Cape Cod Fishing Report
Welp, it would appear our striper season has finally come to an end. Migratory fish have moved on to points south like western Long Island Sound, New York and New Jersey. I suppose there’s still a shot at some stragglers racing through the Canal before Thanksgiving, but the seas look quiet this week. There’s been little to no bird activity off the south side or in Buzzards Bay, and the only boats out are focused on catching their limits of tautog.
I went out with a group of friends on the My Brother with Captain Harvey Russell last Saturday morning, and while we didn’t catch our 4-man tog limit—nor did we want or need to—the bite was excellent. We fished for less than 2 hours and 30 minutes around slack and managed at least 15 keepers along with a ton of short fish, including the smallest tog I’ve ever hooked or laid eyes on. By fishing the hour leading up to slack tide and the hour or so following it, we were able to keep the rig rods holstered and fish jigs on light spinning tackle in about 70 feet of water. My friend Matt, who was visiting from Long Island, caught his first keeper tog and quickly got the hang of fishing jigs.
Aside from wind, which has finally laid down a bit, the number one barrier to togging right now is finding enough green crabs to make a trip worthwhile. If you can secure enough to get you through an extra 1 or 2 trips, store them in the water at your slip. Based on the fast-paced action we had last weekend, I imagine the tog bite should continue through Thanksgiving and into early December. That said, deep rock or wreck structure will be your best bet for some steady action. The days of catching a limit of keepers in 30 feet of water, at least in my experience, are behind us.
If you can’t put down the saltwater gear, but resident stripers are eluding you and a tog charter is out of the question, there is one more less-enticing option—mackerel fishing in the Cape Cod Canal. I joined OTW’s Jimmy Fee and Liam O’Neill one morning this week to experience the late fall mackerel bite in the ditch, and while it’s not my forte, we did land quite a few macks and sea herring between the 3 of us. There are a surprising amount of fishermen in the east end picking off horse mackerel in the morning, and it doesn’t seem like the fish are going anywhere yet. Tie on a sabiki rig and use an inshore spinning setup or medium-power surf rod capable of handling 3-ounce-plus metals or bank sinkers, and head down to the east end with an empty bucket to survey the scene. The daily recreational limit for Atlantic mackerel in Massachusetts is 20 fish per angler; some folks keep them for the table, and others are stocking up their freezers for chunk baits to be used in the spring. Is it the most exciting fishing? No. Is it a good way to get outside, bend a rod, and provide a gateway to saltwater fishing for kids? Absolutely.
At this point in the season, the only other choices we’re left with on Cape Cod are largemouth and smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, panfish and stocked trout. Trout fishing is the more reliable option. One of my favorite things to do on the weekend is fill up a couple tackle trays with spinners, spoons, small soft plastics and hair jigs, throw them in a backpack, and hike or wade around stocked lakes and ponds to cover water until I find some action. The upper Cape has no shortage of large kettle ponds with plenty of shoreline and wading access, nor does the outer Cape. Nickerson State Park in Brewster, for example, is a scenic and serene setting to fish for trout (or bass). Flax, Cliff, and Little Cliff Ponds are all stocked with rainbows and their shorelines are skirted by forest. It’s just you and the fish. Upper Cape ponds like Peters, Mashpee-Wakeby, Johns, and Ashumet are a little more populated but still provide excellent trout fishing this time of year.
For anglers interested in largemouth bass, wading or shore fishing in those larger kettle ponds will be much more challenging. Stick to smaller, grassier ponds and bogs where the bass have fewer places to hide, and focus on fishing deeper water with slow-moving presentations. Rainbow and brown trout are much more tolerant of cold water than bass, and will be more likely to chase down spoons, soft plastics, and spinners. Lethargic bass will be looking for easy meals, so lures that stay in the strike zone like suspending jerkbaits, dropshot rigs, Ned rigs and jigs are the best baits to use as overnight air temperatures continue to approach the freezing mark.
-
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain around Cape Cod and the Islands
AJ Coots at Red Top Sporting Goods in Buzzards Bay said there are plenty of mackerel in the east end of the Canal along with sea herring and the occasional harbor pollock. If the late season mackerel run is anything like the last few years, he said, they’ll be in the ditch until Christmas. In 2024, they had folks coming in and buying sabiki rigs on Christmas Eve. AJ also mentioned they’ve had a few customers looking for green crabs, but the shop is no longer carrying them as they’ve been tough to get at this point in the season. However, the interest is still there and the fish are biting, so consider flipping some rocks for Asian shore crabs if you can’t find a shop that has greenies. The Canal has been quiet on the striper front, he added, but a lot of folks are heading down to New York and New Jersey, so a road trip down south is not a bad idea this weekend. You can even call in sick on Monday and give yourself an even shorter week before Thanksgiving! Otherwise, think about a shorter drive north. Evan said Eastman’s Fleet out of Seabrook, NH, has been hammering haddock and pollock, so that’s an option as well.
Captain Cam Faria of Cambo Fishing Charters told me it’s been tough for him to get out for tog due to the wind earlier this week, but he’s planning to head up north for ground fish in the near future. Cam said there’s been a ton of bait, so the bite hasn’t been excellent, but there are certainly plenty of pollock and haddock up there—it’s just a matter of whether or not they want to eat. When there’s a surplus of sea herring for those pollock to feed on, convincing them to eat a jig can be tough, but he’s confident it’ll pick up again soon. He’s got a couple more tog charters on the books before he calls it a season, so if you’re looking to snag a last-minute date, give him a ring to inquire about availability.
Evan at Eastman’s Sport and Tackle in Falmouth said there are still a decent number of guys going out for tog when conditions are right. He sold quite a few crabs over the weekend but didn’t receive word of how the anglers did out there. Aside from tog, most anglers are focused on freshwater fishing. He’s sold some shiners for trout and bass and said there are big browns and a few recently-stocked rainbows being caught on spoons and live shiners in the upper Cape ponds.
Christian at Sports Port in Hyannis said saltwater fishing has really slowed down with colder weather and some patchy wind this week, although there are still a few boats in the water heading out for tog. Freshwater fishing, he said, has been ridiculous this week; he caught a huge rainbow today in Barnstable. He’s been casting Rapalas on spin gear and chucking flies, both of which have yielded some nice trout and smallmouth bass.
Cape Cod Fishing Forecast
The weekend fishing conditions look great, but cold. The north/northwest wind should be low enough to make tog fishing feasible in Buzzards Bay or on the south side on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Check the tides in your area and consider a quick trip to some deep wreck or reef structure, even if it’s just to secure a fresh fish dinner. A couple shops are still carrying green crabs, but if they run out, you’ll be left to your own devices.
You can also head to the Cape Cod Canal and scope out the striper scene. Even though there’s been little to no bass activity, the possibility for one late migratory school to push through is there. And so is the bait. There are more than enough mackerel to be had in the east end, along with some sea herring and the occasional small pollock. Load up on sabikis and bring some metals or bank sinkers to fill up a bucket of macks. Just remember, the daily limit per angler is 20 fish.
All things considered, the best bet for a bent rod this week is to dust off the freshwater gear and cast around the ponds for trout, bass, pickerel and panfish (like perch and crappie). Ponds that receive herring runs should host some good fishing for bass and trout, as there are still loads of juvenile river herring trapped in many bodies of water. Small soft plastics (especially paddletails and Ned rigs), spoons, and jerkbaits are good choices whether you’re fishing in deep kettle lakes or small, weedy bog ponds.