer.

Greater Boston Fishing Report

With many obsessing about flounder, the timing of the annual Zobo Flounder Derby could not be better! Pete Santini of Fishing FINatics in Everett does a great job with this family-friendly event, and it all takes place this Sunday. There’s a nominal entrance fee, ten cash prizes, as well as a fish fry at JJ Grimsby’s in Melrose. Biologists will even be there to weigh in the fish and take tissue samples with the goal to further understand and protect our flounder fishery – I’ll see you there! Among a blizzard of flounder photos Pete recently sent me, there were a few tautog in the shots. Tog are now moving into estuaries to spawn, I’d drop a seaworm next to bridge pilings/piers at the gateway of the Town River, Neponset River, Mystic River, and Lynn Marsh to pick off incoming fish intending to breed.

Captain Brian Coombs of Get Tight Sportfishing had a Revere Beach report when we spoke, but unfortunately, he was not in his Jones Brothers CC but instead viewed the feed while driving in his truck! When he’s actually been fishing for stripers, he’s been finding mackerel among most of the offshore ledges and then fishing them inside the harbor wherever he’s been spotting feeding gulls. There have also been pogy schools off Wollaston Beach, in Crystal Cove, and by the East Boston Yacht Clubs. The captain is in Boston at the moment, but he’s still bouncing back to Buzzards Bay when he hears of a better bite.

Captain Paul Diggins of Reel Pursuit Charters has been trolling umbrella rigs as well as Mojo Rigs and finding slot stripers. His sweet spot has been between Castle Island and the Reserve Channel. Interestingly, he’s been spotting what he believes are American shad swimming around by his slip at the Constitution Marina. This could be the fruits of an effort by biologists to restore a shad run in the Charles River.

Laurel from Hull Bait and Tackle told me that patrons of her shop have been getting 30”+ stripers from the Weir River, World’s End, the Weymouth Back River, Hingham Harbor, and Hull. In addition to the tube-and-worm getting it done, some are loading up on mackerel at Thieves Ledge and putting them to good effect inside.

Lisa from Fore River Fishing Tackle in Quincy told me that Jarrod Hannigan has been loading up on mackerel by Graves Light, drifting through Gallops Island and Hospital Shoals, and having some serious striper luck. Tube-and-wormers have been doing well while trolling inside by Bumpkin Island, Grape Island and Slate Island. There’s also been squid action off Nut Island Pier and Pemberton Pier.

Massachusetts North Shore Fishing Report

Tomo of Tomo’s Tackle in Salem said that North Shore anglers working herring runs in the Ipswich area have caught stripers up to 40”! The go-to lure for those early season big fish has been the Fish Snax XLs. Salem Harbor and Beverly Harbor have been home to surface feeds with most of the fish in the mid-20” bracket and falling for a tube-and-worm. A few flounder are coming out of Manchester and Gloucester Harbors. As for haddock, the money spot has been at the 180’ contour line. At the edges, you’ll find cod, but among the flats, haddock and especially redfish.

TJ from Three Lantern Marine and Fishingin Gloucester told me that while rivers are still a best bet in Cape Ann, harbors are beginning to show surface life. Bait distributors are having an easier time keeping the shop stocked with fresh mackerel as they move in closer. Tillies Ledge remains tops for the gamut of groundfish, with clams the go-to bait.

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Martha from Surfland Bait and Tackle in Newburyport said that stripers are in all the expected May spots now! Highlights are the mouth of the Merrimack River on outgoing tides, while the ocean front and Plum Island Sound seem to be producing more on incoming tides. The Lawrence Dam at the Merrimack River had been giving up slot stripers and shad, but the raging current and high water levels from recent rainfall put a temporary hold on that. Things are expected to normalize once the river settles down. Rocks Village in West Newbury finally has had a decent shad bite, something which has been oddly missing the last few years. Surfland is hosting an impressive Surfcasting tackle and technique day this Saturday between 9 AM – 1 PM. The list of companies that will be in attendance reads like a who’s who of major players in the tackle business. This is one event when skipping out on a few hours of fishing for improved gear and knowledge may pay off with improved future fishing!

Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

River herring runs throughout Massbay are among the best bets for consistent striper action. Examples are the North River, Weymouth Back River, the Charles River, and the Essex River. With mackerel moving onto offshore ledges such as Minot Ledge, Thieves Ledge, and Graves Light, expect bigger migrating bass to lurk among deeper ambush spots soon. Flounder fishing remains a solid runner-up option with Cape Cod Bay, Boston Harbor, and Cape Ann standouts. Groundfishing remains an interesting alternative with a mixed bag of gadoids aggregating along the North Shore 180’ contour line.