What’s better than getting up early on a Saturday and making the trek to the Cape Cod Canal for a set of the famous breaking tides? You bike down to your spot while it’s still dark, set up in the weedy rocks and wait for the rising sun to reveal schools of bait being chased by wolf packs of cow stripers. The excitement mounts as more and more stripers ride through on the east and west tides, mackerel, herring, maybe bunker, streaking through as they attempt to evade being eaten alive by giant striped bass. You cast pencil poppers and Magic Swimmers for the thunderous and highly-visual surface explosions. You swing jigs and shads for the deep thump of more big bass lying in wait on the bottom. When the bite is over, what do you do? You could swing into Maco’s or Canal Bait or Red Top and buy some new gear, you could stop in at Cup 2 Coffee and grab breakfast sandwich and a coffee, too.
But on June 14th, you’ll have even greater incentive to wake up in the dark and make the ride the Big Ditch. The Canal Sportsmen’s Club is hosting the “Flea Market on the Canal,” a fishing flea market, timed perfectly to coincide with some of the historically best tides the Canal has to offer. This event will be held in the Bourne Scenic Park Campground (370 Scenic Hwy in Buzzards Bay, MA), and will run from 8:30 a.m. (or later if the bite is red hot) through 1 p.m. Admission is free for all!
Attendees will find a mix of new and used gear, ranging from antique to contemporary. Additionally, there will be custom lure makers in attendance and probably some other surprises as well. One of the best things about a flea market are the deals that can be found by those with a keen eye for plugs, rods, reels and other fishing gear. Make the trip to the Ditch and hit this fishing flea market when the bite is over. There will be deals to be had, stories to share and it’s almost guaranteed to have that old-timey Cape Cod feel.
