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Top 63 Boat Fishing Spots on Cape Cod
HOGY DOWNLOAD GUIDE TO THE TOP 63 BOAT FISHING SPOTS AROUND CAPE COD
BOAT FISHING SPOTS AROUND CAPE COD The Monomoy Shoals
The Monomoy shoals include Handkerchief, Stonehorse, Little Round and Bearse shoals. These sandy shoals lay just of the elbow of the Cape off the tip of Monomoy point. There are several other shoals that could be included in this section but they lay outside of the 3 mile limit and are not legal to target stripers. While they all hold monster blues in the summer, the main focus for these shoals is the amazing striper fishing when the squid are running. The shoals start fishing well around the third week of June on average and continue to fish well into July. Massive currents and steep drops make these shoals stand up and get noticed. So much so in fact, that they can be downright dangerous when the wind and tide conspire against you. Small boats can access these shoals and the great fishing they offer from any of the Chatham area ramps. But those small boats are the ones that find themselves in trouble quickly when the tide turns and runs into the stiff afternoon SW winds this area is known for. If you pick your weather window and find moving water these shoals can offer some of the most exciting and dynamic striper fishing you could ever hope for. Huge numbers of big bass launching out of the face of the waves after squid is something to behold. The best way to fish these shoals is to find moving water and then look for birds, bait and bass on the surface. Casting big soft baits in white, pink and amber is one of the most exciting ways to fish these shoals. Watching the big bass smash the rubber lures as they dart across the surface is my personal favorite method when I’m in the shoals. Extra-large squid flies tossed into the standing white water can button the savvy fly angler into bass that will test even the best 10wt fly rod.
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However, if you ask the old time, hard core anglers around Chatham they are going to tell you to pull wire. Without a doubt snapping wire with big bucktail jigs that imitate the squid in the rips is a home run for catching tons of big bass and it has been the go to method for decades. It’s also a great way to locate the fish when they are not showing well on the surface.
Topwater Casting for Stripers at Monomoy Starting in late June and early July, large schools of striped bass migrate more heavily into the shoals just off the coast of Monomoy. There are miles upon miles of rips in the area, including Handkerchief, Bearse's, and Stone Horse Shoals. It can be intimidating at first to figure out where to begin fishing this large area, so here are a few tips to help you catch striped bass (and bluefish) by casting jigs and softbaits into the rips using light-tackle outfits. For more on the area, check out our Monomoy Shoals spot profile. Recommended Outfit: 7' Shimano Terez Rod with a Shimano Saragossa SW 5000 reel. This light tackle outfit will give you extra action when you twitch your baits and extra sensitivity when feeling the initial strike. Plus, it’s a blast when you inevitably hook a 30+" striper or 8+ pound bluefish in this area. Technique: The name of the game here is bouncing around from rip to rip until you find the one that's holding the most life. The idea is to hang with the engine running right after the first couple waves of the rip or just in front in the slick water. Once your boat is in position, cast up tide and twitch the bait as it tumbles back through the rip. This diagram should help:
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Recommended Tackle: Medium-sized softbaits and larger Epoxy Jigs seem to do the trick here. The fish are dialed in on different baits at different times of the season so make sure to match your lure's color correctly. For example, if you're seeing squid, try pink Epoxy Jigs and pink or amber colored soft baits. During the video shoot above, the fish were keyed in on herring, so silver-colored presentations were most effective. Also, the water is typically quite cold and clear at Monomoy, so going with larger and more colorful baits can attract fish from further away. Recommended Time of Day & Tides: Typical of striper fishing on most of the Cape, low-light conditions that coincide with strong tides produce the best striper fishing. When the rips aren't standing up, it can be very difficult to locate both the rips and the fish as the shoals shift significantly over the course of the year, making chart data inaccurate. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°32’ x 70°03’ Best tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Strong rip, large ocean swells at times, frequent dense fog in the summer, moderate boat traffic. Grey seals are numerous and will tear hooked fish off hooks.
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Woods Hole
The tide really cranks in Woods Hole. Best bet is to fish the first 45 minutes of either tide and fish the swing. Cast unweighted softbaits up current, and twitch them as you retrieve. Best time for this method is in the spring, when the squid run is in. Pink soft baits are a top choice. Another popular technique is to troll the tube and worm. Troll with the tide. Casting: Position boat close to structure (either ledge, eastern end of Pine Island, off gap between Penzance Point and Devil’s Foot) and cast toward shore, any breaks in current or around submerged boulders. Diving birds may indicate fish below. Position boat off the down tide side Pine Island and do the same. Strong current and submerged boulders make it vital for one person to run the boat while other angler casts. Trolling: Use heavy gear with wire line and fish along edges of channels. Heavy jigs, tubes or large soft plastics will produce. Troll in SAME DIRECTION AS CURRENT. Drifting: Chunk or live baits fished on the bottom; heavy jigs. Snag filled bottom can make bait fishing difficult. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°30.6’ N, 70°41’ W Known for: Stripers in the spring and fall, topwater bluefish and albies in the midsummer and False Albacore in the early fall. Best tide: West (outgoing) WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
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Hazards: Numerous submerged boulders; shallow, rocky water at Middle Ledge and Red Ledge. Very strong current. Heavy boat traffic at times. Carefully study charts before attempting to fish Woods Hole.
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West End of the Canal
Fishing the West end of the Cape Cod Canal can be a super productive spot that can be fished in poor weather conditions when other locations aren't feasible. The West End of the Canal extends from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy out to the end of Wings Neck and Stoney Point Dike. No fishing is allowed east of the MMA (per the Army Corps), and they actively patrol this area and will issue citations. I prefer to fish the west end as part of the spring migration and then again in the late summer and fall when the bonito and albies arrive. In the spring, many adult herring flood into this area to run into the rivers and harbors that line this small section of water. Following these big baits are even bigger bass. The bass will pin the bait along the steep dredged edges of the Canal channel. There are areas along the Mashnee Flats where the water will go from 3-4’ to 40’ in a matter of feet. Working these sharp drop-offs can produce some monster bass in the early season. Hog Island Channel is a choke point that funnels massive amounts of bass through an area that’s only a few hundred feet across. That many fish in such a confined space really enhances your odds of hooking up. That said, the tight confines combined with large commercial shipping traffic and easy access for very small boats can make this area a crowded and potentially dangerous location to fish. I prefer to fish farther out towards the flats or the entrance to Buzzards Bay just to avoid the crowds. The fish are a little more spread out but the crowds are a fraction of what they are by the MMA. Either tide can fish well in this area but since the water is very cold in Cape Cod Bay early in the season, the cold west running tide can really slow things up in this area. Once the wet tide mixes with the main body of Buzzards Bay, the effect is greatly reduced. It’s common for anglers to chase the breaking fish and birds in this area casting large rubber and big plugs at the hungry bass chasing herring.
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Later in the summer this area holds loads of small school bass and small sand eel imitations are a sure thing almost every morning until the boat traffic puts the fish down. For those not inclined to cast for their fish, trolling wire line along the slightly deeper west side of the channel produces more than its fair share of fish. If you’re motivated and willing to put in the extra effort, gathering mackerel from Cape Cod Bay and transporting them through the Canal then drifting them along the channel edge is a great way to hang yourself a 40 pound fish amid the schoolies. Once the water warms to a point late in the season where the bass have moved away, this area still holds a ton of small bait. The juvi herring, P-nut bunker and sand eels are a feast for the fast swimming tunoids that invade the Cape late in the summer and into the fall. The same principles apply to the albies as they do to the bass. Work the choke points and the channel edges for the fast movers. Small epoxy, metal and rubber jigs cast into the surface feeding tunoids can produce smoking reels and screaming drags. This area is also known for producing some “unusual” catches. Cobia, jacks, Spanish and even King Mackerel are surprise catches in this area from time to time. Casting: Look for diving birds over the flats indicating feeding stripers, bluefish, or later in the season, false albacore. Use smaller soft plastics, flies, small swimming plugs, small poppers. Work the rocky shores of Mashnee Island, particularly the west (canal) side. Trolling: Troll along the drop off on the west side of the flat next to the Cape Cod Canal channel with lead core line and deep swimming plugs, or weighted soft plastics on braid or light line. Work over water depths of 10 – 20 feet and do NOT troll in the main channel. Drifting/bottom fishing: Mashnee Flats is one of the premier areas on all of Upper Cape Cod for fluke fishing. Drift rigs baited with squid strips or small baitfish along the canal drop off or bounce small jigs along the bottom over the flats. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long (Flats Area): 41°42.5’ N, 70°38.5’ W Best tide: Incoming in the spring (east); outgoing in the summer and fall (west). Hazards: Few but heavy boat traffic in adjacent Cape Cod Canal channel. Large, standing waves in the channel when strong west tide is against prevailing southwest wind.
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Race Point
Race Point is the end of the road literally. It’s the very tip of Cape Cod and it is a place that is often times loaded with stripers and blues. The Race is one of the few places I know of in the north east where a surfcaster can toss a plug into water more than 100’ deep from the beach. The water drops off from sandy beach to over 150’ in an amazingly short distance. The currents here are notoriously strong and help create a massive rip line that is a second home for many a charter boat and recreational angler alike. Just to the south of the Race the drop-off abuts a shallow sand flat in an area called “the Bathhouse” named for the visible bath house facility on the beach. A slew of lobster pots run along the drop-off and act as a road map for where to fish. Both the lobsters and the fish tend to hang along the steep drop-off. Find the lobster pot line and watch your fish finder and you’re almost certain to start marking fish waiting for the bait to get swept into the abyss. Once the fish are found there are two main ways that people fish the race. First is by trolling wire and adjusting the depth to keep the rigs or jigs in the zone the bass are suspending. The other popular way is to fish the bass with vertical jigs. Soft rubber baits on lead heads imitating the sand eels as well as tin/metal jigs are deadly at catching bass as they suspend on the drop off. Simply mark them and send the jigs down to the fish and work them through the schools. When the water is moving and the bass are eating there is no more productive way to put numbers on the deck than this. The crowds here can be unbearable but the fishing often makes up for the chaos that occurs here at one of the Capes most popular fishing spots. • •
Lat & Long: 42°03.8’ x 70°15’ Best tide: Outgoing
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Hazards: Very large ocean swells may be present; water may be filled with weed and unfishable after sustained easterly wind or storms. The rip along the beach is very strong. Seals may be a nuisance.
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Middle Ground
Keep boat on smooth side of rip, cast up tide and fish the swing and the lure enters the rip. This area can be extremely weedy, so weedless rigged soft-baits will gif anglers a huge advantage here. Amber and Pink are the two most popular colors during the squid run in May and June, which is also the most popular time to fish middle ground. Stay a hundred and fifty feet off the rip line on the smooth side, proceed slowly in an S-pattern that allows any lures listed above to climb up the side of the drop off, then fall back over. Weedless rigged soft baits on lead core are the most effective to troll. Trolling is most popular on the Western portion of the shoal, in deeper water with less boat traffic. There can be some excellent fluke fishing on the western portion of the shoal. Jiggin' Troll Tips for Middle Ground Equipment: Lead core trolling setup. Capt. Mike's lead core trolling setup consists of an Avet reel, a 5'6" 15-30lb class stand up tuna rod from Bass Pro Shops, and 27# Tuf-Line MicroLead Lead Core. Approach: Position your boat perpendicular with the rip on the smooth side to start, but as you work your way down, swing the stern of the boat towards the rip so that your trolled baits swing over into the rougher water.
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Another tip is to find crescent-shaped indents in the rip and target those areas heavily. Small baitfish will ball up there a little more densely than other areas of the rip, making it a hotspot for stripers & blues. Stripers will sometimes hang out in the corners of these crescents, so make sure to troll your bait right over that area. Bait Selection: 10" Hogy Originals rigged weedless with weighted swimbait hooks are the preferred bait for the technique. The rips of Nantucket Sound can get extremely weedy from time to time and by dipping the very end of the hook back into the softbait, you will avoid getting caught up with a weed monster. As far as color selection goes, try and match your lure with the color of the bait in the area. For example, if there are squid around, go with a pink coloration. Technique: Most of these rips will hold fish in very shallow water, so you don't need to let out a lot of line. For example, at Middle Ground, Capt. Mike usually only lets out 4 or 5 colors. Make sure to continuously jig the bait with short twitches while in gear. If you feel a hit on your lure, make sure to set the hook with another short jig on the rod. • • • •
NOAA chart number: 13229 Lat & Long: 41°29’ x 70°38’ Best tide: Either tide (incoming or outgoing) fishes well; action will be slow at slack. Hazards: Few. Strong wind against tide can produce large standing waves at the edge of the rip line. Boat traffic and fishing activity can be heavy, especially on weekends in the summer. Water can be very weedy at times.
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Horseshoe Shoal
Horseshoe is best known as a premier location for large bluefish. Often, you won’t see any surface commotion, even when the place is loaded with bluefish. Long drifts with great topwater casting can be had by starting at either position (1) or (2) depending on what direction the tide is running. Start at (1) on an East bound tide and (2) on a West bound tide. Throw large topwater poppers with single hooks. You may not get any follows at first, but be patient. Before you know it, you’ll have multiple fish following your plug. Troll a semi-circular route along eastern side of the rip between buoys “7” and “WR.” Be sure to closely watch the depth as shallow water is present. Use shallow swimming plugs and stay in 10 – 15 feet of water. • •
Lat & Long: 41°32.4’ x 70°23’ (northwest corner near buoy “7”) Best Tide: Incoming, Action slows at slack tide.
Hazards: Very shallow water in places between buoy “7” and buoy “WR” with depths of 5 feet or less at low tide. Mixed rock and sand bottom. High, short chop develops at the height of the tide when wind direction is against the tide.
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Wasque
Best tide: Either Tide, Moving Hazards: Logs, Debris Fishing Strategy: Wasque (pronounced WASKEE from the Mainland and WAYSKWEEY on Martha’s Vineyard). I believe the Vinyarders pronunciation is historically accurate. Anyway, Wasque is a very famous area for Striped Bass and Blue fishing. While Wasque will hold fish all season long, it fishes best in June through mid July. The reason why Wasque fishes so well is that bait from Nantucket sound gets swept through the channeled water between Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. In June, anglers are likely to see a show of Bass feeding on squid and lady crabs. When either bait is in town, pink and amber colored lures are very effective. Wasque is a loosely used reference to a very wide area, so I will break this down as follows: 1. Tom’s Shoal: Tom’s shoal starts getting hot in early June, sometimes earlier. This spot is particularly popular with anglers who like to troll wire or lead core, There are a few fish in the shallow rips, but boats working baits closer to the bottom over some of the varied contoured lines will produce more fish. This is a good spot to “drop” lures on fish that are seen on the fish finder by taking the boat out of gear. 2. Shallow Rips: Wasque holds numerous shallow rips that change from year to year. They often are not fished and can hold some great fishing. Fish move from rip to rip, so if you want to get off the fleet, you can often find your own fish by trial and error. a. Casting: Weedless soft plastics are probably your best bet here as the water can be so weedy. If the water is clear, popper and top water plugs can be quite effective. The favored technique for casting the rips, is to stem the tide in front of WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
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the rip, and cast up tide and work the bait into the rip for stripers waiting in ambush. Pink, White and Amber colors are the most effective colors. b. Trolling: (2) In the rips, particularly on a south bound tide, trolling wire line or lead core line with small jigs, parachute jigs and soft baits is effective. Be sure to try all the various rips as they all hold fish. There is no need to always fish with the fleet at Wasque.
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Gordon’s Gully
Gordon's Gully is a relatively close spot to the south side of Martha's Vineyard, located along the 20 fathom depth curve. It's a good early season bluefin spot as well as a top shark fishing destination. For whatever reason, many thresher sharks have been caught in this area. When the halfbeaks show up, white marlin can be found here as well. • • •
Approx. Lat & Long : 41° 4' 0.4'' N, 70° 29' 42.5'' W Best Known for: Late June/early July school bluefin, makos and threshers Best tide: Varies
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The Star
The star is approximately 22 miles due south of the Hooter and is identified by the compass rose on certain NOAA Charts (see chart pull at bottom). Historically, the Star has been an early season spot for yellowfin but in recent years it hasn’t fished as well. There was a hot white marlin bite at the Star in 2012. • • •
Approx. Lat & Long: 40° 54' 7.0'' N, 70° 26' 7.4'' W Best Known for: Mix of bluefin and yellowfin, makos and threshers Best tide: Varies
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The Owl
The owl is very close (only 8 miles south of the Hooter) and resides on the 20 fathom curve. In July of 2014, there were large numbers of bluefin tuna, many of which were castable fish. There is lots of structure here, it’s often a good spot for early season makos as many bluefin tuna push through here in late June/early July. Certainly worth a trip. Also a top white marlin spot when the half beaks show up. • • •
Approx. Lat & Long: 41° 08′ 5.0” N, 70° 24′ 0” W Best Known for: Late June/early July school bluefin tuna, makos and threshers Best tide: Varies
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The Shipping Lanes
The shipping lanes is more a latitudinal reference than to a specific spot or structure. You’ll see them printed on the NOAA chart, basically running east and east north of the Canyons. There’s often a lot of action in the “Lanes” as tips of warm water eddies (see 1 and 3 on chart below) are often very pronounced in the lanes. For this reason, you can fin blue marlin in addition to all varieties of tuna, white and blue marlin, very large mahi mahi and even big wahoo. In 2014, we noted a huge number of albacore and some big yellowfin tuna. Often the first early season "noncanyon" spot to get hot.
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Approx. Lat & Long: Running East to West starting at ~ 40' 36" N and ending at ~ 40'20" N Best Known for: Yellowfin tuna, albacore, mahi mahi, occasional blue marlin Best tide: Varies
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The Dump
The dump is a relatively wide area, comprised of a 10x10 mile square and is considered by many to the furthest of the “inside” offshore spots. You’ll often hear people talking about the dump relative to its corners, i.e. SE, NE, SW, NW Corners. There isn’t a huge amount of structure in the various places, but somehow seems to be at the epicenter of warm water eddies that move in from the gulf stream and therefore is well known for a mix of yellowfin, bluefin, mahi and marlin. It also takes second position to the closer spots for shark fishing as a result of fewer contour lines and structure that can hold bait. The dump has held the most YFT, Albecore, and wahoo in recent years, as well a large number of very large mahi mahi. If there is a good warm break near the dump and you have the range, go. •
• • •
Approx Lat & Long: o NW Corner: 40° 50' N, 70° 59.75' W o NE Corner: 40° 50' N, 70° 45.00' W o SW Corner: 40° 40' N, 70° 59.75' W o SE Corner: 40° 40' N, 70° 45.00' W Best Known for: Yellowfin tuna, albacore tuna, mahi mahi Fishing Strategy: (1) Troll over what semblance of structure the dump has, and (2) always err on the side temp breaks. Best tide: Varies
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The Claw
The Claw is a highly underrated offshore post because it is so close to many Cape Cod and South Coast locales. It is best known for early season Makos and Bluefin tuna but can also hold yellowfin, white marlin and mahi later in the season. This spot can be loaded with bait. If there is bait at the claw, then there is fish at the claw. Trolling: Bait found inside of fish caught here often includes butterfish, small squid, sand eels, hake and small mackerel. The most popular lures here mimic these baits. Top lures here include green machines in traditional green and rainbow, rigged ballyhoo and tinker bars. There is often small bait here, so your best bet is to keep the lure size small unless bigger bait is visibly present in the area. Casting: If the water temp is 70 degrees or warmer, be sure to look for structure that may hold some mahi mahi. I always have a two spinning rods rigged and ready for this spot as you often see breaking fish here. One with a metal jig for busting tuna and another with a soft bait for a cruising white marline. Drifting: Many anglers drift for sharks here. It’s an excellent place for a combo trip. Depending on the drift, I’ll start on opposing ends of the claw and make my drifts the best I can over structure. • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41° 04' N, 70° 53' W Best tide: Varies
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Inside Fingers
The Inside Fingers is located between the Claw and the Star. It’s a little farther from Block Island and Montauk, so it sees more Cape Cod based boaters than the others. It doesn’t take long to look at the chart to realize how much structure is there. The Inside Fingers is about par with the Claw and Coxes Ledge for shark fishing. The water is a little deeper here, so it makes for better cod fishing than the Claw. Tuna-wise the Inside Fingers is a productive bluefin spot (sometimes top water) but also the blue-water fish when warm water eddies move in. Often fished in conjunction with the Claw. Trolling: Like all the other “inside offshore” spots baitfish found here includes butterfish, small squid, sand eels, hake and small mackerel. High-speed squid bars and machine daisy chains and small squid colored tinkers are favorites here. As always, you can’t go wrong with a rigged ballyhoo. As with the Claw and Coxes, I like to troll the structure here when temp breaks aren’t a consideration. Firstly, I start with trolling the wreck line (1) If nothing, I will zig zag the various contour lines. Back and forth between (1)(2)(3)(4)(5) and (6).
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Casting: Be ready for mahi mahi. If you like casting to tuna, you should have at least one spinning rod rigged for top water tuna and they are known to come up here. Also, marlin are seen cruising the surface here from time to time. Drifting: Many anglers drift for shark AND cod here. The water is a little deeper than Coxes Ledge here, so I recommend at least 10 ounces of lead. • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41° 02.500' N, 70° 40.500' W Best tide: Varies
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Coxes Ledge
Relatively speaking, Coxes Ledge is equidistant from Cape Cod, Block Island and Montauk so it gets a lot of traffic. Early in the season it is a known bluefin tuna spot but can also hold the usual blue water suspects when warm water eddies come in. In the winter and again in mid summer, it is a known cod fishing spot. Anglers will drift the wrecks, which are identifiable on the fish finder. Similar to the Claw, it is an excellent shark fishing spot with so much structure. Often fished in conjunction with the Inside Fingers and the Claw. Trolling: Similar to the Claw, baitfish found here includes butterfish, small squid, sand eels, hake and small mackerel. Top lures here include high-speed squid bars and machine daisy chains, rigged ballyhoo and tinkler bars. I like to troll the structure here. Firstly, I start with trolling the wreck line (1). If nothing, I will zig zag the various contour lines (2) and (3). Casting: If the water temp is 70 degrees or warmer, be ready for mahi mahi. Similarly to fishing the Claw, you should have at least one spinning rod rigged for busting tuna and maybe another with a soft-bait for a cruising white marlin. Drifting: Many anglers drift for shark AND tuna here. It’s an excellent place for a combo trip. Many anglers will drift over the ledges. Both jigs and clams are the top choices for cod. On calm days, you can get down with 6 ounces, but 8 and 10-ounce jigs or sinkers are better suited for success. • •
Approx Lat & Long: 41° 3.351’ N, 71° 6.429’ W Best Tide: Varies
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The Hooter
The “Hooter” is an area named for the fairway buoy that marks the end of Muskeget Channel off the Southeast corner of Martha’s Vineyard. The groaner buoy makes a “Hooting” sound as it bobs up and down, hence the nickname. The Hooter itself in not really the fish attractor, it’s more the shoals in the area around the Hooter and along with the sharp drop-off at the end of Muskeget. The Hooter starts fishing in Mid-May when the squid draw the bass and blues into the rips. As the water warms in many of the shallower inshore spots forcing fish to find cooler waters, the quick access to 100’ water keeps the big fish around this area. When the shallow shoal water temps do eventually heat up, the massive amount of bait found here draws in the faster swimming tunoids. Bonito and albies are common targets in this area. While fishing for these smaller tunoids, hooking into larger Bluefin tuna is a fairly common and exciting bonus. Since this area holds such a variety of species you can choose to fish this area pretty much any way that you prefer. (1) The most common tactics include sight casting plugs and soft baits under birds. Many fish hold in or around the shallow ups, and just either side of the shoal. (2) In the rips, particularly on a south bound tide, trolling wire line or lead core line with so umbrella rigs or bucktails is a standard. Equally as popular, speed trolling diving plugs along the rip lines later in the season is a sure fire way to hook into bonito and false albacore. (3) At the later stages of either tide, large stripers can be targeted on the bottom using wire line or vertical jigs dropped to marked fish on the finder.
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Approx Lat Long: 41° 15.007 N, 70° 26.168' W Best tide: Either Tide/Moving Hazards: High Flyers, Logs, Debris
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Tuna Fishing East of Chatham
Tuna fishing east of Chatham covers a fairly large area but for the most part the same techniques will work in all of the locations. The areas closest to shore are just in front of the Chatham Cuts (Inlets) and Crab Ledge. The mouth of the inlets hold large amounts of bait and have the added benefit of the current flow dumping even more bait out of Pleasant Bay on the dropping tides. Crab Ledge is a plateau that lies a few miles SE of the inlets and is the first piece of tuna structure you reach when heading east. Both of these areas are readily accessible to the smaller boats and often have large crowds trying their luck on tuna. There are three offshore areas that are often referenced when discussing tuna east of Chatham. They are the BC, BB buoys and the Regal Sword. The first two were the Boston approach buoys in the shipping lanes. They are no longer there but their former positions are used as reference when talking about the location of a tuna bite. Neither buoy actually held any real amount of bait or fish but the areas around them do and with nothing else to reference for a location the buoys are the “Spots” people refer too. The Regal Sword is a little different. This is an actual shipwreck that still exists and can be found with sonar. It’s just east of the lanes between the BC and the BB buoys. IT also has the added benefit of holding some large cod even during the summer. Once you decided where you plan to fish for tuna east of Chatham the most common way to go about it is to slow troll squid rigs. In recent years “Splasher Bars” or squid bars with splashing birds on them has become very popular and VERY effective. Trolling these rigs at 3-5 mph WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
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around areas of heavy bait concentration is a very good way to hook yourself a tuna. Finding whales out east is a sure fire way to find the bait and thus find the tuna. So out east you will often find large groups of boats in areas of feeding whales. Another popular way to fish out east is to Run and Gun the tuna as they surface feed. This is most popular in the near shore spots but it can be and is done in the deeper water locations. Finding the life is the first step to the Run and Gun method. Then running over to tuna that are visible on the surface and casting topwater plugs and large Softbaits into the melee. A 3rd way that tuna are fished out east is by chunking and bait fishing. This is done later in the summer and fall in the deeper water areas and primarily is the “Commercial” way to fish for giants. In the fall the BB buoy was a very popular place for chunking but the Commercial fleet. When gearing up for tuna east of Chatham many people opt to troll very heavy conventional tuna gear. The mindset is there are giants in this area and the heavy gear is needed to land these larger fish.I prefer to scale down my trolling gear into the 30#/50# class since the majority of the fish are under 300# and can be easily handled on the lighter gear. The lighter gear also makes the tuna in the 100# class much more sporting to catch and since they are often the majority of the catch gearing for them makes sense. When it comes to casting gear, heavy spoiling rods and 20000 Class reels with 500 yards of 80-100# braid are the norm. Tuna specific lures and hooks are a must if you plan to chase these fish on casting gear. When the smaller fish are near 100# only the best of the best will do regarding spinning equipment. •
• • • • •
Crab Ledge Coordinates: o North Edge 41° 41.000' N, 69° 47.000' W o West Edge 41° 41.000' N, 69° 49.000' W o NE Corner 41° 41.000' N, 69° 43.050' W o South Edge 41° 36.000', 69° 47.000' W BC Buoy Coordinates: 41° 41.390' N, 69° 35.120' W BB Buoy Coordinates: 41° 15.500' N, 69° 17.641' W Regal Sword Coordinates: 41° 28.0626' N, 69° 20.5562 W Best tide: Slack Hazards: Whales. Steer clear!
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Sandwich Town Beach to East Entrance of Cape Cod Canal
(1) Surface feeding stripers and bluefish may be present along this shorefront at any point in the season due to the proximity of the Cape Cod Canal. (2) If no fish are showing, cast near any of the boulders or rock shoals. Use soft plastics, swimming lures, thin profile metals, surface plugs and flies. Watch for birds working off outside the Canal, especially in the fall. (3) Troll in 10 – 15 feet of water along the shoals. Use unweighted tubes, light umbrella rigs, swimming plugs, soft plastics. Do not troll into the Cape Cod Canal channel. • • •
Approx Lat & Long: 41°45.5’ N, 70°29’ W Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Rocks and rocky shoals stretch about ¼ mile east of canal entrance. Large ocean swells may be present during storms or hard east wind.
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Sandwich Old Harbor
Watch for birds working over bait being swept out from the marsh and surface feeding striped bass. Cast into the rip and allow lures to swing out of the flow. Surface poppers can be effective in the smoother water on either side of the rip. Also use soft plastics, flies, swimming plugs, jigs, metals, rigged eels. First light is best but fish may feed throughout the day, especially during cloudy conditions. When trolling, work along the drop off where the rip spreads out in 15 – 20 feet of water. Use wire line and umbrella rigs, large soft plastics, swimming plugs, metals, rigged eels, jigs. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°45.2’ N, 70°28.5’ W Best Tide: Outgoing; action slows at slack. Hazards: Very rough conditions develop here when the outgoing tide from the marsh is against the wind. Use caution in these conditions when approaching the strong rip.
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Scorton Ledge
This small shoal area is well known and may have many boats working the area when large stripers are present, which happens frequently in the summer and fall. Jigging wire is a very popular technique, with anglers trolling tubes, umbrella rigs and parachute Jigs. Lead core is an excellent option here for lighter gear as it’s not very deep. If using lead core, do you best to troll with the tide and take the boat out of gear when marking fish on the fish finder. This spot is very popular so get there early. Scorton Ledge is also an excellent starting point for tubing your way through many top striperproducing spots such as Sandy Neck, and Barnstable Harbor Entrance. Work your boat between 23 and 40 feet of water, watch your fish finder and drop to big fish. Anglers with rigged soft baits and live eels also run this stretch and drop to fish marked on the depth finder. • • •
Approx. Lat & Long: 41°45.5’ N, 70°25.5’ W Best tide: Outgoing; action slows at slack. Hazards: Many boats may be trolling this relatively small area.
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Sandy Neck
(1) Watch for birds working over bait and surface feeding stripers or bluefish. At the top of the tide drift along the beach and cast to any weed or gravel patches you see. Large 10inch and 14inch soft baits casted toward sure and fished with fast retrieve are top producers. (2) Work the contour along the entire length of the beach sig zagging between 15 and 35' of water.. Troll un-wieghted tubes with the tide on lead core line. It can also be productive to carefully troll the channel with the tide in and out of Barnstable Barbor. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°45’ x 70°20’ (approximate center of beach front, ¼ mile off shore) Best Tide: Mid-point incoming to high slack. Hazards: Few; some shallow water and sand bars 100 yards of the beach, exposed at low tide.
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Barnstable Harbor Entrance Channel
Many opportunities for sight casting. Follow the rising tide into the harbor, toward the shore of the south side Sandy Neck/interior marshes. Watch for birds working on bait and rising fish. Work the rips and edges with small soft plastics, small swimming plugs, jigs, or small surface lures. As the tide drops, concentrate on the channel. Near the bottom of the tide, work the grass patches a mile or more offshore and to the east of the main channel outside of the harbor. Troll the main channel from Beach Point out to the end of the marked channel. Use wire line and jigs, tubes, umbrella rigs, or large soft plastics. Heavy boat traffic here at times; stay to either side of the channel. • • •
Approx. Lat & Long: 41°45’ N, 70°16.2’ W Best Tide: Either but avoid last hour of outgoing into the first hour of incoming. Hazards: Rapidly dropping tide exposes bars and shallows; grounding possible.
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Brewster Flats
This large area is one of the most famous locations for sight casting to striped bass on Cape Cod. At the top of the tide fish may be anywhere on the flat (usually closer to shore) but as the tide recedes they will travel out in any of the myriad channels and depressions on the flats. Pay particular attention to weed patches, mussel beds, gravelly areas or anywhere with water that appears darker than the surrounding light sand. Drift with motor off to avoid spooking the fish. Use soft plastics, thin swimming plugs, thin metals or flies – anything that resembles a sand eel. Watch for diving seabirds and surface feeding bass. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°43.5’ x 70°06’ (approx. center of flats area) Best tide: Either, fish closer to shore as the tide floods, gradually move out to deeper water as the tide drops. Hazards: Few; grounding is possible on the sandy flats as the tide drops (as much as 1 foot every 15 minutes during moon tides).
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Billingsgate Shoal
Watch for birds diving on surface-feeding fish. Both stripers and bluefish feed on the surface here, especially at first light. Sand eels are the primary forage so cast soft plastics, slim profile swimming plugs, metals or flies. Billingsgate is one of the best-known locations in Cape Cod Bay to troll for striped bass. The standard technique is to use wire line outfits with 100 yards of wire and bounce jigs along the sandy bottom in deep water, or troll umbrella rigs. Observe the direction the local boats are trolling in relation to the tide direction. Approx. Lat & Long: 41°50.1’ N, 70°09’ W (Southwest End) Best tide: Outgoing; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. Many boats may be trolling in the same area.
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The Path
This stretch along the coast of Wellfleet and Truro is non descript but often holds big stripers. Stay in 10 – 15 feet of water when tide is high but move out as the tide drops and troll in 25 feet of water. Troll parallel to the shore. Use swimming plugs, large soft plastics, umbrella rigs. Observe the direction other boats are moving and follow (keep a respectful distance). Closer in to shore there are patches of weed and clear sand; sight cast here for cruising stripers using soft plastics, swimming plugs, surface swimmers, flies, metals. Fish will retreat to deeper water as the tide drops. Low light conditions are best although this makes sight casting more difficult. Always target weed patches or darker water. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°57’ x 70°05’ (approximate – general area is not well defined) Best tide: Outgoing. Hazards: Few, although there may be many boats trolling the same area.
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Wood End/Long Point
Drift along the beach (do not crowd surfcasters) and cast soft plastics, swimming plugs, metals, jigs or flies very close to shore and retrieve into the deeper water. Often, large bass and bluefish will be within a few feet or shore. A half mile or more south of Wood End is a good area to look for school bluefin tuna – cast large soft plastics, swimming plugs or metals at surface feeding fish. A very short distance from the beach the water depth drops quickly to 100 feet or more. Troll close to shore along the drop-off with wire line and large swimming plugs or large soft plastics for large stripers. Troll a mile or more off the beach for tuna with daisy chains, single rigged tuna lures, large soft plastics. • • •
Lat & Long: 42°01.1’ x 70°11’ Best tide: Outgoing. Hazards: Very strong tidal flow. Rough conditions develop with strong northwest winds.
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Herring Cove
Watch for surface feeding striped bass or bluefish. Work the sand flats off Hatches Harbor where large bass may be in shallow water. Fishes best in low light conditions. Use soft plastics, popping plugs, swimming plugs, flies. Troll along the steep drop-off ,well out from the beach where the water depth drops from 20 feet to over 100 feet. Use large swimming plugs, metals, jigs, soft plastics on wire line. If weather and wave action permits, drift near the drop off in 20 feet of water and fish the bottom with fresh sand eel rigs, or bounce jigs on the bottom for large stripers and bluefish. Very large fluke are caught here on occasion, too. • • •
Lat & Long: 42°03’ x 70°14’ Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few except large waves can be present during a northeast storm; water may be very weedy after a storm or prolonged east or northeast wind.
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Peaked Hill Bar
Peaked Hill bar holds some fantastic striper fishing, where many anglers successfully troll and jig the 25-foot dip between the Bar and beach. Peaked Hill bar is known for its tuna holding ability in the deeper water north of the bar. It is easily accessed from Stellwagen Bank and consistently holds bluefin tuna. Boats often make the loop from SW Corner of Stellwagen Bank, Wood End, and Peaked Hill Bar. Many boats will troll squid rigs, kite live pogies or site cast for breaking bluefin tuna. Watch for breaking fish, which could be stripers, bluefish or even school bluefin tuna. Have a variety of lures and outfits ready. Large soft plastics, jigs, swimming plugs and poppers will work. If no fish are showing and sea conditions allow, drift the outer edge of the bar and bounce large jigs along the sandy bottom, or cast plugs into the wash along the beach and retrieve into deeper water. Troll the 25-foot dip between the Bar and beach with wire line; use large swimming plugs, metals, large soft plastics, tubes or jigs. • • •
Lat & Long: 42°05.8’ x 70°11’ (northwest end) Best Tide: Outgoing; action slows at slack. Hazards: Very large ocean swells may be present; water may be filled with weed and unfishable after sustained easterly wind or storms. Seals may be a nuisance.
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Inside Chatham Harbor and Pleasant Bay
Casting: Drift and cast along the channel between Chatham Harbor entrance and the new break in Nauset Beach. Low light conditions best due to boat traffic during the day in the summer. Same strategy in channel along the marshes and east side of Strong Island. Use small soft plastics, small popping plugs, flies, shallow running swimming plugs. School size bass may be feeding on the surface anywhere inside Pleasant Bay and Little Pleasant Bay at first light on summer mornings. Trolling: Light line trolling with any of the above lures can be effective in any of the channels. • • •
Lat and Long: 41°41’ x 69°56.5’ (Chatham Harbor) Best Tide: Incoming; action slows at slack. Hazards: Strong tidal flow at harbor entrance and at new cut in barrier beach across from Allen Point. Shallow sand bars throughout interior Pleasant Bay. Depths and bottom topography are constantly changing so charts may not be accurate.
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Great Point Rip
Watch for surface action from blues and stripers. Use surface plugs, metals, jigs, swimming plugs. In recent years, bluefish show up in May before the stripers. Striper fishing is the strongest here in June. Amber colored Hogy in 10" and 7" are hugely popular when there is a squid bight. Work the steep drop off along the northwest side of the rip with large swimming plugs, jigs or metals on wire line. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°24’ x 70°02’ Best Tide: Either. Hazards: Strong rip; large ocean swells at times. Huge seal colony at Great Point has severely affected the fishing here in recent years.
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Sankaty Light/East Side
Watch for surface action – this is a prime area for very large bluefish. Use poppers, metals, shallow swimming plugs for blues. Bass may be present; low light conditions best, use large soft plastics, swimming plugs, surface plugs. Bait not advised due to presence of many dogfish and seals. Troll against the current along the beach in 15 – 20 feet of water with swimming plugs, tubes or jigs. Fish may be present anywhere from Sankaty Light to Great Point. Beware large swells but drifting and bouncing jigs or baited hooks along the bottom may yield fluke and sea bass. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°17’ x 69°57.5’ (Sankaty Light) Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Large ocean swells at times. Dense fog at times in the summer. Seals can be a nuisance.
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Old Man Shoal
With boat under power, stand well off the rip and cast toward it with large soft plastics, swimming plugs, metals or popping plugs, allowing lures to swing into the rip. Well known but sometimes hazardous location for large striped bass and large bluefish. Troll in deep water well off the rip on the down-tide side using large lures on wire line. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°13’ x 69°59.5’ Best Tide: Outgoing. Hazards: Very strong rip with large standing waves at strongest portion of the tide; very large ocean swells may be present. Dangerous to approach in small craft.
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Miacomet Rip
With boat under power, stand well off the rip and cast toward it with large soft plastics, swimming plugs, metals or popping plugs, allowing lures to swing into the rip. Well known but sometimes hazardous location for large striped bass and large bluefish. Troll in deep water well off the rip on the down-tide side using large lures on wire line. Top Hogy Lures Picks 7” and 10” Original Hogys (bone, amber, bubblegum) for casting on weighted and unweighted Hogy swim bait hooks • SI Perfect Tubes and Jiggn’ Hogys on Hogy Jig Heads, fished on wire line when trolling. •
• • •
Lat & Long: 41°14’ x 70°06.5’ Best tide: Incoming. Hazards: Very strong rip with large standing waves at strongest portion of the tide; very large ocean swells may be present. Dangerous to approach in small craft.
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Bonito Bar
Well known location for bonito and sometimes school bluefin tuna. Use flies, small soft plastics, small jigs and swimming plugs. Fishes best on days when the wind is light and chop is small. Traditionally, boats will anchor instead of trolling or drifting so more boats can fish at the same time. Sand bars move around, so be very care fishing at the Bonito Bar. Big waves can leave you with no water very easily. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°16’ x 70°13.5’ Best Tide: The incoming tide is the most popular for bonito. Hazards: Few; heavy boat traffic in mid-summer when bonito are known to be in the area. Large swells from offshore may be present.
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Tuckernuck Bank
Fishing Strategy: Casting: Good area for drifting and sight casting with light line and small soft plastics, small swimming lures or jigs, popping lures for stripers and bluefish. Bonito and false albacore will cruise these flats from mid-summer into the fall. Trolling: Troll light lines along the 10-foot contour (north side) along Tuckernuck and Muskeget islands for stripers and bluefish. Use soft plastics, shallow running swimming plugs, metals or jigs. Drifting/bottom fishing: Drift or anchor in the 25-foot deep water between Tuckernuck Bank and Tuckernuck Shoal and fish the bottom for large scup, sea bass and fluke. Be sure to have casting gear ready for stripers, bluefish or bonito that may appear in this channel. Top Hogy Lures Picks ▪ ▪
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6” and 9” Hogy Skinnies Hogy Sand Eels rigged on Hogy unweighted swim bait hooks.
Lat & Long: 41°20’ x 70°15’ Best tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. Dense fog can develop in the summer. Very shallow water in places can result in grounding on the sand bottom. WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
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Monomoy Flats
Famous area for sight casting with flies and small lures. Sand eels are the primary forage. Stripers will be scattered over the flats at high tide but will begin retreating to deeper water as tide drops – look for deeper areas between flats. Stealth is vital to success. Fish are constantly on the move and may be found anywhere along the 7-mile length of the west side of North and South Monomoy. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°38’ x 70°01’ Best Tide: Outgoing; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. Heavy, dense fog can develop in the summer; rapidly dropping tide can result in grounding. If seals are present, move to another area of the flats.
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Bishop and Clerks
Cast swimming plugs, soft plastics, metals, jigs and flies into the small rip for stripers and bluefish. Early morning and low light conditions best due to heavy boat traffic. Anchor on the east side of the shoal to be out of the narrow channel. Fish in 20 – 30 feet of water near buoy “1” for fluke (use squid strips), sea bass or tautog (use crabs or sea worms). • • •
Lat & Long: 41°34.5’ x 70°15’ Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Heavy boat traffic including ferries to and from Nantucket. A few boulders in shallow water.
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Succonnessett Shoal
Bluefish and striped bass may be anywhere in or adjacent to the rip – look for diving birds or baitfish near the surface. False albacore and bonito later in the season. Popping plugs, metals, swimming plugs, flies recommended. Troll south side of the rip from buoy “12” to buoy “6” (Wreck Shoal) in same direction as the tide, following 15 – 20 foot contour. Use deep diving plugs or swimming plugs, metals or large soft plastics on wire line. A favorite area to bottom fish for large fluke (use cut squid). Fish depths of 15 – 30 feet on the north side of the rip. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°31.5’ x 70°29’ Best Tide: Either but incoming is best in the spring and early summer. Action slows at slack. Hazards: Very rough conditions develop when a strong tide is in opposition to wind direction.
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L’Hommedieu Shoal
Look for diving birds or surface feeding fish. Stripers in this area in the Spring when squid are present. Bluefish show up soon after, bonito and false albacore later in the summer. Use soft plastics, surface lures, small jigs, metals, swimming plugs, flies. Location (1) is locally known as Halfway Shoal, and is a very popular spring time striper spot. Fish this area with 3 or 4oz parachute jigs. Plenty of big stripers but bluefish are mixed in. Drift on north side of rip in 15 – 30 feet of water, bottom fish for large fluke. Deep jigging with large metal jigs for large bluefish and occasional stripers. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°31.5’ x 70°31’ Best Tide: Incoming. Action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. A fair amount of boat traffic on summer weekends. Wind against a strong tide can produce short, high chop.
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Hedge Fence
From mid-summer into the fall Hedge Fence is a popular area for those seeking bonito and false albacore. Bluefish are also frequently present. Diving birds may indicate presence of fish. Use small soft plastics, small swimming plugs, small jigs, flies. Troll along down-tide side of rip in 12 – 20 feet of water. A popular area to fish the bottom for large fluke and sea bass. Drift on the down-tide side of the rip in 20 – 40 feet of water. Near the western end of the shoal (near buoy “RG” ) is the remains of the ship Port Hunter in about 20 feet of water. (1) Excellent Sea bass fishing in this region. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°29.4’ x 70°32’ Best Tide: Incoming. Action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. A fair amount of boat traffic on summer weekends. Wind against a strong tide can produce short, high chop.
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Squash Meadow
Fishing Strategy: Casting: Although relative small in area, this shoal about a mile east of Oak Bluffs is another prime area to look for bonito and false albacore from mid-summer into the fall. Use flies, small soft plastics, small jigs, small metal lures. Watch for birds diving to indicate fish. Best strategy is to quietly drift and wait for the fish to surface nearby rather than “run and gun.” (1) Great area for sea Bass fishing (2) Bonito and albies hang around the steamship docks. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°28’ x 70°28’ Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. Some boat traffic at height of summer season.
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East and West Chop (1) West Chop: The rip off West Chop is an excellent spring and early summer spot to troll for striped bass. The most popular way to jig for stripers hear is to run short s-curves in front of the rip. The water is often weedy hear, but well worth the effort. Live bait angles do wll her drifting with live scup. This area also holds large fluke, sea bass and porgies. (2) Vineyard Haven Harbor: This is a prime area to look for bonito and false albacore from mid-summer into the fall. Use flies, small soft plastics, small jigs, small metal lures. Watch for birds diving to indicate fish. (3) East Chop: Bonito and albies often congregate off the steam ship docs. (4) In deeper water, there is some fantastic early spring sea bass fishing. You'll see the fleet, but if not, look for good structure and or any of the small wrecks you might find on your fish finder. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°29’ x 70°34.5’ Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Heavy boat traffic (including ferries) in the summer.
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Norton Point
Fishing strategy: (1) Work close to shore casting soft plastics, eels, swimming plugs, flies or surface lures. Thoroughly work the rocks around the point but also cast and drift along the shore southwest through Lambert’s Cove, and north to the entrance to Tashmoo. (2) The boulder field in about 45-65 feet of water near the "Bow Bell" is a popular place to fish chunk baits, live eels and pogies but tt is also productive to target stripers you see on your fish finder with vertical jigs. (3) In slightly closer, but in deeper water (80-100 feet deep) anglers target large fluke and sea bass. (4) The shallow flats can be productive fluke grounds. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°28.8’ x 70°41’ Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few. Scattered boulders close to shore.
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Menemsha Bight
Fishing Strategy: (1) Excellent area for sight casting flies, soft plastics, small swimming plugs, metals over boulders, eel grass and mussel beds a few hundred yards off the beach. Work entire shoreline from entrance of Menemsha harbor to Gay Head. (2) Stripers and bluefish are present throughout the season but area is best known for bonito and false albacore from mid-summer into the fall. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°21.5’ x 70°48’ Best Tide: Outgoing (west) until slack high. Hazards: Few except possible heavy boat traffic on summer weekends.
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Squibnocket
(1) Cast large soft plastics, eels, swimming plugs or surface plugs close to shore. If large ocean swells are breaking at the point, stay well out and cast into the wash created by the breaking waves. (2) Troll in an easterly/westerly direction along the 10 – 15 foot deep hump approx. 300 yards off the point. (3) Anchor anywhere around Old Man shoal in 30 feet of water and fish chunk baits on the bottom or speed jig for large stripers. Also work the Old Man shoal adjacent to can “3” approx. half way between the Point and Noman’s Land island. Use tubes, large soft plastics or deep diving plugs on wire line. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°22’ x 70°48’ Best Tide: Outgoing to low slack. Hazards: Large boulders off Squibnocket Point; strong rip close to shore combined with waves and swells from offshore will try to push your boat into the boulder field at the Point.
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HOGY DOWNLOAD GUIDE TO THE TOP 63 BOAT FISHING SPOTS AROUND CAPE COD
Noman’s Land Island
Fishing Strategy: (1) Casting: Stripers may be present literally anywhere along the rocky shores. Cast large soft plastics, eels, shallow running swimming plugs or surface lures very close to the shore and retrieve out into deeper water. (2) Trolling: Work the entire circumference, slowing trolling large soft plastics, rigged eels, large swimming plugs or tubes, following 15-foot contour. The south side is a top producer for very large stripers on tube and worm. (3) Drifting: North side of the island is best if large swells are present as the island offers some protection. Drift in 20 – 25 feet of water and fish chunk baits on the bottom or deep jig for stripers. Use squid strips for large fluke and sea bass. Written By Capt. Terry Nugent: Noman’s Land is an island that lies 3 miles off the SW corner of Martha’s Vineyard. This uninhabited islands was a bombing range for the military but is now a bird sanctuary. They entire island is off limits to people due to possible unexploded bombs. The waters around the island however are a fisherman’s dream. The islands rocky shore holds stripers, blues, sea bass, scup and tautog in some Jurassic sizes. While any spot along the shore of the islands can hold a trophy I prefer to fish the south facing shore for bass and bluefish. The SW ledge holds some of the largest specimens of bottom fish you can imagine. Tuna and shark also frequent the waters around the island so you never know what you might find on a trip here. I like to start looking for striper and blues around Nomans in mid / late May and tings really heat up by mid-June. The more popular ways to fish the rocky shoreline of the island include casting large top water plugs and big surface rubber baits (a personal favorite), drifting live eels or chunk WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
HOGY DOWNLOAD GUIDE TO THE TOP 63 BOAT FISHING SPOTS AROUND CAPE COD
baits over the near shore ledges and trolling wire line. Just be aware of the large number of lobster pots in the area if you’re planning to troll. As long as you have moving water the tide doesn’t seem to matter much out here, and when the tide slows up a short run of a mile or two from shore will offer you a strong chance of finding surface feeding tuna. When you’re fishing the south side of the island be VERY aware of the ocean swells that roll up onto the beach. More than one boat has been caught by one of these large waves and smashed onto the rocky shore of the island. After the passing of an offshore storm the south side of the island will often be unfishable even when inshore waters are flat calm. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°15.6’ x 70°50.4’ Best Tide: Any, action slows at slack Hazards: Boulders close to shore; prevailing southwest wind of summer and large ocean swells make fishing the south shore dangerous.
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HOGY DOWNLOAD GUIDE TO THE TOP 63 BOAT FISHING SPOTS AROUND CAPE COD
Devil’s Bridge
Fishing strategy: Written By Capt. Terry Nugent Devils Bridge is a long shoal that runs northwest from Gay Head on Martha’s Vineyard towards the island of Cuttyhunk. It can be accessed most readily from Menemsha Pond on Martha’s Vineyard and the ramps inside the pond. From the mainland Falmouth Harbor or any of the ports around New Bedford offer the shortest run to this corner of the island. Close to the shoreline of Martha’s Vineyard the water is relatively shallow averaging around 10-25 feet deep. Farther from shore the depths increase drastically to nearly 100 feet deep out near the “31 Can” (A green nav buoy designated as #31). Due to the variety of depths on this piece of structure styles of fishing it can vary greatly. But one thing is always a constant and that is the need for moving water. This spot is EXTREMELY tide dependent. I’ve found that the faster the water moves through this area the better it fishes. I have not found the direction of the water flow to matter all that much. I do prefer a west running tide to the east running tide but I have had excellent results on both flows. I prefer to fish “The Bridge” starting around the middle of May. Typically this area is loaded with bait and in particular herring and squid. I try to plan my trips around the current flow of the rip and most tide/current charts use the 31 Can as a reference to water moment in the area. I like to arrive about 45 minutes after the turn of the tide so the water is moving nicely and it starts to show a visible standing rip along the shoal. As I said this shoal can be fished in a variety of ways based on your preference. Many people choose to troll wire inside along the shallower portions of the rip. Drifting live or chunk baits across any portion of the rip is always a great way to put up big numbers of quality fish. Of course casting at surface feeding fish, especially in the dawn and dusk periods is always an option. The method I prefer the most in this area is vertical jigging the deeper section of the shoal. This gets me out of the crowds trolling the WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
HOGY DOWNLOAD GUIDE TO THE TOP 63 BOAT FISHING SPOTS AROUND CAPE COD
shallow water and offers me a great chance for landing big bass on fairly light tackle. Metal, Lead and Rubber jigs in the 2-8 oz. range are my preferred lures on “The Bridge”. When the squid are thick it’s hard to be a White Spro Bucktail with a white pork rind trailer. When the herring are thick nothing will out fish a SI Hammered Diamond jig. Adjust the jigs weight based on the speed of the drift and the current. The technique we employ here is to get the jig to the bottom as quickly as possible and just bump the jig along the sandy bottom. ALWAYS maintain contact with the bottom or you’ll likely be cut off by the mid water bluefish. This may sound easy to do but it’s a fairly advanced technique. Due to the rapid change in depth as you cross over the shoal in conjunction with the often very speeding drift, tending bottom takes allot of skill and finesse. Those that can get a feel for this bottom bouncing will be rewarded with great numbers of big bass. Fail to master the technique and baring a few bluefish you will swear this place is barren of fish. (HINT) a really good sonar with the bottom lock turned on will give you a real advantage here! • • •
Lat & Long: 41°21.8’ x 70°51.8’ Best Tide: West (outgoing) Hazards: Shallow reef running northwest off the northwest corner of Martha’s Vineyard, about ¼ mile long with depth gradually dropping off. Large boulders 100 – 200 yards off the shore. Strong rip develops at peak of the tide with large standing waves when prevailing summer southwest breeze is against the dropping (west ) tide. Large swells from offshore break around the point and over the boulders at times.
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Lucas Shoal
Lucas is a premier location for large fluke and sea bass, and in the very deep holes (75 to almost 90 feet) between eastern side of the shoal and the shore of Martha’s Vineyard anglers fish chunk baits on the bottom or use heavy jigs for large stripers. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°26’ x 70°45’ Best Tide: Either tide (incoming or outgoing) fishes well; action will be slow at slack. Hazards: Few. Large waves and confused, short chop can develop when a strong breeze is blowing in opposition to tide direction. Moderate boat traffic, heavier on weekends in the summer.
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Middle Ground
(1) Casting: Keep boat on smooth side of rip, cast soft plastics (especially in the spring when large squid are present), jigs, large streamer flies or swimming plugs into the smoother side of the rip and allow them to drift or slowly swim over the area where depth changes and choppy water is present. The water on Middle Ground can be exceptionally weedy, so weddles rigged soft plastics will greatly up your game. Amber and bubble gum soft-baits are excellent colors to imitate squid. (2) Trolling: Fish weedless rigged softbaits on swimbait hooks on leadcore in the rips. Be sure to jig these baits like you would wire line to shake off any weed. This is an incredibly deadly technique. (3) The water gets a little deeper further west on Middle Ground. Stay a hundred yards off the rip line on the smooth side, proceed slowly in an S-pattern that allows any lures listed above to climb up the side of the drop off, then fall back over. Anglers will also fish for fluke in this area. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°29’ x 70°38’ Best Tide: Either tide (incoming or outgoing) fishes well; action will be slow at slack. Hazards: Few. Strong wind against tide can produce large standing waves at the edge of the rip line. Boat traffic and fishing activity can be heavy, especially on weekends in the summer. Water can be very weedy at times.
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Nobska Point
(1) Cast soft plastics, live eels, shallow running plugs or surface plugs into any breaks in tidal flow and around rocks. Drift with the tide and cast toward shore. In the fall, bonito and albies stage out front. Make long drifts with lots of blind casts. (2) Troll the 20-foot contour around the point, same direction as the tide. A large rip develops during a strong tide running away from the point – follow it using wire line for deeper presentation of jigs, large soft plastics, deep swimming plugs. Without a doubt, this is a big bait spot. Fish Nobska the same way you would fish the Elizabeth Islands, which means large soft baits such as the 14" Original. For whatever reason, bubble gum and bone work the best here, even after dark. When the bonito and albies show up in September, be armed and ready with a medium sized soft bait, such as the 7" Hogy Original Amber, or 20 Gram SI Epoxy Jig in sand eel. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°30.4’ x 70°39.5’ Best Tide: West (outgoing) Hazards: A few large boulders 50 – 100 yards off shore, easy to spot by breaks in the current. Many large rocks close to shore. Strong current at height of tide.
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Lackey’s Bay
Casting: (1) Cast around rock piles and along shore inside the bay using shallow running lures, large soft baits or live eels for stripers. Best tide to fish this is on high dropping to low. Also an onshore wind is ideal. The entire shoreline all the way to Tarpaulin Cove is productive striper country. (2) The region in front of Lackey's Bay is a well-known area for bonito and false albacore later in the season. Large soft baits fish at high speed are top producers if eels are not available.
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Trolling: (3) Use large swimming plugs, tube and worm or rigged eels along the outside of the bay, on wire line or with trolling weights to get them deep. Best bet is to troll with the tide. Drifting: Drift just outside of center rock pile and bottom fish for large scup, sea bass, tautog and occasional fluke. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°30’ N, 70°42’ W Best Tide: Mid-point of outgoing (west) to slack low. Hazards: Many rocks up to 100 yards off west corner (Jobs Neck); large rock pile visible at middle of entrance to the bay. Rocks scattered inside bay but generally closer to shore. Enter the bay on either side of center rock pile at entrance but give the pile wide berth.
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Cuttyhunk
Drift along either side of island and cast toward shore, landing lures or live eels as close to shore as possible or around submerged boulders off shore. Soft plastics, swimming plugs, surface swimmers, large streamer flies, live eels and poppers will produce. Tube and worm trolled in 12 – 20 feet of water along either side of island (Vineyard Sound side generally considered best). Large swimming plugs on wire line in deeper water and along Sow and Pigs reef. • • •
Approx. Lat & Long: 41°25’ x 70°56’ Best Tide: Outgoing (west) along island; Incoming (east) at Sow and Pigs reef. Hazards: Numerous large rocks along island, some 100 yards or more off shore along Vineyard Sound side. Strong tidal flow and large swells may be present. Line of rocks just below surface at Sow and Pigs reef – this is a particularly dangerous area when wind is strong and large swells break over the reef.
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Quicks Hole
Casting: Work along the rocks on either side, concentrating on small rips that form around larger rocks on the corners of both sides of the Hole. Diving birds may give away presence of fish just below the surface anywhere in Quicks Hole – these may be bass, bluefish or false albacore/bonito later in the summer and fall. Soft plastics, swimming plugs, flies, poppers and live eels recommended. Trolling: Tubes on light lines trolled along the edges of either island; larger lures on wire line throughout the Hole, especially in area of Felix Ledge and North Rock. When heavy currents are present, troll with the tide. Anchoring/drifting: Fish chunk baits on the bottom at Felix Ledge for stripers; seaworms and squid strips for large fluke and sea bass in 30 feet of the water on the Vineyard Sound side. • • •
•
Approximate Lat & Long: 41° 26’ N, 70°48’ W Best Tide: Incoming (east) best in spring, outgoing (west) best in summer and fall. Slack tide poor at any point in the season. Hazards: Rocks close to either shore; shallow line of rocks approx. 200 yards west of southwest corner of Pasque island. Watch for variations in current flow that indicate barely submerged boulders. Tide Chart: Click Here WWW.SALTYCAPE.COM Powered by Hogy
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Robinson’s Hole
Casting: Cast toward the shore, land lure or eel as close in as possible. Work all rocky shorelines. Structure facing onshore breezes will produce more fish. Fish the east corner of the Sound side on a west running tide. Robinson’s Hole often holds top water schooling fish. Soft plastics, swimming plugs, live eels, flies, surface swimming plugs and poppers all work here. Trolling: Locate a “hump” on the bottom due south of the southern point of Pasque Island with a depth of about 25 feet (surrounding water ranges from 30 – 45 feet). Use wire line and fish large soft plastics, tubes or large jigs here. Troll in the same direction as the current. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°27’ N, 70°48’ W Best Tide: Mid-point of incoming (east) until slack high Hazards: Numerous rocks, most marked on chart. Beware of shallow shelf at narrowest point in the Hole adjacent to Pasque Island. Large swells can be present on the Vineyard Sound side, especially on incoming tide and a southwest wind.
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Tarpaulin Cove
Cast close to shore around rocks on either side; the rock pile below the lighthouse is a particularly good spot. This spot consistently holds small fish in the day, particularly in the spring. Later in the summer, it’s a good starting point for fishing your way down the Elizabeth Islands. It's better in the evening with 10” and 14” soft plastics. In the fall, keep an eye out for bonito and false albacore cruising down the sound side. It's also worth trying to cast live eels rigged on 6/0 live bait hooks into the rocks and slowly retrieve. If you feel a tap or bump, put reel into free-spool and count to three before setting hook. Troll tubes on light tackle all along the shore. A large rip develops a few hundred yards off the southwest corner of cove, running out into Vineyard Sound -- jigs and large swimming plugs are ideal. As with all trolling spots along the Elizabeth islands, troll slowly & with the tide. For bottom fish, anchor/drift in 15 – 20 feet of water anywhere in the cove and fish sea worms or squid strips for fluke, sea bass or big scup. Green crabs work best for tautog. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°28’ N, 70°45’ W Best Tide: Mid-point of incoming (east) until slack high. Hazards: Shallow, rocky bottom along northeast side.
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Hog Island Channel/Onset Bay Entrance Flats
Watch for diving gulls and terns indicating surface feeding stripers and bluefish, especially in the spring and fall when thousands of fish are migrating through the Cape Cod Canal. At other times, cast along the steep drop off along Hog Island and on the flats on the opposite side of the channel. Soft plastics, swimming plugs, poppers and flies will produce. When trolling, use wire line or lead core and troll along either side of the channel. Tube and worm rigs, large jigs, deep diving swimming plugs and large soft plastics work best. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 70°38.5’ N, 41°43.5’ W Best Tide: Incoming (east) in spring; outgoing (west) in summer and fall. Hazards: Heavy boat traffic including barges under tow. Very strong tidal flow. Submerged boulders close to shore. Very shallow water on Onset Bay entrance flats at the bottom of the tide.
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Old Canal Channel/Monument Beach
Big stripers can often be found on the flats between the old Cape Cod Canal channel (1) and the shore of Toby's Island. Blind casting with soft plastics, poppers, swimming plugs or flies will produce; low light conditions best before heavy boat traffic starts. When trolling, watch depth finder to ensure you are follow the relatively narrow channel (2) and use wire or lead core lines to get your lure close to the bottom in the 23 – 30-foot depths. Troll from southwest point on Wings Neck into Phinney’s Harbor. Tube and worm rigs, medium and large size soft plastics and deep running swimming plugs recommended. To catch bottom fish, bounce bait rigs and baited jigs along the bottom of the channel for large fluke, scup and sea bass. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°42.2’ N, 70°42.5 W Best Tide: Incoming in the spring; outgoing in summer and fall. Hazards: Few. Scattered boulders on the flats off nearby Tobys Island.
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Bird Island
Bird Island is a good bet for big stripers, especially in the spring and fall during the striped bass migration as thousands of fish traverse the nearby Cape Cod Canal. Cast large soft plastics, surface swimming plugs, poppers, flies, live eels into the shallows around the numerous rocks (1). Watch for diving birds in the late summer and fall that may indicate false albacore. Trolling: Unweighted tubes on light lines in water depths of 12 – 20 feet (2); large soft plastics, rigged eels and swimming plugs effective. Drifting/Bottom Fishing: Work the deeper water (20 – 30 feet) to the south and west of the island for large sea bass. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°40.2’ N, 71°43’ W Best Tide: Outgoing (west) until slack except incoming in the spring during striped bass migration. Hazards: numerous boulders in relatively shallow water approx. 50 – 100 yards out all around the island.
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Cleveland Ledge
This is the premier area in Buzzards Bay for sea bass. Locate the 16-foot humps north of the lighthouse and on the opposite (west) side of the channel (1). Use squid strips, cut bait, jigs bounced along the rocky bottom. • • •
Approximate Lat & Long: 41°37.9’ x 70°41.5’ Best Tide: Outgoing until slack. Hazards: Large, ocean-going ships travel the channel here. Do not fish in the channel. Be especially cautious in foggy conditions.
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West Falmouth Harbor Entrance & Little Island
At first light cast soft plastics, poppers, swimming plugs, flies along the jetty at the end of the harbor and into the rocks on Little Island and on the opposite side of the channel along Chapaquoit Island for stripers. Diving birds anywhere off the end of the harbor usually indicates feeding bluefish or schoolie stripers. Bonito and false albacore are caught here in late summer and fall. To troll, use unweighted tube and worm rigs on mono or braid in water depths of 6 – 15 feet. Soft plastics, swimming plugs, rigged eels also effective. Anchor or drift outside the marked channel in depths of 12 – 25 feet for prolific scup and occasional fluke. Use squid strips. Sea bass may be present in deeper water off Little Island.
Top Hogy Lures Picks • • •
7” or 10” Originals 6” Skinnies Hogy Sand Eels if small bait is present.
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Black Beach Flats, West Falmouth
Good location for sight casting – mixed bottom of clear sand, mussel and gravel beds and weed beds. Look for birds feeding on small bait flushed from nearby marshes with fish below. Smaller size soft plastics, swimming plugs, flies, poppers all work at times. Low light conditions best, especially pre-dawn and dawn. Troll by using unweighted tube and worm rigs on mono or braid in water depths of 6 – 15 feet. Soft plastics, swimming plugs, rigged eels also effective. This is an excellent area for fluke, scup and sea bass. Work the 20-foot depths around Great Sippewisset Rock with squid strips or small baitfish on jigs bounced along the bottom. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°35.5’ x 70°39.5’ Best Tide: Either; action slows at slack. Hazards: Few except a large boulder shown on charts as Great Sippewisset Rock, about ¼ mile off the shore, marked by a privately maintained buoy in the summer and a few scattered boulders close to shore.
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Quissett Harbor Entrance
The shallow water with eel grass and boulders on the north side of the channel entrance often holds large stripers in low light conditions – first light is best. Use soft plastics, surface swimming plugs, shallow running swimming plugs, flies, surface poppers. Watch for birds working surface feeding bluefish and school bass at the entrance of the harbor and inside in the cove below the gold course on the south side. Bonito and false albacore often show up at the harbor entrance in late summer and fall. To troll, use tubes, soft plastics, swimming plugs on lead core trolling line and follow the 20-foot contour from the Knob, north along the shore toward Gunning Point (beware of large boulders) for large stripers; low light conditions best. For bottom fish like black sea bass and scup, drift or anchor in 20 feet of water outside the harbor to the north or south and fish squid strips for fluke, scup and seabass; green crabs for tautog near any rocks. Hogy’s Best Bet: This area can be a hot spot for bonito and albies. Two lures that should be in every angler's box for the Buzzard's Bay bonito and albies. 1) The 7" Original in Amber and 2) The SI Epoxy Jig. Keep your rod tip low to the water and twitch as you retrieve. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°32.5’ x 70°40’ Best Tide: Outgoing until slack Hazards: Shallow, rocky water on the north side of the channel. Much boat traffic during the day in the summer.
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Weepecket Islands
Fishing strategy: Casting: Although striped bass and bluefish can be found close to the shore of any of the three small islands the largest holds the most fish. Cast popping plugs, swimming plugs, soft plastics, flies in tight to the shores. South end of largest island has a rip running across the boulder field, cast into it and allow lure to swing into the deeper water. Live eels not recommended here due to large bird colonies on each island that will try to intercept cast live baits. Trolling: Best trolling in the channel between the largest Weepecket and the north shore of Naushon Island. Use lead core or wire line and troll large soft plastics, swimming plugs or jigs. Troll in the same direction as the current. Bottom fishing: Drift or anchor near any of the islands in 15 – 30 feet of water; in Spring and Fall use crabs for large tautog. Cut squid will catch fluke and sea bass. Fishing chunk baits on the bottom off the northern most island after dark may yield very large stripers. • • •
Lat & Long: 41°31’ x 70° 44’ Best Tide: Outgoing to slack. Hazards: Scattered boulders close to each island.
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