New England - Cape Cod and the Islands Fishing Reports

Capt. Sebastian of Fish Linked Charters was boxing tog and jumbo scup after a morning of catching stripers and blues in the west end of the canal. There are more and more opportunities for surface feeding bass and albies right out the slip in his marina. Give him a call to get in on the action.

The word from Tony at Maco?s Bait & Tackle was of a much improved tautog fishery and some of their regulars are fishing the maritime and scoring on legal tog up to 5 and 6 pounds. The canal bite has been keeping the regulars busy with a good mix of species and a bite that has produced numerous near slots and a few well over the 31-inch maximum. The area from Plymouth to the Barnstable Harbor area has been producing for boats that can locate a school of pogies where they are able to extract a few nice bass under almost all of them.

Conner at Red Top Sporting Goods said the canal has been producing a consistent bite of stripers from schoolies to slots and we saw photos of several over-slot bass during the week. There are albies in the canal and those people who stopped into the shop for albie gear before hitting the water were glad they did. With the addition of blues and the occasional bonito the action from west to east has been very good.

The Derby is in full swing, and Steve from Dick?s Bait and Tackle told us about his friend Bill Potter trolling himself into first place in the albie division of the Derby with a whopping 19.21-pound albie that fell just ounces shy of the state record. Albies and bones are a prime target, but big blues are always a possibility and Steve, and his son Chris spent a night slinging eels and catching bass up to 20-pounds. The surf guys say the night bite has been slow but for those who work at it the effort pays off. Tog are still available off the rocky north shore if you can find a day when the wind isn?t cranking.

The canal continues to produce fish and Jeff from Canal Bait & Tackle has been seeing that in the results of his regulars that put in their time at the right places with the right tackle. Blues and albies are also moving up and down the ditch. You can usually find some of their crew discussing the canal fishing at his shop after a morning?s effort. This is usually a good place to pick up some advice.

Christian and the crew from Falmouth Bait & Tackle were busy installing new gear and repairing old as the storm roared up the coast towards the Cape. Offshore fishing was taking a break and the best action was inside the harbors and inlets for albies, bones and schoolies. If you haven?t looked at a calendar the season is waning, and this might be a good time to stop in to the shop to update your tackle and gear up for what appears to be a great fall run.

Capt. Skip Bandini of Fish Bandit Charters was able to squeeze in a few trips this week before the storm shut down all boat traffic and fishing in his area. If you are thinking about fishing the Derby, Skip has the boat and the knowledge to put you in a good spot to claim a daily or weekly prize. He is most familiar with the Vineyard and knows all the hot spots. Put together a crew and give him a call.

Gary from the Sports Port said the storm and monsoon winds put a hurt on the boat owners hoping to fish the rips and inlets for bones and albies during the weekend. Heavy rains and gusty winds sent surf fishermen to rivers, inlets and jetties where the albies and a few bones have been caught since the wind began honking. They have a great selection of freshwater gear which is where many of their clientele head with the ocean gets angry. Some nice black bass and big pickerel have been taken along with a few nice hold-over trout.

Capt. Seamus Muldoon of Jailbreak Charters said he has been catching stripers in the rips up until the storm moved in and created some ugly conditions. He has openings for stripers, tuna and cod. On a wet and blustery weekend he was working with his bid dog in anticipation of the opening of the bird season.

Ian at the Goose Hummock Shop and his friend didn?t let the weather kill their fishing plans. While the boats that work the rips and the offshore fleet were tight to the docks he was getting his feet wet in the surf, catching lots of fun fish that are gorging on peanuts on both sides of the Cape. The albies are still around the Bass River and Cotuit as well as Falmouth shores but some have moved out of the canal and are in and around Barnstable Harbor. If you believe that falling barometers make fishing better this is a very good time to wet a line.

The tautog fishing gets better every day and Capt. Jason of Little Sister Charters has got the photos and scars from filling gallon bags with fillets. There are openings on his open boat schedule, and he has been getting out to deeper waters and bailing cod, many of which are heavy markets and the occasional steaker. What you have on your to-do list can?t be any more important than fishing. Give him a call.

Capt. John of Grey Dolphin Sportfishing is ready to take you fishing at the head of the Cape where the fall runs begins. Give him a call to get your party aboard.