New England - South Shore Massachusetts to Maine Fishing Reports

Seamus at Belsan’s Bait said everyone is striper fishing and it seems like everyone is catching fish. There was a catch and release striper local tournament over the weekend and the leaderboard was stacked with stripers from 40 inches up to the winning fish at 47 inches. There are still lots of mackerel around, mostly offshore, but they are all horse-sized and not attracting the attention of many striped bass. The best methods for catching big bass have been using eel-like soft plastics, or live eels. Low light periods and through the night have been the best times to hook a big bass. They had also heard the reports of the insane squid-fueled striper action in the Canal.

Capt. Tom from Beauport Fishing Adventures said weather continues to be an issue for getting off the dock. It seems like the weekends have been targeted by wind and lumpy seas. He has many weekend trips planned, give him a call to get in on the action.

Over at Surfland Bait & Tackle Liz said that the striper bite is still going strong in the river, but things are changing a bit. The upriver fishing that has been going crazy in the Lawrence area has slowed down a bit. And be warned, the Environmental Police have been cracking down on unlicensed fishing and keeping illegal stripers, bravo to them! So make sure all your licenses are up to date and that you have and use your tape if you plan to harvest a striper. Look for the action to progress back down toward the mouth over the coming few weeks. Most of the stripers being caught are 30 inches and larger, there have been very few 20-inch class fish and even fewer smaller ones, which has the Surfland crew and many anglers concerned for how the fishing will be in a few short years. But for now, the fishing is great, Joppa is putting out good catches from the shore and boats. There have been slots in the Parker River and some news of good bass fishing to the south in places like the Annisquam River as well. Shad fishing has been best in the North Andover area this week. And there have been some good founder reports south of the island, as well.