Cape Cod and the Islands
Region

July 31, 2008

Buzzards Bay

Even after Capt. Joe LeClair's protestations that this is the best season in Buzzard's Bay ever...no reports.

So, here it is: you want bonito, try the run over to Menemsha. Obviously, if you've followed the reports out of Block Island, you know there were big fish there. I am getting word that they've moved out. I'd be taking a really good look towards Cuttyhunk and the Elizabeths now if I were you.

With any luck, SBFT will be the word down here really soon...

Jackhammer asks:

Due to a recent move, I haven't been on the water for over a week. Last weekend my father had good luck at the mouth of the canal with some bass 24"-28".. He also ran into a decent school of blues mixed with bass on the way back to port. I hope to get down there this sunday morning - anyone been doing anything productive??

Falmouth & the Elizabeths

Nothing out of Falmouth this week.  Let's just say I'd be starting to look for the Bonito this weekend.  Heck, if they're in Menemsha, they'll be here soon enough. 

The Cape Cod Canal

Bob G. reports:

There's been little to report. After the mega blitz in June, the canal has cooled off, getting slower and slower each week as we enter the typical August doldrums. If you REALLY know your stuff, and hit the very specific spots which hold a few fish all summer, you can still catch a few, tossing heavy jigs. Most of the fish I'm taking are running between 16-25". It's tough to get yourself up for that, esp if it means leaving a comfy bed at 2am.

The South Side

Capt. Terry Nugent of Riptide Charters reports:

Ran out of Southern Mass, headed S of MV/Block for some small BFT and some inshore mahi.

7/30 Tuna SURPRISE!
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Today we decided to take a nice easy trip out looking to troll up some tuna. I had to work prior, so Brian and Joe met me at the house at 0730. We loaed up, headed out and fueled the boat en route to the ramp. We splashed around 0830 and headed south. We found some whales and a few birds near a 2 degree break and went lines in.

After about 30 minutes the left flatline bar goes off and Joe's on the rod. In short order he getsthe fish close and we've got the skunk off witha mid 30" bluefin. An hour later the scene repeats and this time Brain lands his first of the day. I leaded and land the fish. The fish is measured recorded and I carfully stick in a Tag-A-Tiny tag and send the fish back with his buddies unharmed.

Now its mid day and things have slowed. We were marking bait and seening a few fish breezing, but it was the mid day lull. Just when we were being lulled into submission the left short rigger goes off on my home made GM chugger chain. Joe's on it! He works the fish in but this one is not fighting like a tuna. As Joe gets it closer SURPRISE! It's a 10-15# MAHI! We were well inshore and not near any pots or debris. We were just working bait and temp breaks. The mahi comes over the side and becomes my companion for dinner at the grill!

We work through the noon time lull and as evening approaches some fish came up on top and started pushing around. We adjusted the spread to fit the conditions and were able to swing it through the pushing schools. They were not super aggressive, but when i did it just right we were able to coax the fish intothe spread getting both Brian and Joe another fish each.

Finally it was time to head in. We made the short run back to the ramp and headed for home. Final tally 4 for 4 on SBFT plus a surprise mahi. The fish were all in the mid 30" range and were tagged with Tag A Tiny tags and released. The water temps were 71-74 degrees. The water was 130-160' deep and very clear. The lures of choice today was a new one from Offshore Inovations. 3 of the 4 tuna ate the left flatline bar. Its a new light weight titanium tinsle jet bar bar in green and gold from Offshore Inovations. I did some mid season restocking last week and the guys at Offshore Inovations asked me to test out a few new toys. For it's first outing on my boat the tinsle jets get a big thumbs up and I really like the new lightweight bar. Its has a much smaller hub than the heavier bar and the thinner bar flexes more so it rides really nicely and doesn't "walk" even in rough water or with the lighter jets. The mahi ate an OI Green Monsta I rigged with some small resin headed chuggers in a chain. The 4th tuna ate a GM on a bird.

Overall is was a nice inshore day of trolling. We didn't have to run too far. The conditions were ideal with zero wind and a light swell under bright sunny skies. Getting a nice mahi while trolling BFT was an added bonus. On a side note, sorry I have had no pics for the last few reports. Each trip my camera has shown a dead battery. The first few times I thought it was me forgetting to charge it. Well I charged it all night before this trip and still its showing no battery. So I seem to have a problem. I'll have pics for the next report one way or another.

Martha's Vineyard

Captain W. Brice Contessa at Contessa Charters reports:

Fishing the Vineyard Report 7/31

Fishing on the Vineyard is strong at the current juncture. As it stands now, there are bass, bluefish and bonito available to fly and spin fishers alike. Bass fishing right now is subject to a great deal of pressure as a result of the commercial season. The constant presence of the local and out of town fleet employing every method under the sun for killing bass make it a wee bit difficult to target them via fly and light spin. The best bet for anglers that fish like we do at this point is on the flats, along certain stretches of shallow shoreline, and over rocky shallow reefs. All of these locations fish well for us at this time of year because they are away from the commercial fleet.

Blues are thick throughout both Vineyard and Nantucket sounds. They're are great numbers of them on the shoals and outside of the inlets and harbors under the birds. The ones inshore are smallish, typical of this time in the summer. The ones on the shoal water are larger with fish to 10 pounds a occurring regularly this season. No one should poo-poo bluefish, they save the day often at this time of year.

Bonito are now available in target able amounts. They are not jumping along the beach fronts too much at the moment but certain shoals and rips are holding good numbers of bones now and if you know how to get there you may or may not be rewarded with green gold. I don't think it will be long before they fill in to their usual inshore haunts and begin to leap gleefully.

There are some tuna south of the Vineyard. I haven't been myself, but I'm getting mixed reviews from those who have. Some are reporting bent rods and bloody decks, others hours on hours of endless searching with nothing to show for it. Robby talked to one dude who caught a cod and a mahi in the same spot. That's a pretty cool mixed bag if you ask me.

Captain W. Brice Contessa www.fishingthevineyard.com

Larry's Tackle reports:

Bonito: A few bonito caught by boats in the Wasque Rips by anglers fishing for bluefish. A report of a bonito being caught at the Menemsha jetties.

Bluefish- Up until yesterdays blow, the Wasque Rip had been good on both tides. Most of the fish are on the small side but some better fish to five pounds are in the mix. Slowly fished Kastmasters and bucktail jigs are doing the job. The area around the Poge jetties was also hot earlier in the week with some bigger fish reported. Bluefishing is still very good in the Lobsterville area.

Striped Bass-Up Island sharpies are scoring on fish to thirty pounds when weather and surf permit. A 9” Gag needlefish is the lure of choice. Lobsterville is still good with fish to 30” being caught by anglers throwing small jointed bombers and sluggos. A good report from an angler throwing eels at Pilots Landing also came in. East Beach has slowed but before the blow, the Rip had been good with fish to 20lbs being caught on bucktails and the Pt Jude Wobble Eel.

Bait:

Sandeel's, Silversides and Alewives. Squid reports in Vineyard Haven Harbor, Menemsha and Edgartown. It has been hot and cold.

Capt. Phil Cronin at Capawok Charters reports:

Martha’s Vineyard Fishing Report, July 28, 2008

Summer Blues; and blues, and blues…

The Vineyard has been invaded by hoards of marauding bluefish! At least that’s the case at every shoal I have visited to the east. Thousands of the little rascals attacking flies, plugs, and just about everything else you can throw at them attached to a line. Don’t get me wrong; they are a blast on light tackle and fly rod. The only problem with so many bluefish is that my hands are beat to hell from taking them off the hook. Anglers are having a ball with them while I am getting stabbed, poked, bitten and stuck as we bring them to the boat and release them with as little harm done to the fish as we can manage. It’s an angler’s heaven and a captain’s purgatory. When it’s all said and done though, I love seeing happy fishermen with broadened smiles and hoots for joy. It is a great way to fish the "in between time" while waiting for the arrival of targetable numbers of Atlantic bonito. My guess is the speedsters will be arriving any day now. Bones have been caught around the island but those catches have been the exception rather then the rule. This coming week may see the real schools of bones show up close to shore.

Fishing for blues this past week turned kids into anglers and anglers into kids. On one particular trip I took out a family of four consisting of mom, dad, a 7 year old boy and a 10 year old girl. What a total blast. By the end of the day the kids were skilled anglers having caught tons of 3 to 5 pound bluefish. The next day I put an adult father and son team on the same fish and they started as skilled anglers and by the time they had caught and released their last bluefish, they resembled a couple of kids at a carnival. There is no shortage of action right now even though the bass are scarce and the speedsters have not arrived.

Here are a couple of tips to employ when you run into so many bluefish:

• A good friend and exceptional fly fisherman named Scott Patterson showed me this one when we were out at Horseshoe Shoal recently. We were throwing into hundreds of medium sized blues and as most fly anglers will agree we really enjoyed the initial strike and resulting fight but once that was over, getting the fish to the boat and then off the hook was more of a chore then a pleasure. Scott decided to cut the hook off near the bend. There was enough of the bend to allow the fish to become attached but so little that after the initial strike and pull, it would come free. The result was a short fun fight and an easy, non-damaged fish released before coming to the boat. It is certainly an effective way to get the best part out of bluefishing and will work on spinning lures as well. Try it sometime when you get into a hoard of marauding blues.
  
• No one enjoys rigging a fly with wire when a blitz is going on. Your hands are shaking from the excitement and the motion of the boat can make even a simple task somewhat difficult. I came across those inexpensive hook and leader keepers we used to use as kids when freshwater fishing. With this leader keeper (pictured below), I can pre-rig all my bluefish flies and poppers with wire and then with a simple loop to loop connection I’m ready to go. If a bluefish chomps my fly to nothing it is a quick change and I’m back in the game. Another advantage is it tends to keep the wire straight, even after a few fish have done their best to destroy it. The leader keeper costs a couple of bucks and is available at most major tackle stores.

If you are experiencing the summer blues the way we are around the Vineyard, have a blast with them and remember, the slashing bones will be in any day and then the albies will not be too far behind.

Tight lines and singing drags,

Captain Phil Cronin
Cell: 617-448-2030

Nantucket

At Cross Rip Outfitters, Capt. Lynne Heyer's report speaks for itself:

The Bonito Bar was good to me yesterday. We finally got one on my boat. Mathew Burton was the lucky angler. We saw a few other schools of fish but didn't get any other Bones. Joe Lipuma on the other hand landed 3 out of 4 on fly and spin. Guess he was in the right place at the right time. Jared its time!!!  It seems like finally the Bonito have arrived

Cross Rip Outfittershttp://www.crossrip.com

Capt. Shawn Bristow at Squaretail Outfitters had this:

The bonito fishing here on Nantucket continues to pick up. This morning we went 5 for 9 with a million blues mixed in. The fish have all been large ones as well, biggest being 10 pounds… We still are not seeing the numbers on bones like last year, but everyday the fishing is getting better.  The striper fishing has really slowed, with the warm water and opening of commercial season stripers have been hard to come by. Best bet is early morning trips. If the cold water pushes back to the west, the fishing should pick back up again to the east.  The tunas have been consistent offshore. We have getting a half dozen bites a morning, though one morning we caught 9 fish and another 6. All the fish have been between 90 and 150 pounds, or 55-65 inches in length. The whales have also been amazing,  seeing then very active in the morning, often times breaching 10 times in a row… It truly unbelievable site to see.. For more information on fishing Nantucket, or if you want to book a charter, email Capt. Shawn…

Chatham, Monomoy and the Outer Beaches

Nothing - no reports from Monomoy - hearing the rips are hit and miss, and that the outer beaches is producing somewhat.  Send in a report...

North Side

Bucko reports from the Brewster Flats:

Waded and fly fished the Brewster Flats yesterday for the last of the outgoing and about 2 hours of the incoming. Used a sandeel imitation without a single fish or even a hit. I did however see upwards of fifty fish. The sky was partly cloudy which cut down on visibilty. There wern't too many other fisherman. The one guy I did talk to caught 2 small ones.

Beautiful weather, lot's of healthy walking but I would of liked at least one fish to have made it an even better day.