Cape Cod Fishing Report
As we head into arguably the busiest fishing/boating weekend of the year in Cape Cod waters, there are bright spots and dead zones. Bottom fishing for fluke, scup and sea bass is the best thing going on the upper Cape, while anglers on the outer Cape enjoy better striped bass fishing, and positive indicators of a tuna bite are beginning to arise.
The striper bite remains steady out around Monomoy and in Cape Cod Bay off Provincetown. Bass have been sliding up the outer beaches in waves for a couple weeks now, and while the surf bite has been slow overall in terms of size, there are schoolies cruising tight to shore. Black and blurple-colored minnow plugs have been top producers for night casters on the backside sand beaches, but it takes finding some good structure. Deeper troughs along the wave break and cuts between sand bars are the places to spend some time casting and cycling through different offerings to see what the bass want. Meanwhile, boats off P-Town are pulling up slot and over-slot stripers on diamond jigs, with a few gator bluefish in the mix.
On the south side, in Vineyard and Nantucket sounds, bonito reports have quieted down a bit but shore anglers continue to catch small to mid-size bluefish on metals. The best bonito fishing happening right now is off the beach in Nantucket, with Great Point being the most productive area to find some hardtail action.
While it’d be nice to have some gator bluefish on the south side, the cocktail blues are keeping brown sharks well fed. Shore-based shark anglers are catching sandbars with relative ease, and while eels are a popular bait, fishing chunks of bluefish will almost guarantee some action. Cast tins and epoxy jigs from the beach around dusk for blues, and set up camp nearby to soak those bluefish baits. Remember, the daily bluefish limit is 3 fish per person, regardless of size. Please handle sharks quickly with caution and care, and keep them off dry sand for a clean release.
Bluefish and sharks aren’t the only fish biting off the beaches in Vineyard and Nantucket sounds; fluke are filling in nicely, and there seem to be more keeper-size fish around this season. Casting bucktails or jigheads tipped with 4-inch Gulp grubs or mullets off the beach is almost sure to yield some short fluke; once you find them, boost the size of your presentation with a larger Gulp or strip bait to weed out the shorts. I’ve been catching fluke to around 21 inches lately and was able to put my coworker Johnny McIntyre on some respectable fish while wading the flats. Our bays and salt ponds are great places to fish light tackle for fluke; all it takes is locating an area with shallow structure adjacent to some slightly deeper moving water. There’s plenty of that in Waquoit Bay, where Johnny and I landed a few fish in high winds on Tuesday evening. Keep your jig in motion and stay in contact with it to sense those delicate takes, and if you feel sudden slack, swing away to drive the hook home.
Now that we’re settling into summer, scup are becoming more readily available in shallow water, too. It’s not uncommon to catch a handful of short fluke alongside some dinner-plate scup while shore fishing. Casting hi-lo rigs tipped with squid or Gulp is a fun way to help the young ones bend a rod. Jetties, salt pond inlets, and back bay channels are accessible shore spots that will hold scup and fluke—and of course, sea robins—throughout the summer months.
It may seem like all the bass have cleared out from the south side, but there are still fish to be caught in the rips and in areas with plentiful rock structure, where there’s a steady supply of bait. The Elizabeth Islands, and select areas of the upper Cape coastline are holding schoolie to over-slot fish. I connected with a handful last night while slinging eels, but oddly enough, the fish showed preference for a black, rigged Slug-go over live eels.
Here’s what some of our local tackle shops and charters had to report heading into the weekend:
Connor Swartz at Red Top Sporting Goods in Buzzards Bay told me there are still mackerel throughout the Canal, into the West End and Buzzards Bay. Slot-size bass have been hanging beneath the macks in the west end, and there’s been an afternoon topwater bite in the east end with fish up to 36 inches. Connor also mentioned that he put a beat down on fluke on the flats earlier this week and while there were a lot of short fish, he and his father had a near limit of keepers to around 19 inches. Bucktails, ball jigs, and electric chicken epoxies were the ticket for them in 20 feet of water. As he noted last week, sea bass in Buzzards have transitioned to deeper water of around 50 feet or more. Bluefish have been scarce in the bay but there are plenty of mixed size on the south side in Vineyard and Nantucket sounds, which has led to some great shore-based brown shark action.
Alex MacMillian of FishLinked Charters in Wareham reported: “It is mid summer in Buzzards Bay and the water is getting warm. Staying on top of your wind, current, and water temps is pivotal to staying on the fish this time of year. Some short stripers and snapper blues have been found moving through the West End of the canal. Pack your rain-bait playbook though, because the silversides are in. Bigger stripers seem to have settled into Cape Cod Bay, so if you’re looking for size, it’s about time to shoot the canal. We have been finding some keeper black sea bass and scup farther south in Buzzards Bay; a few solid upwellings are keeping the water near the edges cooler and holding some great table fare there. Don’t expect to get your fill without fighting off some healthy dogfish though. Fishing has yielded a solid mixed bag on many fronts, but the rides are getting a little bit longer this time of year, so if you’re heading out for the 4th make sure the tank is topped off.”
From the Cape Cod Canal, East End Eddie Doherty reports: “Long distance casting Canal Rat Bob “Bull” MacKinnon hopes for more productive days on the Big Ditch with the realization that there have been schools of silversides in the west end, bunker between the bridges, and mackerel in the east end. Last week started with Canal Sportsman’s Club member “Adirondack Jim” Cromme successfully chunking into an after-dinner slack tide on a beautiful night. A 40-inch striped bass bit down on his cut mackerel and a nice size bluefish attacked the same bait.”
Evan at Eastman’s Sport and Tackle in Falmouth reported that some of his customers are doing well throwing eels for stripers around Woods Hole, with 5 to 7 fish an outing. Bluefish are still around in good numbers in Vineyard Sound too, which, along with the presence of brown sharks, has made throwing eels a bit of a grind for the striper enthusiasts. Evan said his customers are still catching blues off the beaches in Mashpee and the Falmouth beaches in Buzzards Bay; most of the action has been from cocktail to mid-size bluefish on metals, like Kastmaster. The sea bass, Evan added, have been chewing much deeper in Vineyard Sound and some keeper fluke are out there with them. The shoals, like Middle Ground and Lucas Shoal, continue to produce the best results for keeper-size fluke. He also mentioned the backside of the Vineyard by Wasque, where there’s cooler water, has been hosting some steady striper action compared to the Sound.
Captain Ben Sussman of In The Net Sportfishing in Osterville reported slower striper fishing on the bay side late last week. It seems like a lot of the fish that were in the backwaters in places like Barnstable Harbor have moved out in search of cooler, deeper water where there’s more plentiful bait. However, the bass fishing out by Monomoy continues to be lock and load, with quality fish ranging from under to over slot still taking topwaters and plastics in the rips as they gorge on abundant squid.
Amy at Sports Port Bait and Tackle in Hyannis said
From Nantucket, Rick Ramos shared the following report: “From the Beach: Action continues across the island with a strong bite in several areas. Bonito are still hitting lines around Great Point, while bluefish have swarmed the island setting up for fun summer action. The South Shore is the best place to be right now in the morning and evening rising tides, with monster blues crashing on topwater lures and several bass up to 40 inches landed there this past week. The North Shore has been hit-or-miss but bass are still being picked off here and there.
From the Boat:
Capt. Corey Gammill reports excellent fishing conditions. An abundance of bait has flushed in, bringing with it schools of striped bass, bluefish, and even some bonito, feeding especially hard on the east-end rips. Look for the birds and you’ll find action.
Great Point continues to produce steady bass catches, while the West End has been more variable. Still, there’s a solid showing of bluefish and plenty of scup and small sea bass scattered around. The bite is consistent on the east side and along the edges—great bait, great action. While fog and wind have made conditions tricky at times, they’re also helping hold fish in the area.
Registration is now open for the August Blues Nantucket bluefish tournament. Sign up now and get ready for one of the summer’s most exciting competitions.”
Captain Cam Faria of Cambo Fishing Charters said the sea bass fishing today was just okay. They started out deep and found nothing but short fish at first, but when they moved tighter to shore in around 60 feet, they caught much better numbers of keepers. Cam thinks the bite should get better as temperatures rise and the fish concentrate over deeper structure. The skipper noted that he spent most of the week bass fishing, and it was lights-out action around Monomoy. Topwaters were catching plenty of fish, but swimming plugs were pulling some larger over-slot bass from the rips. Additionally, Cam said he was tuna fishing out east on Monday, and while they found whales and plenty of mackerel stacked throughout the water column, they didn’t mark a single tuna. “It’s a tinder box waiting to ignite at any moment,” he said. He’s hoping to get another tuna trip in on Sunday to scope the scene out east and tie into their first bluefin of the season. Last but not least, fluke fishing was very good in Vineyard Sound earlier in the week, with plenty of keeper-size fish coming over the rails. Give Cam a call to inquire about availability and his schedule for upcoming trips.
Tyler Huckemeyer from the Helen H in Hyannis said the fishing for porgies and sea bass is on fire in Nantucket Sound this week. They’ve just started striper trips in Cape Cod Bay, so it remains to be seen how steady the action is up there; they’ll have a better idea of what the bayside bass bite looks like by next week. Fluking has been pretty good out at the Shoals, and they have inshore fluke trips starting this Sunday, which should be met with some steady action off the bat. The fluke bite has been consistent just east of Nantucket so far. Give them a shout to get in on the bottom fishing or Cape Cod Bay bass fishing!
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Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain around Cape Cod and the Islands!
Captain Elena Rice of Reel Deal Fishing Charters in Truro reported: “Despite abundant schools of striped bass in the area this week, the fish have been particularly selective, displaying classic “lockjaw” behavior. Our captains are staying on their toes, continuously adapting tackle and techniques to keep our clients connected to the fish. We’re still landing some impressive specimens, including a notable catch over 40 inches while fishing with Striper Cup competitor Colin Werner—best of luck in this week’s standings! Looking ahead to the Fourth of July weekend, we’re optimistic about seeing more consistent action. Happy Independence Day to all! Here’s to celebrating stars, stripes, and stripers. For upcoming availability, please check our openings using this link.”
Captain Mike Rathgeber of Cee Jay Fishing in Provincetown reported that striped bass fishing has “busted wide open” with limit catches coming in on his private charters of 10-20 fishermen, as well as the public trips. Many over-slot fish to 40 inches have also come over the rail with some jumbo bluefish mixed in.
Cape Cod Fishing Forecast
Boat anglers have plenty of options this holiday weekend. There are bass off Provincetown, Monomoy Island, the backside of the Vineyard near Chappaquiddick, in the rips of Vineyard and Nantucket Sounds, and along the Elizabeths. Shore anglers looking for their striper fix can ply the outer beaches with plugs, soft plastics, and bucktail jigs, or cast and drift live eels in Buzzards Bay and Cape Cod Bay. Focus on creek and harbor mouths, inlets, and boulder fields.
From the boat, fishing bucktail jigs and Gulp along the edges of shoals on the south side of Cape should produce some short and keeper summer flounder. Shore anglers can cast lighter versions of those same rigs from shore along the Sound-facing beaches and in bay channels for fluke. Keep in mind that shore-caught fluke are keepers when they measure 16.5 inches or more, while boat/kayak-caught fluke must measure 17.5 inches or more.
For sea bass, focus on fishing deeper structure. 50 to 60 feet of water is a good starting point. Be ready to drop down a variety of lures or baits including squid strips, clam, Gulp and bucktails, diamond and epoxy jigs, and slow-pitch jigs.
Bluefish are a reliable option for shore fishing on the south side, and if you can secure a limit, they’re a great size for the smoker or shark bait.
Have a safe and happy 4th of July!