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Fishing Report
20 Nov 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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I was at the Goose on the morning
of Sat. the 18th, Fran had a big plate of old smelly sand
eels on the counter. I asked his what they were for and he said,
“Instead of eating my words I have to eat these sand eels.” I
asked him why and this is what he and others, as they walked in
the door, had to say.
It seems all the fish have not
left the building. The larger bass have moved in on the outer
beach. From the Race Point down to a few spotty areas along
Nauset beach the striped bass up to 44 inches are being caught
in the surf. Mostly small undersized bass but there a some that
are whoppers. I personally have seen small bass at the mouth of
Rock Harbor on the flood tide in the past few days and I was
told there are still small keepers and small bass off the rocks
at Sesuit Harbor. However, the main area that has become active
is the outer beach. Large schools of sand eels have moved in on
the beach bring the bass with them.
The lures of choice are any
yellow popping plugs, either Gibbs or Habs, the small pearl
Bombers, or the small Castmaster with a white streamer as a
dropper. No one is quite sure how long these fish will hang
around but the weather is forecast to be good right through to
Thanksgiving, so now’s the chance for one more nice fresh
striper on the dinner table. Just go ask Fran, but wait until
his mouth is empty.
Web:
www.capecodbaycharters.com
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
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Fishing Report
9 Nov 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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I was down at the Goose and was
talking to Fran today. He's been fishing the outer beach
religiously for the past few days. He can state without
reservation the bass have left the building. He hasn't had even
a hit during the past few times out. Some reports of others who
have been out in the Bay said there were a few small bass off
the Brewster flats and off the rocks on the west side of Sesuit
Harbor but they should be gone soon. I'm sure there are some
fish around the Vineyard and Nantucket, but in truth Rhode
Island, for those want to take a ride, is the next stop on the
striped bass trail. One more chance to get some use out of your
tackle.
Speaking of tackle. Remember that
saying the early bird gets the worm. Which has been used far too
often, but has some truth to it. Think about getting you gear
all checked out and gone over now rather than waiting until
spring. Like taxes some of us wait until the last minute to get
them in. Has this happened to you? It's late April, a friend
called and said the bass are in at South Sunken Meadow. You grab
your rod and some swimming plugs and head out. You notice the
hooks on the plugs are a little rusty, actually a lot rusty. You
see some frays on the line on your rods. You think, It will
hold. How big can these first fish be, anyway.? Well, after
casting off two plugs you finally get one out to the fish. You
start to retrieve the lure, a fish hits, a big fish. Your drag
freezes up and you watch the rod tip bend over more than you'd
like, you realize you should have changed that frayed line. Too
late, the line parts...?
Don't take any chances. Come down
to the Goose, bring all your reels, have them relubed, the line
changed if needed, and the drags and other workings checked out.
Take a look at your rods. If you see any of the guides that
don't look right or could chafe your line you get them replaced.
All that good stuff done so you will be ready for that first run
next spring. You would not want to be that friend who lost that
first big fish. Just imagine the ride back home listening to all
that bitchin and moanin that would be going on. If you wait
until spring to do this when that call comes you'll have to say,
my stuff is in being cleaned up, I can't go...? If you're going
to be traveling and won't be here, drop it off now and it will
be ready for you in the spring.
To the tuna fishermen, not the
commercial guys, those of you who had a good season chasing the
football tuna. Remember that favorite squid rig that got torn up
by bluefish, or the one you saw someone else using that worked
really good. This is the time to come down and get a new one
made up. Learn how to do it yourself or have Garret make up a
secret rig that you think will be a killer rig. He can repair a
rig that was your favorite so it's like new. When it's time next
season all you'll have to worry about is getting your boat
ready. You won't hear, after you've come in looking for a
certain rig, ?Oh! we ran out of that set up, we've ordered more
but it's on back order. It seems everyone wants one.? I hate
hearing that when I really need that one lure or part or spool
of line or what it is you really need. While everyone else is
lined up at the register, your heading out the inlet or down on
the beach or setting your secret rig out on Stony Bar ready for
that first fish of the season...
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Fishing Report
8 Nov 2006
By: Garret LaScola |
Well the Department of Fish and
Wildlife has been busy this fall. They have an expected 54,000
trout being stocked in Mass.
Nickerson state park has been producing trout consistently. We
broke in our new digital scale on a 2.7 lbs brook trout caught out
of one of the ponds inside nickerson state park. We sent the info
to the sport fishing awards program. So congrats to Mr. Keese
for a nice fish.
Many of the die hard fisherman have been using colorado spoons, in
the nickel and gold and copper and gold color scheme. They have
been using the 1/6 ounce size, with a slow retrieve just fast
enough to feel the spoon moving side to side.
One tuesday I went to Sheep Pond with my 12' tin boat trolling
around the edges and found that small Rebel ghost minnow, speedy
shiner, and colorado spoons produced well. I was trolling four
rods at a number 1 and 2 setting on my 40 lbs thrust trolling
motor. I caught and released some smallies, small trout, and lost
a salmon at the boat. Forgot to bring the landing net :( ! Some
of the anglers that were fishing off the shore from fisherman's
landing did not do anything, even with the worms, shiners and
powerbait. That led me to believe that the pond has not been
stocked yet and I did a little research and found out that Sheep
pond has been stocked either due to the weather or water levels
due to the consistent rain that has not been in the forecast for
the past 2 months.
Here is a list of water Bodies that have or will be stocked this
spring with trout!
*Brewster-Cliff Pond, Lil Cliff Pond, Flax Pond and Sheep Pond
*Chatham-Goose Pond
*Eastham-Herring Pond
*Orleans-Baker's Pond
*Sandwich-Spectacle Lake and Peter's Pond
*Plymouth-Long Pond, Little Pond, Fearings Pond and Big Sandy
Pond.
*Falmouth-Ashumet Pond
*Dennis-Scargo Lake
IF I HAVE MISSESED ANY PONDS HERE A LINK TO THE MASS FISH AND
WILDLIFE PAGE.
http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/dfw_trout_waters.htm
TROUT STOCKING AREAS ON THE CAPE
Well lets hope the weather gets better and and tight lines to all
of you!
Garrett |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
4 October 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
This is the last report of the
season. Boy, did it go by fast. Lets hope the winter goes by just
as fast. The fishing in the bay is still fairly good. The bass are
still either up on top of Billingsgate Shoals or on the north edge
out to 30 feet. When the tide is down they move out to the deep
water from 45 to 55 feet. There are a good number of bluefish
mixed in with the bass. The best method is still jigging. However,
if you use an umbrella rig on a short wire (150 ft.) either on top
or the north edge and a longer wire setup (200 ft.) in the deeper
water, you should do quite well also. These fish should stick
around for a while. The bass will leave first. Most likely after
an easterly or northeast blow which will cool the water down.
You’ll still be able to hook up on the big fish on the outer beach
for awhile more. The bluefish will be next. Not much later, maybe
a week or so. By then those who like to do some fall flounder
fishing should start looking around. If the seals have left any
for us.
I know it’s a little early to think about next season, but you
might find some of this season’s lure that didn’t sell out on sale
this fall and winter. If you find any jigged eels on sale buy them
up. The jigged eel was a productive method this season so I’m sure
it will be so next year. Also if you can find good wire line on
sale pick that up too. Wire line isn't cheap and you go through a
lot of it when you’re jigging. Hootchies, they are hard to find
sometimes so if you run across them pick some. The pumpkin color
and pink colors work well. However, brown and a root beer color
also worked well, especially using lead core line.
For those looking for bluefish they seem to be popping up
everywhere. They’re off the Brewster Flats in 25 to 30 feet of
water. During the flood tide if it’s a sunny day you can find them
along the Eastham shore. They’re up on the shoals and in the deep
water. Hootchies on mono or the umbrella rig will work well. The
sizes are a mixed bag from 4 to 5 pound fish up to 15 to 17 pound
fish. The next northeast blow that cools the water down should
chase these fish into the deep water and then finally south for
the winter.
This last weekend I took a pair of twin dentists, John and Jim
Hammond, and their friends out on the full day trip. They usually
go in August but as it was they had to put it off 'till the end of
September. They must have brought lady luck with them because they
were into fish on a regular basis. The all landed the fish they
wanted but will be back next August when it’s a little warmer.
It has been a pleasure doing these reports this season and I
should be starting them back up the beginning of next May, so
‘till then be safe.
Web:
www.capecodbaycharters.com
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
27 September 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The season is almost over. Most
of the boats will come out just after the Columbus Day weekend.
There will still be fish in the bay, just not many people looking
to go and try and catch them. So, even the fish will no it’s time
to head to warmer water. For now they are here and we’re doing a
good job of finding them and catching them.
I’ve only got maybe two more reports after this so I’m going to
make this short and sweet. And sweet it is. Lately the big bass
have been either on the north edge of the shoals or right up on
top. We’ve even found some of the larger fish on the south edge of
Billingsgate Shoals. Jigging has been what has worked best with a
few fish taken on the tube and worm. I’d stick with the jigged eel
on wire though, it works the best by far.
The shoals isn’t the only place you can find the stripers. There
are some fish on the edge of the Brewster Flats or up on the flats
during the flood tide. There are also small bass on the rips by
the #3 can on Stony Bar on the way up to Welfleet Harbor. From
what I hear there are small bass with some keepers in the channel
in Barnstable Harbor also. Most of these fish can be hooked up by
using an umbrella rig on a short wire (150 ft.). Use a small spoon
for a trailer for best results.
There are plenty of bluefish on the shoals too. We take as many of
them as we do the stripers and at times many more than the bass.
They range from 5 pound fish up to 10 to 12 ponder bluefish. For
those looking for tuna bait use a small umbrella rig with all bugs
and troll it at around 4 knots on either mono in the real shallow
water (under 15 feet) or a short wire rig (150 feet) in water over
15 feet. The north edge of the shoals should be a good place to
look first or most anywhere up on top on the east section of the
shoals.
This last Monday I had Jay Maleynsky and two of his cronies out
for a half day of good fall bass fishing. After a slight bit of
coaching Jay was able to land a very nice 27 pound bass just shy
of 45 inches. Once he had landed that fish he let his friends get
their share and they did quite well. By the end of the trip all
had become expert jiggers and are going to take this method back
to Connecticut with them.
Web Site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
20 September 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
So far this September we’ve had
some very good fishing. We’ve also had some decent weather to go
along with it. The bass have been very cooperative by staying on
or around Billingsgate shoals. For the boats in the Barnstable
harbor area there have been bass in the channel in the harbor
itself and, on occasion, over by Scorton Creek. The charter fleet
out of Barnstable has been doing very well in both of these
locations. The Rock Harbor Fleet Still has a lock on the shoals
but since we all work together both fleets do very well there. For
the most part the shoals is producing the most activity for both
bass and bluefish.
This time of year the air temperature cools and this will slowly
cool the water temperature. This in turn affects the fishing. The
bluefish seem to move into the deeper water and are harder to find
in the shallow areas like along the Eastham shore and up tight to
the Path and along the Welfleet/Truro shore line. On sunny days
without much wind the bluefish will sometimes move up into these
areas but it is the exception. Most of the fishermen looking for
bluefish for bait have a hard time getting the right size bluefish
this time of the year.
Finding small bass is another story. From now on more and more
schools of undersize bass will be showing up on the south edge of
the shoals, along the Brewster Flats, up on top of the shoals in
the grass patches, and many other areas similar to them. There are
some fish that are just over the 28 inch limit mixed in with these
smaller fish.
Let me give you an example of what is happening in the course of a
half day trip from Rock Harbor. At first most of the larger bass
are found just up on the shoals in 18 to 20 feet of water. We
start about in the middle and work northeast or southwest,
whichever is showing the most activity. Just around high water the
fish seem to move out into 20 to 25 feet of water and move to the
northeast slightly. By the time the tide is starting to move the
main body of fish have wound up in the deep water north and
northeast of the shoals. Once the tide starts back in the fish
move back. This should keep up for a while, we hope. Jigging,
umbrella rigs, or the tube and worm seem to work with jigging
being the most productive.
This last weekend I had a group from Boston in the city itself.
They had come see how good the fishing in the bay really was.
Michael and Mario DelMonaco, Joe and Anthony Cappuccio, Joe
Wright, and George Gleason fished the full day trip out of our
harbor. The fishing was good, not gang busters, but good. We
landed a good number of keepers, a number of small bass, and a
good amount of bluefish. All the stripers were taken on the jig
while some of the bluefish were landed using the hootchie in the
outriggers. Because of the boat traffic we didn’t use the riggers
that much. Anthony Cappuccio landed the biggest bass he’d ever
caught. It was a solid 25 pound fish. It wasn’t the biggest fish
we caught that day, but it was his biggest and that’s what
counted.
If you like to get in on this good fall fishing give me a call at:
508-255-6211 or 508-240-8267 before the fish head south for the
winter.
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
Web site:
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
13 September 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
As it has been in the past, so
shall it be this season. The big bass are on the shoals. For the
past several years the big bass move in on Billingsgate Shoals for
the end of our fishing season. This year is no exception. This
last Sunday and especially Monday proved it. There was a heavy
northeast wind but the boats that did get out on the shoals hooked
up on some big bass into their half day trip in the afternoon.
Once the wind backed down the boats that were out there did very
well. It seems like the fish come into this area to gather up and
feed before starting the migration south. This gathering can last
into the beginning of October at times. Lets hope the bass do that
this season. Right now jigging is your best bet although the
umbrella rig can be productive, you just have to weed through the
small bass before you finally get one to keep.
This last weekend some of our boats went up to P-town over the low
water. For the most part P-town has been a good area for finding
and landing both good numbers of keepers and large bass. That is
if you can find room amongst the other fishermen. Since Labor Day
there hasn’t been an over crowding problem, just an infrequency in
the fishing. Some days it’s good and others the bass are a little
hard to find. If you’ve got the time and the fuel it can be worth
the ride. Jigging and the tube and worm are the most productive
methods. Some of the other areas are the east bar outside of
Barnstable Harbor and the Scorton Creek area.
The bluefishing has been a little slow lately. When using the
umbrella rigs on the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals we’ve
landed a few fish. Our boats have averaged 10 to 12 fish on a half
day trip. Another area that has produced bluefish is from
Henderson’s Rock, outside of Great Island, up towards the Path in
10 to 20 feet of water. Single swimming plugs or hootchies are
your best bet. A more traditional area is in around the Sunken
Meadow area. The bluefish have come back into this area again.
This is a good thing because when we have these heavy east and
northeast winds we can still fish in this area. Here, also, the
hootchie or swimming plug works well. This last Monday I landed a
couple of small striped bass in the Sunken Meadow area which is
unusual for this time of year.
Since this is the last report for the season my best advice for
this fall is to keep an eye on the north edge of Billingsgate
Shoals. This includes the deeper water out to 30 feet. I think
this will be the prominent gathering area for the big bass this
season. Make sure your jigging wires are in good shape with no
kinks and you’ve sharpened the hooks on your jigs.
This last week I had a number of men from England out fishing.
They we here to attend a wedding so they decided to try out the
fishing also. They landed a number of bass and bluefish in both
trips. One gentleman stood out from the rest by his unexpected
ability to land a big bluefish. After an event filled struggle,
Karl Williams from London, England, landed a large 16 pound
bluefish on fairly light line. It was by far the biggest fish he
has ever caught.
Well, have a good winter and I’ll see you next spring. As always
I’ve enjoyed doing these reports. If you’d like to get in on some
of this good fall fishing call me at: 508-255-6211 or on the boat
at: 508-240-8267.
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
Web site:
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
6 September 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
Well, it is official. The summer season on Cape Cod has come to an
end and with somewhat of a whimper or rain or whatever. There is
no more traffic to deal with, no more waiting at the gas pumps,
the beaches aren’t crowded, and the restaurants aren’t too packed.
The one thing that is still the same is the fishing, it’s very
good right now. The big bass have moved in onto Billingsgate
Shoals along with some giant bluefish.
The weekend of the Labor Day vacation was somewhat of a washout
here. Saturday we dealt with the wind and on Sunday we had both
wind and rain but the bass didn’t really care. The boats that did
make it out found a number of large stripers on the south edge of
the shoals at first and then later on in the day they move to the
north edge. Either the tube and worm or jigging would work very
well. Some of the bass were over 45 inch in length. The water had
cooled way down so the bluefish in by the Path and along the
Eastham shore were a little scarce but a few were found there. It
seems that some of these fish moved up to right outside Welfleet
Harbor. However, they were still hard to hook up on. The cold
water will do that to them. Once these easterlies are over with
and we get some southwest or westerly winds back this will all
change. For example, this last Tuesday the Barnstable boats
reported that they landed 40 plus inch fish on the north edge
while jigging. The wind was from the west.
The end of the season, September, can be a very good time to go
bass fishing. The bigger fish will school up either on
Billingsgate Shoals or on the north edge before they start the
migration south. We’ve had good fishing right through the Columbus
Day weekend and up into October if the weather holds. In years
past it’s been the north edge or the deep water that has held the
bigger fish. Hopefully they will stay on the shoals this year.
This will mean jigging and the tube and worm will be the methods
of choice. Also, during the early mornings trolling single
hootchies might be productive too. Either way, it should be a good
September in the bay.
If you should find these schools of bass in the deeper water, over
25 to 30 feet, I’d think about using the umbrella rig. The bait is
right for using it. Most of the bait are small peanut bunkers or
sand eels. The umbrella rig imitates this bait perfectly. At times
you may need to weight the rig but don’t use too much, 4 to 6
ounces should be enough. If you’d rather not use the rig try the
tube and worm and use at least 5 colors in 25 feet. This system
will work , just be aware it will not be anywhere near as
productive.
Last Monday, Labor Day my wife wanted to go fishing. There didn’t
seem to be much wind at Rock Harbor but once we got out to the
north edge there was a little heave on. It made her a little
nervous. We didn’t head back until she landed the fish she was
looking for, a nice 37 inch heavy striped bass. Her favorite fish
to have for dinner.
If you’d like to get in on some the Capes finest fall fishing give
me a call at: 508-255-6211 or on the boat at: 508-240-8267.
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
Web site:
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
30 August 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The summer season is quickly
coming to an end. Labor Day is literally around the corner. This
Monday as I understand. Where did it all go? Why is it the older
you get the faster things go by? Anyway, the fishing is getting
better. The striped bass are starting to cooperate and are showing
up on the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals and up on top of the
shoal itself. They’re not jumping in the boat but we can be
confident of landing a good number of legal bass on our half day
trip. Hopefully, this is a sign of a good active fall fishing
season in September.
Starting this last Saturday we noticed a fair number of legal
sized bass showing up mixed with the bluefish on both the north
edge and on top of the shoals. The tube and worm along with
jigging would work in landing some of these bass. They weren’t big
ones, except for a 3 footer now and then, but they were legal. The
normal size landed were between 29 and 33 inches, good eating
size. Since then more and more bass have shown up. Many are just
under the 28 limit, but more and more are of the “keeper” variety
and many more large fish. It is not unheard of to land a bass up
to 43 to 46 inches in length. That’s a nice bass by anyone’s book.
The blue fishing has been very good. There were a large number of
bluefish just east of the old Target Ship and up towards Sunken
Meadow. There have also been bluefish from just old side
Heanderson’s Rock, just west of Great Island along the shore up
towards the Path. The best action is from 25 feet inshore to 10
feet. Swimming plugs or hootchies work well trolling and any
popping plug will work if you find fish to cast on. We’ve also
been getting a good number of bluefish while jigging on the shoals
for bass and also while using the tube and worm. It seems the
bluefish ate just about everywhere.
This last Sunday I had my mate from my first year of chartering
and her extended family, out on a half day trip. Connie Delano, my
ex-mate, her sister Sarah and her husband Don McDermott with their
son Connor, were treated to some of Cape Cod Bay’s fishing. They
also brought along Don’s sister, Ann Marie and her son
Christopher. One unique fish landed was a good size Dog Fish, a
small harmless shark, by Anne Marie who hooked up on it using the
tube and worm.
The areas to keep track of this coming week are the most obvious.
Billingsgate Shoals should be the basic hub of activity but check
out the deep water off the north edge. The larger bass have a
habit of moving out to the deep water as the tides start to
increase like they will do next week. If that happens get out your
long wires (450 feet) and heavy jigs, you’ll need them. The
bluefish will stay in the areas they’ve been in, at least for a
while. They are a little more predictable.
Last week I had a father and son team out on a half day trip. One
thing they wanted to try was some bluefish on some light gear. So
we did. Matt Glick, a young gentleman from Penn Valley, Pa., was
able to land a nice 15 lb. bluefish on my 12 lb. test gear without
any trouble. This prepared him for the bass he hooked up on out on
the shoals using the tube and worm. Now he’s ready to tackle any
fish that may come down the pike.
If you’d like to get in on some good Sept. fishing call me at
508-255-6211 or 508-240-8267.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web Site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
23 August 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The bass fishing is still a
little on the strange side. There are days we do fairly well and
others where we can hardly find any legal striped bass. This has
been one of the strangest season in awhile. There have been a few
schools of bass on the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals. Some
fish have also been found out in the deep water but not to any
large amounts. P-town has held an large number of fish which
aren’t very active and many are undersized. Some keepers are taken
up by the Race and around the corner down the backside.
To give you an example of what I’m getting at, this last Saturday
the boats out had trouble even landing two or three bass each on
the full day trip. The boats that went to P-town did a little
less. This last Monday on the half day trip most of the boats
landed near their limits and some were throwing back big fish in
the 40 inch range. This is what we’ve dealt with all summer. It’s
almost as if we’re going back to the days when it was the norm to
find bluefish and unusual to land a number of bass. I don’t think
we’ll ever see that but there may be a cycle when the bluefish are
prevalent and the bass harder to find. Then we’ll work back to a
large number of big bass around after a while.
We’ve actually been spoiled over the past years. We’ve had seasons
when each boat could get it’s limit most every day or very close
to it. When the boat would get up on the shoals and have no
trouble in jigging up a number of big bass from 42 inches up to
close to 50 inches on regular basis. I can’t tell you how many
time I’ve heard “last time we were out we landed 3 bass over 40
inches” and we’d be lucky to get 3 fish over 30 inches on that
trip and do well in comparison to the other boats. I can remember
in the past few years using the tube and worm, coming up on the
grass patches, setting out my gear and having four fish on, all
over 36 inches. Turning around, setting back out and having four
more fish on. All of them well over the 28 inch minimum. That
doesn’t happen anymore. Like I said, we’ve been spoiled.
The bluefishing is very good. There are large bluefish along the
Eastham shore and up towards Welfleet Harbor. The best time is
during the flood tide and the the best depth is from 14 to 8 feet
of water. Single hootchies or swimming plug on mono will work very
well. If you can find a good concentration of fish casting a
popping plug will give you a lot of surface action. Another area
is outside Jeramy Point all the way up to just south of the Path
from 8 feet of water out to 20 feet. The same lures will work here
too. If you want to try the deep water off the north edge and up
towards the path you find occasional bluefish and possibly a bass
or two. This area is either hot or cold but worth looking at.
Last weekend I had a group of older gentlemen out on a full day
trip. They brought along a young man to give him his first taste
of fishing Cape Cod Bay. Well, to the wonder of his father, Adrien
Wojtkowski, 14, from New Ashford, Ma., landed the largest bass
taken that day. Adrien did this with such ease it was like he’d
been sportfishing all his young life. His was the largest fish
taken on that trip.
If you’d like to get in on the some of this late season fishing
give me a call at home : 508-255-6211 or on the boat at:
508-240-8267
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web Site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
16 August 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The weather pattern has changed
. For most of the summer we’ve had an almost continuous southwest
wind. Lately we’ve seen a change with a few day where the winds
have come out of the north and northwest. This is a good thing.
But now we have to deal with the big tides. This can make the
fishing a little weird also. The tides move so fast they seem to
move the fish around in a more dramatic manner. As in all weather
related things in New England, wait a bit and it will change. By
this weekend the tides will be back to a more normal run and the
fish will hopefully settle down.
This last week the bass fishing has had it’s ups and downs.
Depending on the wind direction and the tidal movement the bass
have either been on the north edge of the shoals or just up on top
or out in the deep water. They have also been a little finicky.
Some days they will eat anything put in front of them and other
days they seem to have lock jaw. I guess that’s why the call it
fishing and not catching. On the whole the fleet at Rock Harbor is
doing fairly well.
The methods we are using are varied this week also. Recently,
we’ve done the best jigging with a 300 foot wire on a stiff rod.
This last week we’ve found that the umbrella rig with a little
weight added on a 150 foot wire setup will work very well also.
All you have to do is slow down a bit when you go over a school in
the deep water. The tube and worm is also hooking up on occasion.
In the deep water set out 6 to 8 colors and on top of the shoals
use 3 to 4 colors depending on the wind. The more wind use the 4
colors. When the tides start getting small look to the top of
Billingsgate Shoals and get your jigging rod in good shape because
you’ll need it.
Those who enjoy going bluefishing should be having a good time.
There seems to be a good number of the fish around. Just about
everywhere you go you will find some bluefish. The main
concentration has been just off Henderson’s Rock on the west shore
of Great Island which separates the Bay from Welfleet Harbor. The
single hootchie trolled on mono or a good swimming plug will work
very well. Casting popping plugs in the shallow water will also
raise an number of these hard fighting fish. The Sunken Meadow
area is still producing a number of fish especially on the flood
tide.
All in all, this up coming week should be very good for both the
bass and bluefish. With the water cooling off a little and the
tides becoming more normal the bass should occupy the shoals and
the bluefish will dominate the shallow water. And, don’t forget
the deep water off the shoals. Both fish will roam this area.
This last week I had Mark Skehan and his family on a half day
trip. Some had done some fishing but on the whole they were new to
this fishery. Well, we got into some stripers and they went to
work. The entire family got into the action and to a member did
very well in handling the gear. Therefore, the entire family are
the fishermen of the week. They all landed fish well over the 28
inch minimum.
If you’d like to get in on some of this upcoming fishing call me
at home: 508-255-6211 or o the boat: 508-240-8267.
Web site:
www.capecodbaycharters.com
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
9 August 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The striped bass have returned
to Billingsgate Shoals. It was a long time coming but the bass are
back on the shoals. For most of the summer we’ve had small keepers
with some big fish mixed in on the north edge of the shoals. If
not there out in the deep water north of the shoals, or sometimes
none around much at all. Well, they are back. Back up on top of
the shoals and there a a good number of big fish. We’ve been
getting some fish over 45 inches and close to 30 pounds.
Why has this change in the pattern of the fish occurred? This
question is one we all ask ourselves and to be honest, we can only
guess at the answer. Some think the wind change pushes the bait up
on the shoals and the fish follow, but the bait has been there all
along. Some believe the fish themselves are pushed up on the
shoals by this wind change to the northwest. That is possible
because it seems that’s the direction they come from. What is most
probable is that a northerly wind is a cooling wind. The water
temperature is cooled to one the bass can tolerate so they move up
on the shoals to the bait that is already there. Plus, some of the
more favorite food, squid, like a cooler water temperature so they
too move up on the shoals. We have found big squid in the stomachs
some of the bigger bass recently. All of these reasons can be true
to some extent. I’m sure there are other possibilities and the
person who finally figures it out will have an answer which every
fisherman has wondered about since the hook was invented. Right
now the lure of choice on the shoals is the jigged eel used with
300 feet of wire jigged at 3 knots or a little less. Color of the
jig is your choice, so good luck.
There is plenty of bluefish around. Most of them are in the deeper
water from the path north up towards the Pamet River. The best
depth of water is between 45 and 6o feet. Umbrella rigs or single
hootchies on mono or wire will work fine. For those who want to
cast the best area is outside of Great Island just out side of
rocks near the beach. There are some fish in along the Eastham
shore and up to Sunken Meadow but not as much as is usually there.
I believe that in the next week or so if the water continues to
cool that more bass and more of the larger fish will move into the
area of Billingsgate Shoals. Not always on top, maybe on the south
or north edges or even out in the deep water north of the shoals.
Hopefully, as more fish move in methods other than jigging can be
used successfully. I’d like to see the tube and worm work well and
also, since there is squid in the area, the hootchie on light mono
start working well. That would be nice.
Last week I had Arne Oberg and his family out fishing. His
grandsons, Aaron 12 and Jacob 11 were the main players in the
fishing party. They, without a doubt, out fished everyone. They
landed the most and the biggest of the eight bass they kept. Their
family will be eating well for a long time because of their
efforts.
If you like to stock your refrigerator with some striped bass give
me a call at 508-255-6211 (home) or 508-240-8267 (boat).
Web site:
www.capecodbaycharters.com
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
2 August 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
No one has taken a big fish like
on the Watanye who landed that 52 pound bass last week. In fact,
not many big fish have been taken lately. This doesn’t mean the
fishing isn’t good, it is, just no big fish lately. Not to worry,
there are more fifty pounders out there.
The stripers are stuck in a routine. They seem to move off the
north edge as the tide goes out. To where, no one seems to know,
yet. As the tide comes back in they show back up on the north edge
of Billingsgate Shoals. They don’t seem to be all that hungry
either. With all that bait around I wouldn’t think so. However,
with a little persistence and the right jig and jigging speed, a
good fisherman can get his share if he works at it. Those who go
up to fish around P-town, Long Point, Wood End, and the Race, the
same thing can happen and the fish can be finicky and not eat very
well. Maybe these bass are on a diet. Lets hope they fall off it
soon.
The bluefish are as active as you’d want them to be. There seems
to be plenty of fish along the Eastham shore and up into the
Sunken Meadow area. Some of these bluefish are up in the 14 to 15
pound range. The is a fair amount of bluefish mixed in the bass on
the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals with a few up on top of the
shoals. The main concentration is from Whitman's Rock, just
outside Great Island, up to the north of the Path. The most
productive method to land these big bluefish is the Hootchies. We
troll it at around 5 1/2 to 6 knots on 250 feet of mono. We use
either wooden heads, a hootchie with a wooden body, or the
traditional 3 ounce lead head hootchie. These lures are deadly
when it comes to bluefish. They will also attract stripers when
they are up near the surface.
Another method that may work well, especially in the deep water is
the umbrella rig. The charter fleet has not used this method much.
Most of the boats are jigging both on the north edge and in the
deep water. The bass and bluefish are feeding on sand eels so the
rigs should work. You may have to add weight to them to get down
near the bottom. The amount of weight will depend on how deep the
fish are. 4 to 6 ounces is usually enough. Try it, it might work.
I had a family out this last week with two young gentleman who are
brothers. In fact, they are twins. This could have set up a bit of
a competition on who caught the bigger fish. Fortunately they both
did very well landing a number of large bass without much
assistance from their father or grandfather. So kudos to Andrew
and Matthew Tautkus on some good fishing.
If you’d like to do as well as the twins give me a call on the
boat at: 1-508-240-8267 ot at home: 1-508-255-6211.
stunmai@copper.net
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
26 July 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
I’m happy to report the fishing
is good and they have not swayed from their routine very much. The
bass are moving from the deep water to the top of the shoals and
back. It depends on what time of the tide you get out to this
area. There is a time that neither place is really active, but it
doesn’t seem to last to long. However, many of the stripers are
just undersize. This is a good thing. It means we’ll have more
legal fish around next season.
All this weather we’ve been having has affected the fishing. After
talking to some captains who’ve been fishing the Bay a lot longer
than I have, I’ve come to the realization that this southwest wind
we continue to have is slowing the fishing down some. Another
factor in the lazy actions of the stripers is that there is a
plethora of food around. Just about every fish we land is bursting
at the seams with food, sand eels mainly. If the dinner plate is
always full an artificial lure that may go past the fish may not
look as appetizing as we’d like it to.
Jigging with either the 300 ft. wires on top of Billingsgate
Shoals or using our 450 foot wires jigging in the deep water is by
far the best method to hook up on any of these stripers. Even when
you pull these jigs through a school of fish you don’t always hook
up. When you do, many times the bass will turn out to be too
small, 27 1/2 inches, just undersize. If you keep at it though
you’ll eventually get a decent size bass. For example, this last
Saturday during our full day trip the Roxy, from Rock Harbor,
hooked up on what he thought was a good size fish. It didn’t take
long before the guy on the rod realized he had a better than good
size fish. When he landed it to his wonder in measured out at 54
inches and weighed a whopping 48 pounds.
You’d think that fish was a good size bass and it is, however,
there are bigger fish out there. The day before, down more on
Billingsgate Shoals, a larger fish was landed. Captain Steve Ellis
aboard the Watanye, out of Rock Harbor, hooked up on what he knew
was a big bass. He had a group out from the Worcester area and
they were down on Cape Cod for the purpose of catching their share
of bass. That they did. Scott Vanraalten, from Upton, Ma., went
tight on and landed a 52 inch bass that weighed in at 52 lbs. 8
oz. with a 30 inch girth. That’s a big fish. So, if you’d like to
tie into a fish like this you have two choices. Get your own boat
out there and work for a good fish, or charter one of the many
boats that fish the Cape Cod Bay and have the Captain put you on
your own big fish.
The bluefishing is fairly good right now. This time of the season
they seem to disappear for a few days. The concentration we had
along the Eastham shore and up by the Path are not what they have
been. It’s still good fishing in these areas, just not like it has
been. Wait a few days and this will change. We are taking some
bluefish while jigging for the bass and if you use an umbrella rig
in the deep water you’ll get some too.
This last Sunday I had the Baily family out. Young Tom was a
little leery of the sea that was running. He didn’t really like
it. However, after he landed the biggest bluefish of the group he
forgot his fear and instructed everyone else on how to fish for
the rest of the trip.
If you’d like to get on some of this good fishing call me at
508-240-8267 or at home at 508-255-6211.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web Site: -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
19 July 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The striped bass are finally
settling down to somewhat of a pattern. This is the first time
this season we’ve had any kind of normalcy to the fishing in the
Bay. They will move from the deep water, 40 to 50 feet, north of
Billingsgate Shoals as the tide comes in, winding up on the north
edge of the shoals in 18 to 23 feet of water at high water. Once
the tide starts out they slowly move back out to the deep water.
At least that's what we think they are doing. We find them in the
deep water at low tide and in on the shoals at high water. We can
seem to track them in between times very well. One other area
we’ve found the stripers is around the sea clammers. It’s not a
regular thing but on occasion we will find some keepers mixed in
with a large amount of schoolies around where the sea clammers are
working. This area is usually west of the old Target Ship. The
bluefish are in their normal area and there are quite a few of
them. This is the season for bluefish. Another active area is off
the Path. From there to the south towards Great Island from 20
feet of water in there is all the bluefish you want.
If you’d like to see an average half day of fishing check out the
home page of www.offshorepursuits.com and you’ll see the Gray
Family who has always done well when they’ve been out on Cape Cod
Bay.
Now to the important story of fishing the Bay had to offer this
last week. Rock Harbor hosted the Special Olympics again this
summer. This is the 24th time we’ve held this event. Every year
the fish gods are good to the special anglers who venture out on
to the Bay in pursuit of a good day of fishing. As always the
participants compete for the biggest fish for both male and female
and the most fish for both male and female. Actually all of the
anglers win. They enjoy some of the finest fishing the Cape has to
offer. Both the Captains and Mates donate their boats and time to
this event which has landed us the state Olympic Hall of Fame.
I could give pages of reason that we all so enjoy hosting this
event but in reality it can never be put into words that would
convey what we as the Captains feel watching these fishermen and
fisherwomen pit themselves against the fish they hook up on. Let’s
just say that every charter captain jumps at the chance to be
involved in this day of fishing.
Next year is going to be the 25th year that we are involved and
from what I understand the state Olympic Committee is going to
make a big deal over the event. It will something you will not
want to miss. Next season call the Booth (508-255-9757) and find
out when it’s going to take place. You will not want to miss
this....
If you like to pit yourself against the fish of Cape Cod bay call
me at: 508-255-6211 (Home) or 508-240-8267 (Boat).
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
12 July 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
Remember I said last week that
we needed a northwest wind to get the bass fishing to heat up?
Well, it happened. On the 7th of July we had a light 10 knot wind
from the northwest. When we went out that morning at 6:30 am and
hit the top of Billingsgate Shoals we had a surprise waiting for
us. Lots of medium to large striped bass just waiting to latch on
to our jigs. We figured that the bass in the deep water had been
pushed up on the shoals and it only took a light wind to do it.
When a few boats went out to the deep water just north of the
shoals they found bass and bluefish out there too.
Since then the main body of bass has been sitting in the deep
water off the edge of Billingsgate Shoals. They can be found from
40 to 50 feet of water and up to the northeast section of the
shoals back to the south west covering an area about 3 miles long.
Jigging with long wires (450 feet) or weighted umbrella rigs on
200 foot wire work the best when the fish decide to eat. That’s
the rub, when they (the fish) decide to eat. More times than not
the bass seem to have lock jaw. I f the amount of fish that we see
on our fish finder decided to hit the lures we use we’d fill our
boats in minutes.
The bluefishing is still very good. The best area is still in on
the Eastham shore and up in the Sunken Meadow area. There are also
numbers of bluefish in the deep water where single swimming plugs
or umbrella rigs on 150 foot wires will work very well. Also the
area of the Path on the Welfleet/Truro line hold some bluefish. In
the shallow water areas single swimming plugs or hootchies work
the best. Once you’ve found the main body of fish casting popping
plugs can be a lot of fun.
Bass fishing in the Bay. When the state first started managing the
stripers we saw a vast improvement of the bass fishing. The size
limit and quota on the number of fish and the limitations on the
commercial season greatly helped the increase in the number and
size of the bass found in the cape waters. A few years ago it was
the norm to limit out on a half day trip out of Rock Harbor and
many of the bass would be 34 to 44 inches in length. Our customers
got used to this fact and now seem to expect it. Everything in
nature works on a cycle. Therefore we could easily be in a cycle
where our ability to find and catch large numbers of bass are made
more difficult. There seems to be more bluefish this season than
in recent summers. This can be a good thing, they are fun to
catch. Maybe now, working for a good catch of stripers is better
than just catching fish after fish. We appreciate these majestic
fish more when we get our share rather than an over abundance.
This last Sunday Herold King, from Eastham, brought out members of
his extended family for a half day of fishing. We did all right
with four decent bass and a number of bluefish. One of the bass
was well over 40 inches and gave a young gentleman quite a tussle.
If You’d like to get in on some of this season good fishing call
me at: 508-255-6211 or 508-240-8267.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
5 July 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
It seems that the striped bass
have got lock jaw. We are still able to catch a few of them,
sometime even more than a few, but nowhere near the amount of fish
we see on our fish finders. We’ll mark large schools of bass on
the north edge of Billingsgate shoals, run our umbrella rigs right
through them without even a little tug on the wire line. Then, out
of the blue a outrigger line will go off and there will be a 40
inch bass attached to a pink swimming plug. Go figure.
There is a weather pattern we are in. It seems we have a lot of
southwest wind a fair amount of cloudy weather with rain ad a
definite amount of humidity. The humidity will warm the water up
quickly, good for the bluefish, bad for bass fishing. The rain is
against us too, and the southwest wind sets up a pattern that may
put the bass in a mode of not feeding or at least staying in the
deep water. What ever the reason it is definitely effecting the
fishing. What we need is a hard northwest wind with a cold front
moving through. This will cool off the water a push all the bass
in the deep water up on Billingsgate Shoals and hopefully get them
feed hard.
The bluefishing is fantastic. No mater where you go you’ll find
these hard fighting fish. They’ll eat the jig, the umbrella rig,
hootchies, swimming plugs, you put it out there and you’ll mostly
catch a bluefish. Right now, the sunken meadow area and up towards
Welfleet Harbor. The deep water on the north edge of the shoals is
the next nest area. Here, you need something that gets down in the
water some. The umbrella rig is the most productive but deep
swimming plugs or hootchies on wire or lead core line will work
very well also. In fact, you might come up with a bass of decent
size, even up near 30 pounds.
As far as the stripers are concerned they are still acting
strange. That is compared to last season. We’re seeing large
schools of bass in the deep water off the north edge of the shoals
from 45 feet of water out to 60 feet. During the low water the
schools thin out a little but during the flood tide they show back
up in force. You can run an umbrella rig through them one time and
hook right up, then turn right around and do it again with out a
touch. Or, you’ll load up on bluefish and not get close to any of
the bass. The one place that we have expected the bass to show is
on top of Billingsgate Shoals in the grass patches. Normally they
would have come in there but so far this summer only a few bass
have been taken in this area. What we need is a strong northwest
wind. Just for a day.
We have a tie on the fisher person of the week. Actually it’s
going to three kids. Alex and Chris Fruhbeis from Weston, Ct. and
Emily Ewen who summers right here in Orleans. All three of these
kids demonstrated a excellent aptitude in fishing far beyond their
years. Which greatly surprised their parents.
If you’d like to give this fun sport a try give me a call at:
508-255-6211 or on the boat at: 508-240-8267.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
28 June 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
Last week I said the fish were
going to settle down and start giving us headaches. Well, they
have started out doing just that. They will appear and feed fairly
well and then just shut their mouths and stick up their noses at
what we put in front of them. Then, at times the bass will just
disappear into the twilight zone. That happened this last Monday
afternoon. We found all the bass in the world in the deep water
off the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals. Big schools in 50 feet
of water from 20 feet down to the bottom. We’d pull weighted
umbrella rigs through them and you might hook up on a small
bluefish if that. No wonder I’m going bald.
I looked up what was going on this time last year. Guess what? The
same thing was happening. It only lasted a short while and then we
were gangbusters again. The bluefishing is great and we should not
overlook this fishery, it is actually our mainstay. There is
plenty of these hard fighting fish up in the Sunken Meadow area.
Put some hootchies on mono, troll them at 5 1/2 to 6 knots in 10
feet of water along the Eastham shore up towards Welfleet and you
will have the time of your life catching fish. We have been
spoiled having all these stripers around, and when they pull a
Houdini on us we forget about the bluefish: we shouldn’t.
The bass are still somewhat active. At certain times of the tide,
usually 3 hours before high water, you can jig on some nice fish
just a little west of the old Target Ship. About 2 miles west.
This lasts for about an hour but it’s good fishing while it lasts.
The other good area is on the north edge of the shoals. About 4
miles west of Great Island out in 45 to 50 feet of water the bass
in those big schools I mentioned will hit an umbrella rig for a
while. When they shut off, they shut off. When they feed has no
rhyme nor reason to it. One area which has not been checked out
much is tight in on the Path from 15 feet of water out to 30 feet.
One boat was up there and did land a number of small bass but had
a bigger fish on. They couldn’t stay long because of the tide and
they had to be in Rock Harbor before the tide went out too far.
They were jigging in 20 feet of water right in front of the path.
Another group effort took the weekly prize of having the best
trip. Bill Shaughnessy, of Eastham here on the Cape, had his crew
out last weekend. The weather may not have been the best in the
world but the fishing was really good. they had a few big bass
that were near the forty inch mark. They handled the gear just
like pros.
If you’re interested in trying some of the Cape’s best fishing
give me a call at: 508-255-6211 or 508-240-8267.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com |
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Fishing Report
27 June 2006
By: Garret LaScola |
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Well the tuna have arrived around the cape! There are valid
reports of tuna being caught from Provincetown to Martha’s
Vineyard. Fisherman around the cape have been using dark colored
9”-15” bars such as black with glow scribble, and pink and brown
back with light colored hook baits. The water east of Chatham
(Crab ledge and Northeast of it between the ledge and the BC buoy)
is still cold with occasional pocket of warm water that has been
holding piles of bait with tuna in the 30- 130 lbs. class. There
have been whales hanging around Nauset Beach 7-10 miles out.
Larger tuna have been hanging out there. On 6/25 Capt. Shawn
Delude on the Trashy Thoughts caught 4 fish within these areas off
Nauset; unfortunately they lost a large fish. They did manage to
keep a fish the weighed dress at 80 lbs. and over 50” long. Mike
the owner of the Shop landed 5 fish three of them were on squid
bars and two of them were caught on spinning rods with butterfly
jigs. He was fishing in 130’- 200’ of water on the Northeast edge
of Crab Ledge.
As for the bass fishing it had been hot in Cape Cod Bay for the
Past couple of weeks from Provincetown to the Brewster Flats.;
These fish have been gorging them selves on sand eels that have
been ranging anywhere from 2-6” long up and down the coast. Even
with the ORV beach access closed, to due the Piping Plovers
diligent anglers who have been putting there time out on the surf
has been doing very well. Fishermen and women have been using
fresh sand eels and their imitators. The lures that have been
used consist of RONZ, yellow and bone colored Bombers, Deadly
Dicks, Habs Needlefish in yellow, chartreuse, olive and black at
night, Knuckle Head poppers, and Gibbs’ Danny, Polaris poppers,
and Needle fish.
The fly guys and girls and girls have been using Jeff Smith’s
Buffy fly tied in yellow, olive/white and black and other large
bait fish imitators have been working in the surf with the use of
300-400 grain line. Also small poopers tied on size 1-1/0 hooks
have been producing good numbers of fish in Nauset marsh and the
estuaries inside Pleasant Bay. Also small sand eels imitations
have been working very well. These imitations have ranged from
sparsely tied Clousers, to Popovic type epoxy flies.
On the Flats many anglers have been using sparsely tied flat wings
and Ray’s flies that have had great success the colors
combinations have varied from all white, white/olive, white/yellow
and white/pink. The stripping method that has been paying off has
been a steady retrieve with the occasional pause. The lines that
have been used are intermediate sinking lines and neutral colored
floating lines.
.jpg)
 See
more of Garrett's photos
HERE
Garrett |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
21 June 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
The Bay is in transition. In time the fish
will settle down to their normal summer routine of giving us headaches. It’s
about time that we started seeing large numbers of schools of bass and
bluefish in the deep water off the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals. From
35 feet out to sixty feet it’s not unusual to go over and mark both bluefish
and large schools of striped bass mixed in. The trick is now to get them to
hit whatever lure system we throw at them, the bass I mean.
After the last full moon and the tides started to get smaller the bass have
moved from in on Stony Bar to either west of the old Target Ship or out off
the north edge of Billingsgate shoals. This has taken them around a week or
so to do. Now, the boats coming out of Barnstable Harbor are finding both
bass and bluefish northwest of the #1 can. Umbrella rig is the lure system
that seems to work the best. If you see the bass down deep slow down and let
the rig sink to them.
The area west of the Target ship is a big area. It is basically in between
the Brewster Flats and the south edge of the shoals and as far west as the
Brewster/Dennis line. Jigging is the best method in the area but a few fish
have been taken on swimming plugs on mono. You have to work the area until
you find the fish and then try and keep track of them. If you’re able to
find the main body you’ll definitely have some big fish to deal with.
Billingsgate Shoals may still hold some fish. However, for the time being it
seems there is not much going on with the shoals area. In a week or so that
should change drastically, I hope.
The bluefish have really moved into the Bay. From up by the Sunken Meadow
area to off the Brewster Flats to the north edge of the shoals and up by the
Path, you can find these active fish. The hootchie on mono or an umbrella
rig will work just fine. Right now the most active area is along the Eastham
shore and up to Sunken Meadow in 10 feet of water or less.
Next week we should see more and more bass work their way up on Billingsgate
shoals, especially during the high water period. The area that should see
the most activity would be the western end of the shoals from the Wreck Buoy
out to the north edge and slightly to the east of that line. Jigging will be
your best bet for a method but I think rigs will work well also. Time will
tell.
Last week I took my wife, Annie, out for a short trip up to Stony Bar for an
afternoon of fishing. She works at a local store here in Orleans and doesn’t
get much time to fish. I wasn’t sure what we’d find but she really was after
her first bass of the season. Well, she got it. Not a real large fish, the
good eating size, 29 inches. Needless to say that’s what we’ll have for
dinner soon.
If you’d like to catch your own dinner give me a call at: 508-240-8267 on
the boat or 508-255-6211 at home.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web Site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
14 June 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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The fish are finally on
the move. They haven’t moved too far though. Just a little west of the the
Target Ship out in 25 to 30 feet of water during the flood tide. There still
seems to be a large amount of squid in the area so the hootchie is still the
lure of choice.
These bass aren’t the only fish in the Bay right now. In fact, both the bass
and bluefish are showing up most everywhere. There are still some bass back
on Stony Bar mixed in with a number of bluefish. If you went into the
shallow water a long the Eastham shore where you would normally find just
bluefish, I would not be surprised if you’d hook up on a striper now and
then. The other place where the bass are showing up in large number is along
the north edge of Billingsgate Shoals. These fish have been there off and on
for a while now but it’s mostly on now. During the beginning of this last
week the Rock Harbor Fleet did very well in this area with fish near the 40
inch mark.
For whatever reason the Bay or at least the east side of it is holding large
amounts of bait. This is what’s keeping all these fish around. Squid, sand
eels, small mackerel, and little silver sided bait fish are abundant. You’d
get a fish, especially the bluefish, up to the boat and they’d throw out
mouthfuls of any of the baits I have mentioned. When filleting a big bass
you’d find an almost intact squid that might be as big as 10 to 12 inches.
Whether it was due to the cold spring we have had or the fact the water is
warming up slowly not having a number of sunny days, it’s hard to say.
This last Tuesday the hot area was just north of the wreck buoy on the south
edge of Billingsgate shoals. Starting in 25 feet of water and moving north
and slightly northeast at just under 3 knots while jigging with three
hundred feet of wire with a jigged eel was the route of the day. By the time
you got to the north edge you most likely would have your two bass and your
buddies two fish also. To say the least, it was very good fishing. That’s
just one spot too.
The fishermen of the week are a group of fifty or so anglers of the Polish
American Citizen’s Club. This last Sunday Capt. Steve Ellis, of the Watanye,
put together this group on 9 different charter boats. When they left the
harbor the boats headed in different directions. When they got back the
stories and bragging was much larger than any fish that was landed. It was
one of the best trips this group had ever had. They are already talking
about who’ll get the biggest fish next year.
If you’d like to try your had at some of the best bass fishing in years give
me a call. Home: 508-255-6211 or Boat: 508-240-8267.
Web: www.capecodbaycharters.com
E-mail: stunmai@copper.net |
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
7 June 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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So far the early season
fishing has been outstanding. What seemed to be the main body of stripers
has stayed up in the area around the #3 and #5 cans near Billingsgate
Island. It’s basically known as the Stony Bar area. However, fish have been
taken out on the north edge of the Billingsgate Shoals and out in the deeper
water out to 40 feet. The south edge also hold bass but most of them are
undersize like off the Brewster Flats. Barnstable Harbor holds a number of
bass also with the main concentration being in the channel. There are a
number of keepers in this area. All in all it’s an excellent early season
run, one of the best in many years.
Last weekend was not the best of weather. The fish didn’t seem to mind. I
guess living in the water makes you impervious to rain and such. There was
plenty of activity, all the boats that fished had no trouble finding a
number of big fish up to 40 inches plus. There is an a abundance of squid in
the Bay. The big squid with some being a foot in length. One captain
reported that while he was sitting dead in the water a number of squid
attacked a swimming plug he had dangling from an outrigger and just laying
in the water.
Some of the boats have ventureed out off the north edge of the shoals and
found schools of bass in the deeper water. They are not really active yet
but suspect they will be as soon as the water warms a bit. That is when we
get to see some more of that round bright object in the sky.
Traditionally, schools of medium size bass, 29 to 34 inches, show up on the
north edge of Billingsgate Shoals and up towards the Path. Usually in the 50
to 60 foot range and into the 40 foot range at times. This is where the
umbrella rig comes into its own. A rig on 150 feet of wire with possibly a
little weight or 200 foot wires with no weight usually will do the trick.
However, don’t discount trolling single swimming plugs on mono. It is not
impossible for these fish to come up for these lures.
We have a fisher person of the week. It is legitimate but I do have some
prejudice in this choice. Connie Delano, from Kingston, Ma. was out on a
trip last week. She was the mate on my first charter boat 26 years ago. On
this trip she had an opportunity to try out some really light gear. Miss
Delano was able to land a nice size bass, around 15 to 16 pounds, on 12 lb.
test line. I trolled this tackle so the fish was some distance from the boat
when she hooked up. It didn’t take her very long before it was beside the
boat and then in the boat and finally released after pictures were taken. It
was her first bass in, as she put it, 20 something years.
If you like to get in on some very good early season fishing give me a call
at home at, 508-255-6211 or on the boat at: 508-240-8267.
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
1 June 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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Memorial Day weekend was
just that. Not only did we remember the troops who have given the ultimate
for this country but we had a peaceful great weekend in regards to weather
and fishing. You may have heard of the 4th of July blitz that was famous for
the Cape Cod Bay area. Well, now we have started the tradition of the
Memorial Day bass blitz in Cape Cod Bay. It is more than an understatement
to say the fishing was good for the whole weekend.
Basically the whole area from the #3 to # 5 can and to the east was loaded
with bass from small to over 40 inch. That would occur during the flood
tide. As the tide would drop the bass moved off Stony Bar and moved slightly
to the west. They settled in just off the south edge of Billingsgate Shoals.
This does not mean all the fish left the area east of Stony Bar, just the
opposite. The really big fish stayed in this area. Some of these bass were
in the 20 to 30 pound range. This is unusual for this time of year.
Most everyone used the umbrella rig fishing in the area. However, single
swimming plugs, hootchies, and some of the soft baits worked as well. It was
the norm to have 2 to 3 keepers on one rig when you’d hook up. “Combos”, a
hootchie in front of a swimming plug on the same leader, was a favorite of
the charter fleet. This setup can be used both on wire or mono rods. When
trolling this system you want your speed to be from 3.5 knots to as much as
5 knots. It is possible to come with 2 fish on your line. A single hootchie
on mono was deadly when you found the fish on the surface or you could stop
and cast a swimming plug into them. Poppers didn’t seem to work as well.
Monday afternoon notes a slow down to good fishing where you had to work
just a little bit for your fish and the big 40 plus inch bass were a bit
harder to find. I guess you can’t have everything. We came awfully close to
it though.
In the past these fish have moved off to either the south edge of
billingsgate shoals or up on top of the shoals itself. Also some of the bass
might move to the area west of the old Target Ship for a spell. Time will
tell us this and we’ll have to do some hunting to find the main body of
fish. For the time being lets hope these bass stay put for a while. They did
last season. That’s what fishing is all about or else they’d call it
“catching” instead.
If you’d like to get in on some of this fantastic fishing give me a call at
home at 508-255-6211 or on the boat at 508-240-8267. If your in the area of
Rock Harbor come down and visit if I’m aboard.
Email - stunmai@copper.net
Web - www.capecodbaycharters.com
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
25 May 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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Last season we had a cold
May. One of the coldest on Record. This season we are having the wettest May
on record, at least in some areas. I wish we’d have one of the most normal
Mays on record, or would that be too much to ask?
Anyway, the fish are cooperating and very well, thank you. This last
weekend, Saturday in particular, a number of the boats from the fleet were
out on both trips, the full day and the half day. The fishing on both trips
was very good. The full day trip, over the low water was exceptionally good
in both size and amount of bass. Some the stripers landed were well over 40
inches in length. Most of the keepers were between 30 and 34 inches which is
a nice sized bass for this time of the season. Swimming plugs and hootchies
work the best with the umbrella rig coming in a close second. A heavy
southwest wind was the only damper to an otherwise perfect day.
The areas that seem to be the most active with the stripers are just off the
Brewster Flats from 18 feet of water out to 25 feet. One other area is the
channel in Barnstable Harbor, and the last but far from the least is from
the #3 can up to the #5 can south of Welfleet Harbor and out to the east of
there towards the Eastham shore.
In the areas of Barnstable Harbor and the Brewster Flats the umbrella rig on
150 foot wire or a small swimming plug on mono will work extremely well. You
just have to look for the working birds and more times than not you’ll find
the fish under them. Most of the bass are undersized, however a few are up
to 35 inches in length. If you don’t see any birds, work the area and
eventually you should find them.
The area between the #3 can and the #5 can and out to the east is a little
different. You can sometimes have working birds but most of the time you
must work the area for awhile to find where the bass are feeding. The
umbrella rig will also work here too, but a single hootchie on wire or on
mono will work better, especially on the bigger bass. It seems that from low
water up until near high water the fish move into the shallow water and up
into Welfleet Harbor and are harder to find. A little looking around will
solve that problem. The yellow or orange hootchie works the best right now,
however this can change.
Where to look next? That’s a good question. I would guess the south edge of
Billingsgate Shoals during an incoming tide and the north edge during the
outgoing would be a good bet. Also, west of the old target ship is another
good place to look. This should happen once the bass move out of where they
are now. That happens when the water warms up some. It should be in the high
50’s or low 60’s.
Be careful this holiday weekend and make it an enjoyable one. If you’d like
to get in on some really good fishing give me a call at 508-255-6211 or
508-240-8267 and Ill get you out there.
E-mail - stunami@copper.net
Web site -
www.capecodbaycharters.com
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
17 May 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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Rain and fog, fog and
rain, with a some wind mixed in for an added touch. I thought the saying was
”April showers bring May flowers...” Someone got it backwards. Seriously,
this has really put a damper on the fishing out in Cape Cod Bay. The boats
are ready, or at least most of them. We, as captains are more than ready,
and I suppose the fish are ready. When is the weather going to cooperate?
One thing that did improve immensely was the flounder fishing. By the end of
last week before the weather went down hill the private boats that went out
of Rock Harbor did very well. The best area was off shore of the Brewster
Flats where the old #2 buoy used to be. Basically off where the sail boats
are moored in the summer. I had gone out to check out my new radar (used but
new to me). I used it to move up on two small boats who were flounder
fishing. When I got to the first one I got a big thumbs up and when I
approached the second I noticed 3 out of the 4 men in the boat had fish on.
I set up my drift and in 1/2 half an hour I had 5 nice size flounder and had
released 4 more that were undersize. I was using clams not worms, which work
better. Another area that should produce some good fishing is east of the
old target ship on the east side of the hole there. Start in 24 feet and
drift up to 20 feet for the best results.
Last season somewhat the same thing happened. The result being the bass
stayed in the Stony Bar area for a much longer period of time than normal. I
could almost copy last season’s reports word for word and be fairly accurate
this year. The only difference is it’s a slight bit warmer. Trying to find
the silver lining in these clouds we’ve been stuck with is difficult but
possible. If the two seasons are equal we will see some excellent bass
fishing come the last 10 days of the month. Starting from the 20th, this
Saturday, or so the bass should just appear and feed ferociously. I was down
off the Brewster flats, outside of Paine’s Creek, this last Monday just
before high water and landed three small keepers on one rig. Two were just,
and I mean just, over 28 inches and the third was 29 1/2 inches. That one I
kept for dinner. I did hook up on a number of small fish. Just look for the
birds. This area is a good early season spot.
Between the Brewster Flats and Stony Bar, when the weather improves a bit,
you should be able to find some decent striper activity. As the water warms
up and if the sun ever makes its presence known this activity will greatly
improve. I would venture a guess that it might be better than last season
which was excellent. Just pray for sun and warm weather with little wind.
If you like to be in on this up coming potential bass blitz give me a call
at 508-255-6211 or on the boat at 508-240-8267. I think you’ll be plenty
surprised.
E-mail - stunmai@copper.net
Web - www.capecodbaycharters.com
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Fishing Report
13 May 2006
By: Michael MacAskill |
Hello Everyone, The
schoolies are around in these areas: Rock Harbor, Pamet River, Scorton
Creak, Nantucket sound Harbor (Wychmere, Alans, Chatham, Outermost and
Saquatucket) these fish have been taking the usual flies such as clousers
and deceivers and some small sand eels patterns. These have been fished on
Intermediate lines and a tippet classes anywhere from 8-12 lbs test. Most
of these fish are any where from 16-26 inches. Some keepers have been
caught off of Harding’s beach in Chatham and South Sunken Meadow in
Eastham. These fish have been feeding on the hearing and Squid we have
found that light colored bombers, and larger RonZ and Chunk bait have been
producing these larger fish in area. Fran Keough (Goose Hummock) and Ben
Zender a good customer went out on Cape Cod Bay and told me that the cod
fishing was good but the only problem was that they were all shorts. They
were using Jigs ranging around 8-18 oz with a bug teaser and clam strips.
In addition there are a few fish showing up on the Brewster flats that
have been chasing the small baitfish such as silversides and mumachogs.
Fran explained to me that there seems to be a lot of N.E sculpin around
pace point. Mackerel are thick off of Sesuit Harbor and are taking the
rigs with great gusto. The Winter Flounder have been around the target
ship and the mud flats around Billingsgate Shoal. They seem not to be in the
number that we hope but hopefully they will show up on legal size a number
to make great table fair. The hot bait seems to be sea worms or clam
stripes on a spreader bar with at least a 3 oz. weight attached the
center.
The fresh water has been excellent also, Nickerson has been stocked
heavily and the largemouth bass has started to make their beds for the
spawn that is soon approaching. The trout have been taking nats and ant
patters with some streams mixed in the match. The bass have been hitting
soft plastics fish slow rigged Texas style or drop shot. Also don’t forget
to use those jerk baits and spinnerbait. These lures have been productive
by fishing weed beds and submerged structure. Also the Bass Tournaments on
long pond in Harwich have been going strong these past weekends with fish
over 5 lbs being caught. Also Sheep pond in Brewster was just stocked with
in the week and has been producing nice fish such as tiger, rainbow, brook
and brown trout. Also some really nice Smallmouth have been caught there
using shiners and roster tails spinners. The Fly guys have been using
streams for these fish and dry on the surface for the trout. So the season
is final 100 percent among us! Hope to see you in the shop.
Michael
MacAskill
Owner - Goose Hummock Shops and Goose Marine
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
10 May 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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Rock Harbor has come
alive. Boats, captains and mates are getting the boat ready for another
season of good bass and bluefishing on Cape Cod Bay. If the arrival of the
schoolies is any prediction on the summer to come it should be a very good
one. The weather for the first few days of May wasn’t the best but the fish
didn’t seem to care. For the first time in a while we had a number small
bass in Rock Harbor itself. One day it seemed every other cast had either a
fish on or at least the hit of one.
We had a decent April and it seems the small bass arrived a little early.
There were reports from the south side of the Cape in almost mid April of
the schoolies presence. The rumor of keepers being landed didn’t take long
either. Pleasant Bay was alive with fish. Then Barnstable Harbor had small
bass. Rock Harbor was next. Last Saturday Pamet River was loaded with
schoolies. What we need to hear next is the first bluefish taken off Red
River. It’s hard to keep up with how fast the Cape is coming alive with
fish.
The next thing that we have to get straightened out is this weather. As I
remember last May was like this also. Cape Cod Bay was a little behind the
rest of the Cape as far a fish activity at first but bounded back strong in
the middle to later part of May and in to June. The bass stayed close to
home, up on Stony Bar, for much of June. Then they moved to the south edge
and from there to the north edge with a few visits to the shoals. With the
price of fuel this would be a good thing at least for us.
The boats out of Barnstable will have quite a steam to reach these areas.
Flounder fishing, I’ve been asked about this a lot lately. I have no real
answers for you. There is very little if any amount out in front of Rock
Harbor. Not yet anyway and there should be by now. The few that have been
landed were very thin. Fran, from the Goose Hummock was up in P-town last
weekend and found a large number of undersize cod fish (24 inches) in the
Race. He could not find one flounder in P-town Harbor. He did state there
were a large number of seals on wood end though.
The next few weeks should tell the story for the Cape Cod Bay fishing
season. If it’s anything like last season we’ll have a good year. If you
have any questions please feel free to call me or e-mail me with your
concerns. If you’d like to try your hand at fishing the Bay call me at
508-240-8267,
e-mail stunmai@copper.net
www.capecodbaycharters.com
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Rock Harbor
Fishing Report
3 May 2006
By: Capt. Hap Farrell |
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The season is upon us.
We’re very happy to see it arrive. Even though the winter was a mild one for
us here on Cape Cod it was certainly long enough. Maybe that’s why the
Striped bass have shown up a little early this year. Whatever the reason we
are more than happy to see them show up.
Well, to get down to business. The small schoolie bass are everywhere. In
our area there have been small schoolies at the River Road landing for near
two weeks now. It started out slow with just a few fish, now it’s
gangbusters. Any time from two hours before high water to about the same
time on the dropping tide should be the best time. The end of Barley Neck
Rd. out to the right past the first point is an excellent area also. In the
Chatham parts of Pleasant Bay, Potters Landing and Minister's point are good
areas on a dropping tide. Hardings Beach is another good spot.
According to Fran Keough, at the Goose Hummock, the south side of the Cape
is already producing a number of big stripers. It was fairly active last
season but seems to be much more active this season. He has personally seen
bass over 40 pounds taken off one of the jetties off Red River. The entrance
to Bass river has also produced some legal size bass. A number of guys are
using light line and small lures for the schoolie and finding that they are
getting parted off by big fish. Lets hope this keeps up. If so this should
be a banner year both for the south side of the Cape and the Bay where Our
fleet is.
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