Cape Cod &
the Islands

On to the Good Times!

Clearly, there has been a collective breath being taken around the Cape. Don't get me wrong; there are folks still fishing, but there hasn't been any of the mania of Labor Day weekend and there have been parking spaces at most of the ramps right through mid-morning, something which won't be true of weekends and even during the weekdays once the albie fishing really gets hopping.

I always like this week after Labor Day since it seems like everybody is recharging his or her batteries after a long summer and eagerly awaiting what they hope will be some fantastic fall fishing. Stories of legendary blitzes are retold and everybody has their opinion of what is going to take place in the coming months, as well as where they believe the best action will be.

Out on the Vineyard, folks are gearing up for the Derby and that means cleaning up any work that will have to wait for the next month because, well, they're going to be fishing. Line is being respooled and reels regreased while tidecharts are being poured over to make sure every possible scenario is covered. We're not just talking about going bass fishing at night, since daylight hours mean blues, bones, and albies. Sleep will have to wait because there are echoes of that ghost known as the Grand Slam out there and every flyrodder worth his or her backcast would like to break into that elite column.

But this week, it’s time rest and revitalize for many anglers - or at least take one day off to spend with the family!

Don't forget to send me your own reports, and until next week...

Tight Lines!

Dave Peros

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Cape Cod & the Islands Regions

Buzzards Bay

The news from Bob Paccia of Shoreline Guide Service is all good this week as he discusses in his weekly report:

Fishing throughout Buzzards Bay has been terrific. The weather couldn't have been much better and there's plenty of bait and fish everywhere. The only disappointment has been that the bonito never did show in any sizable numbers. Now that the false albacore have arrived it is doubtful that the bonito fishing will improve. Each year it seems that the false albacore population increases and arrives earlier. Don't get me wrong, false albacore are fantastic game fish that can get you into your backing before you can blink, but we do miss the bonito.

Cool mornings and reduced hours of daylight have signaled for the pre-migration preparations to begin. Predator and prey species alike are driven by nature to gorge themselves on a daily basis to put on the pounds (or ounces as the case may be) to endure the pilgrimage to their winter waters. Those that manage to feed regularly and increase their weight and strength will have a better chance to meet the rigors of their long and dangerous journey. Those that don't will not survive.

Because the urge to feed is so strong during the pre-migration season, minor and major blitzes can occur anytime during the day. Your fishing isn't restricted just to daybreak and sundown. The patient fisherman who takes his or her time to read the water and observe what is happening can take advantage of some great fishing during a good portion of the day. However, if you are one of those who are blasting around trying to get to any fish that breaks water, you will do nothing but put down any potential blitz before it ever begins. Also, you won't be making too many friends on the water.

Fisherman from all over the world, flock here to Cape Cod to experience this wonderful fishing that our waters provide during the fall migration. This truly is an opportunity to catch a trophy striper, bluefish, bonito or false albacore. Unfortunately, many of these eager fishermen will go back home, a bit disappointed. Sure, they'll have plenty of war stories to tell about close calls, break-offs, hooks straightening out and you should have seen the one that got away.

The reason that many of these anglers fail to fulfill their dreams of catching that trophy of a lifetime is poor preparation. I can't tell you how frustrating it is, as a guide, to watch someone loose a great fish due to a poorly tied knot, a dull hook, a wind knot in the tippet, a braided loop connection slipping off, etc., etc., etc. Although we try to check the client's equipment prior to leaving the dock, you have to be careful not to spend too much time correcting their equipment problems because the client wants to get fishing. Also, some clients get offended if you start changing things. So, we make suggestions and hopefully they agree to make a few changes.

My recommendation to all who plan a charter is to read and practice all set up procedures well in advance of the trip and to talk to your guide about setting up your equipment and if you don't feel comfortable with your gear, let him know so that you won't be spending valuable fishing time at the dock and more importantly, you won't miss that fish of a lifetime.

The fishing around the Mashnee Flats is also picking up and folks have been reporting some albies off the west entrance, while West Falmouth has had a mix of blues, bass, and funny fish.

This is a great time for shore anglers to get into the act, as a mix of silversides, baby pogies, juvenile herring, sand eels, and mummichogs can produce all night feeding in any of the rivers and bays.

Jeff and Bill once again joined last week joined us for an offshore trip. The information we had received in the few days prior to the trip was not too good. Some fishermen blamed the relatively slow period on too much bait or a lack of it at typical offshore locations. Of course bait is very important for attracting the fish, but is it also possible that the amount of fish visiting our waters is decreasing every year.

During long hours of trolling, Rich Robinson, my friend and partner in offshore fishing, and I discuss this phenomena. Rich reminiscenced about the days when he was in his teens and fished Rhode Island and Massachusetts waters. There were times when he would run his boat from Point Judith to No-Mans Island to catch marlin, tuna and swordfish. Ten to fifteen years ago, a run to the Fingers was a major expedition, and a small few fished the Dump and beyond. Now it is a very different story. Like the challenge that some in the commercial fleet feel, it seems that every year we have to run further, and cover more area, in order to catch a fish.

I have not been fishing Massachusetts offshore water for long so I do not have the same perspective as Rich who has fished here his entire life but after spending extensive time in Costa Rica and Mexico I know what good offshore fishing looks like when I see it. For example, in the last three years, I have not seen one yellowfin blitz, a sight so typical in Pacific waters.

Well, back to the current trip. Last Wednesday we arrived at the central Dump around 7 AM and started trolling. After about 20 minutes the lure on the right outrigger was knocked down. I gave the rod to Jeff, who fought the fish for about 30 minutes. The fish was exceptionally strong, and everybody on the boat guessed what might it be. Bill teased that it was just a big skipjack and that Jeff was making the landing look more difficult than it was. After reaching for a leader and bringing the fish close to the boat, we all were surprised to see 90 pound bluefin on the line.

Later we found warmer water with a nice temperature break along the Southern Wall of the Dump. The color of the water was progressively becoming bluer, so our hopes were high, especially when we saw a large flock of birds on the water. As we came closer to the birds, we saw hundreds of small whiting floating on the surface as a result of a recent by-catch release by a dragger. Soon we were joined by a fleet of fifteen or so other boats trying to take advantage of this "natural" chum. We worked this area for few hours without much success. Our result was not much different from other charter boats fishing the area. We'll see what happens next week - hopefully the season will extend through October.

Falmouth & the Elizabeths

The albies are certainly in residence, but there haven't been many boats on them with folks seemingly taking a breather after a hectic Labor Day weekend.

There have been schools in Woods Hole around to the backside of Penzance, off Nobska, Falmouth Harbor, Green Pond, and Waquoit - all the usual places, on both tides. An outgoing at Waquoit will certainly draw attention and remember that these fish will hold for a good while off the red nun where a fast sink line can draw strikes when fish aren't even showing.

Of course, that was last weekend and reports so far this week have things pretty quiet, but that could change with more of a southwest pump starting today.

The recent cold fronts seem to have scattered the schools of peanut bunker, but they'll be back and it's those dark, moving "patches of weed" that you want to look for since that's where the fish will be.

Bass are moving inshore in good numbers, with Nobska to Fay Beach one place to be and as the month progresses Eel Pond to the Heights will turn on as well.

The Elizabeths are definitely an underrated albie location; folks all know about Lackey's (do they ever!) but Robinson's and Quick's can very good as well with their fast currents and abundant bait supplies.

And, of course, the bass fishing remains very good along the islands and the fish are eating in tight on the east current, with some good blues mixed in as well.

The Cape Cod Canal

The waters of the Big Ditch are red hot. Bruce Miller told me that rips towards the east end are holding some really nice fish that are available to flyrodders who work around low water on the mussel beds with fast sink lines and small pogy flies and silverside patterns. There also has been a consistent number of flyrodders at the mud flats and they have been taking some fish as well, albeit mostly small ones. Topwater action has been fantastic earlier this week and at this time of year can continue right through daylight hours rather than stopping around first light, as is the summer plugging routine where you wait for east turning tides around first light.

The South Side

Snapper blues everywhere around these parts, but the larger ones seem kind of finicky this week. It seems hardly likely that the cold front which might have dropped water temps a degree or two would send them running. Most likely the bait has been scattered a bit, which slowed the awesome topwater action from last week.

Of course, what folks want are albies and bones and Karen Hill said they are in good numbers from Cotuit to Hyannis, while the Succonesset to Popponesset stretch had huge fleets over the weekend. Baby pogies are definitely a food source for the funny fish, but silversides and sand eels are also worth imitating. Remember that if the bait is there and the fish aren't necessarily showing big time, sometimes a searching pattern of casts worked deep will bring a response.

Bass are in all of the cuts from Poppy to Hyannis, with some good action right in the harbor despite the boat traffic.

And any shore anglers who have the time will be pleasantly surprised with some considerable action at dusk and dawn along this entire stretch.

Martha's Vineyard

Everybody who is anybody out on the island is gearing up for the Derby which starts on Wednesday, but Captain Leslie Smith of Backlash Charters was good enough to take some time to assess the local fishing scene:

Biggest news of the week, which I'm sure is reflected in the Cape reports, is the arrival of the little tunny, a.k.a. false albacore, all along the south shore and down the Elizabeths. One of our local guides managed to land twelve last Friday down by Quick's, with one topping the scales at seventeen pounds! A Derby winner just a little early! I must admit that I've had a difficult time getting them to bite, as the prevalent bait is very, very small herring or peanut bunker. I've heard that unusual flies/lures have been working, from the old silver Farnsworth Slider (a floating cylindrical fly) to walking-the-dog type floating lures. I guess the message is to throw out those Deadly Dicks and bunny flies and try something a little different to get their interest. Bonito are still around, though being taken mostly trolling around the Hooter, Hedge Fence and L'Hommedieu. The Chappy/Edgartown area is still devoid of the hardtails, though I expect them to start appearing soon. Bass fishing remains spotty at best, with most fish coming from the Hooter on bait or wire with jigs. With the start of the Derby just a week away, many locals are planning their strategies, myself included, with the backside of Nantucket looking like the best bet for big blues, the Hooter for bonito and bass, and the Cape for the albies.

A couple of albies have also been taken from shore down around Menemsha and most of the shore crew has been looking for bass along the north shore.

Nantucket

Bill Pew at Bill Fisher Tackle said they "have everything" out on the island with "the first false albacore apprehended within the last three days from shore at Great Point on small metal lures. There has also been a small showing of Spanish mackerel down along the Galls. The bluefish being caught are larger than last week, with some 10 to 12 pounders mixed in with what are mostly 6 to 8 pound fish. Smith's Point and Great Point have been the most consistent spots for shore blues, while the boaters have been taking them all along the east side. There has been a reasonable number of bass along the south shore, from Cisco to Maddequesham. The Bonito Bar continues to be red-hot, with Captain Hal Herrick reporting to Bill that he managed eight the other day, with flies working just fine along with offerings like Deadly Dicks and Swedish Pimples. Small white Deceivers have been very popular and Bill still has a good supply of HardBody Shiners which he purchased from Mystic Bay Flies before their demise. The crowds of tourists have clearly left the island Bill said, but there are still plenty of happy anglers.

Down along the harborfront, Lynne Heyer at Cross Rip Outfitters announced that they have some false albacore, but it's the bonito which are keeping them busy and their charters happy. Captains Shawn Bristow and Benji Halsell have had trips with up to 20 bones on both flies and lures and Benji also managed an 11 pound albie on a recent trip. The flats are showing bigger numbers of bass and they are a little more active and clearly feeding. Down along Great Point, shore guide Shane Amos has been taking a mix of blues, bonito, and Spanish mackerel, while Lou Guerrieri has been finding bonito around the Chord of the Bay. Polarfibre minnows and white Deceivers have been good offerings, but flyrodders have also been taking funny fish with chartreuse Clousers which mimic the sand eels in the area which are running 1 to 2 1/2 inches.

The Outer Beaches, Chatham & Monomoy

Folks are catching good numbers of bass around Stage Harbor while fishing along the flats should pick up with some cooler water. Many flyrodders are reporting some action on smaller fish, but the larger ones are definitely picky and need very precise presentations with crab patterns and sand eel offerings.

Paul Newmier reported that there are still good numbers of bass along the Southway and down to the cut between North and South Monomoy, but it certainly hasn't been a consistent thing. Sometimes all you'll get is bluefish, although there have been some really nice ones to be had. Main bait still remains large sand eels.

He also noted that the stretch from Coast Guard Beach to the inlet has had a lot of 24 to 30 inch stripers, mostly in the early morning. They're feeding on sand eels and are willing to take artificials. Down below the light in Chatham there have been several 30 pound fish landed on poppers, with one topping out at 34. These have been on spinning tackle, but it sounds like a good time to break out the floater and those big, noisy surface offerings.

Farther up the backside, Ballston and Newcomb's Hollow has had a good run of fish in the 20 pound class, while Race Point has a few bass, but tremendous bluefishing with choppers up to 12 pounds.

The North Side

While Barnstable Harbor and the waters down along Sandy Neck to the Sandwich Creeks have had good numbers of schoolies, there are also some really nice bass in the 30+ inch class that are willing to eat sand eel patterns. There are also some bluefish mixed in and over the weekend there were some small pods of bass on top around Chapin's Beach and on down to Brewster.

What was really cool was talking to one of the charterboat skippers from a large boat in Barnstable Harbor who was cleaning up after a trip to Billingsgate where they did very well. He told me that the large fish in that stretch have been in water as skinny as 10 feet and he watched a flyrodder hook up with a real behemoth which he fought for over 20 minutes. The wire guys are dragging umbrella rigs set up with tubes, so clearly larger sand eel patterns would work. There are also some blues mixed in to keep some folks happy.