July 2011

Cape Cod Fishing Report July 27 – 28

by Ryan Collins

It’s been quite the week. Due to some “out of my control” events, I’ve been awake for way too long, so I apologize in advance for any grammatical errors. I guess it’s all part of being nocturnal during the summer.

Anyways the lack of sleep has been well worth it. We encountered a lot of nice fish this past week. Unfortunately they haven’t always been eating. One minute they’re slamming whatever we throw at them, then the next we can’t buy a hit. But that’s fishing, and during this time of the year, sometimes the bass have lockjaw. I guess even fish aren’t hungry all the time.

Wednesday produced a dozen bass between 18-38 pounds. All of the fish came on spinning gear. If the bass were really aggressive we could of had nonstop action all trip, however that was just not the case.

We also missed about 10 additional fish which was frustrating. The bass seemed to detect any tension in the line and would immediately drop the eel if we did not present it in a picture perfect fashion. Regardless we still had a decent pick of fish.

Bob with one of 10 nice fish caught during his most recent trip.

Thursday’s trip started out absolutely gorgeous. Cape Cod Bay was as flat as a pane of glass. The stars actually reflected off the Bay’s surface. It does not get any smoother than that.

I had Bob with me again. Bob was part of last year’s incredible September bite. In back to back nights we landed 80 keeper bass between 15 and 37 pounds. On another different September 2010 trip with Bob and his brother Mike, Bob boated a beautiful 46 pounder that he took on a live eel in just 12 feet of water. On a 2010 trip with Bob and his son Erick, the father son duo landed 26 bass between 20 and 35 pounds.

What I’m getting at is that Bob seems to be very good luck on the boat.

Late July action does not compare to September, however Bob made the best of what Cape Cod Bay had to offer. He got off to a quick start, boating 3 nice bass, back to back to back, all around the 20 pound mark. Final tally was 10 fish between 15 and 27 pounds. Not the best trip I’ve ever had with Bob, but not bad either.

Bob posing with his 46 pounder from September of 2010.

Unfortunately engine trouble is going to keep me off the water tonight. My apologies to John and his group. If you guys are reading this report, hopefully we can still get you out either Friday or Saturday night. I’ll move some stuff around to make it happen, but it depends on the engine prognosis.

I’m still planning on running Sunday through Thursday trips on schedule, so don’t fret just yet if you are booked for next week and are reading this.

You take the good with the bad in this business!

Tight lines and stay safe out there,Ryan

Cape Cod Fishing Report July 26

by Ryan Collins

This is going to be a quick report, considering I just woke up and am heading back out on the water in 20 minutes!

I had John onboard this past trip. John’s a very talented orthodontist and also a very capable fisherman. He’s been coming out fishing on the Miss Loretta each July for the past three years, and we always seem to put fish in the boat when he comes along.

It wasn’t long until John put a bend in one of the spinning rods. We had a nice quick bite early in the trip, with doubles and even one triple. The bite slowed down a bit during slack tide, but picked up once the tide got rolling again.

All in all another solid effort. Total tally was 14 bass between 20 and 35 pounds. Average fish this trip was 26 pounds.

That a boy John!

Tight lines and good luck,Ryan

John with one of 14 bass caught between 20-35 pounds.

Cape Cod Fishing Report July 24

by Ryan Collins

Sometimes it doesn’t matter how nice your boat is, how expensive your equipment is, or how much fishing experience you have. Sometimes you just need to get lucky.

We really lucked out this past trip on numerous fronts. The weather was picture perfect, with calm winds and a clear starlit sky.

We lucked out again when we conveniently happened upon a football sized school of really nice size striped bass. You know it’s a big school of fish when you are cruising at 25mph, and you still mark an enormous blob of orange on the fish finder.

It’s awesome when the weather and the fish cooperate.

I whipped the boat around and had Lauren pitch a few eels off the stern. Within a couple minutes the huge school of bass appeared directly beneath the Miss Loretta’s hull (again VERY lucky) and in no time we had the first fish of the night on the line.

After a rather lengthy battle on a small spinning setup with a light drag Lauren got the bass boat-side. The circle hook was right in the corner of the bass’ jaw-perfect. A quick weight measurement had the striper pegged at 29lbs-good start!

Hoping that the good luck streak would continue, we headed west for a few hundred yards with fingers crossed that the fish didn’t move off into the abyss of Cape Cod Bay. Fortunately we found them again in no time, and were soon doubled up with a couple of healthy 20 pounders.

As I eased one of the fish around to the starboard side of the boat, I noticed an additional 6-10 bass following closely behind the hooked fish. The bass were everywhere!

Lauren with an awesome 29 pound bass-nice work!

We soon had our limit of keepers and decided to head for the docks. What a great trip it was with a lot of fish and perfect weather.

Lauren once again cashed in the biggest bass of the night at 29 pounds, and even gaffed another 20 pounder all on her own.

Lets hope the good luck streak continues into this coming week!

Tight lines and good luck out there,

Captain Ryan

Cape Cod Fishing Report July 19-21

by Ryan Collins

July 19 – Chatham

Chatham is an awesome Cape Cod town. The place has great bars, phenomenal ice cream, great white sharks and fantastic striper fishing opportunities.

I’m no Chatham fishing expert, however I do know that Monomoy supports acres of fast moving rips, and expansive sand flats-perfect for the light tackle and fly fishing crowd. The area east of Chatham inlet is also a prime spot that routinely holds big bass. Big bluefin tuna also roam the area, and I heard that Charlie has made his presence known numerous times this week.

So after hearing the plethora of positive information flowing from Chatham, I couldn’t resist trecking down there at 3AM Tuesday morning.

I would soon realize that I still had A LOT of learning left to do when it comes to striped bass fishing.

After making the long run around Monomoy from Harwichport, we immediately settled up on a nice school of busting bass. Within the first 30 minutes we had caught around 10 fish, 3 of which were keepers. It was a good start but short lived.

Soon the fleet arrived and the place turned into Disneyland. I spent the rest of the morning dodging the 200 plus boats, catching bluefish, and landing one more corky 20 pound bass. Not the best outcome, but a learning experience nonetheless.

Chatham looked like a floating parking lot this past week.

July 20 – Cape Cod Bay

The next day I had a trip slated for Cape Cod Bay with Kevin, a recently hired New England Patriots’ employee. Actually, it’s been almost a year to the day that Kevin got word that he was hired by the Pats. Ironically enough he got the phone call while fishing on the Miss Loretta last summer. I was hoping the good mojo would continue!

Almost as soon as we put our tube and worm rigs in the water, Kevin was on with a monster bluefish. Not the target species, but at least there was some life in the area.

10 minutes later, the clicker starts screaming, and Kev’s on! This was no bluefish, and after a lengthy battle, I sank the gaff into a beautiful 25 pound line sider-nice!

Kevin and I fell into a nice routine for the remainder of the trip. Setting lines, pitching eels and boating fish. When all was said and done, we had 16 keeper bass to our names, all between 20 and 39 pounds.

Kevin with two of 16 keeper bass taken during a trip this past week. Notice the flat calm conditions and pink sky-perfect morning!

Of course the highlight of the trip was tripling up on a lobster pot. The first time I have ever successfully managed to hook all three tubes on the same pot. Go me.

I forget what Kevin’s personal best is for striped bass, but this 39 pounder must of been pretty close to his biggest.

Kevin with a 39 pound bass caught in Cape Cod Bay using a spinning rod and a live eel.

July 21- Cape Cod Bay

This morning was EXTREMELY windy! However we still managed to find the bass amidst the white caps.

Tubes were the ticket today. For some reason the bass ignored the eels-go figure. Finaly tally was 7 keeper fish between 25 and 35 pounds. I forgot to take pictures so you’ll just have to take my word on it!

There seems to be a nice class of fish moving into the area right now. I have next Friday night, July 29th available for anyone who would like to get a shot at these beautiful bass.

Good luck and tight lines!

Captain Ryan Collins

Cape Cod Bay Giant Tuna Time

by Ryan Collins

This giant tuna article was published in June of 2011.

With reports of seriously big tuna being spotted by planes flying over Cape Cod Bay, it may be time to start thinking about drifting a bluefish off Sandy Neck.

A plethora of mackerel invaded Cape Cod Bay over the past few days. Some nice bass and blues have been caught by anglers trolling tube and worm rigs around the mackerel schools. However you can be sure that stripers and bluefish are not the only predators that have taken notice of the large amount of bait currently present in Cape Cod Bay.

The stickboats have been having good success off the backside of the Cape and around Provincetown. I would not be surprised if we soon hear of giant tuna being harpooned inside the Bay sometime over the next few days.

Beefy tackle in the form of 80 and 130 class reels are a necessity for rod and reel anglers set on catching giant tuna.

The nice weather predicted for this weekend presents a great window of opportunity for small boat tuna fishermen hoping to hook up close to home.

Recently fishermen departing from the East End of the canal have reported bait balls of tinker mackerel extending from the Sandwich shores, well eastward off Barnstable. Odds are this is not the only area in the Bay holding mackerel.

Areas to Check Out

The Fishing Ledge, which sits almost smack dab in the middle of Cape Cod Bay, could be a prime spot to take a look for Charlie (tuna) this weekend. If the seas are glass calm, keep your eyes peeled for giant tuna cruising just underneath the surface.

Giant tuna will often create a V-shaped wake as they cruise just inches under the Bay’s surface. If you plan on targeting smaller tuna on spinning gear, it may be smart to gauge the size of the tuna before casting.

Last year, around this time, tuna in the 150 pound range could be found a few miles north of the Fingers outside Barnstable Harbor. This class of fish would be much better suited for spin fishermen, compared to some of the larger specimens being caught by the stickboats and anglers utilizing heavy conventional tackle.

The area referred to by old timers as the Square off Billingsgate may also be an area worth taking a ride too. A smart tactic would be to spend the early hours of the morning catching bluefish over the shoal, and then drifting the blues in the deeper water west of Billingsgate in the afternoon.

The bluefish I have seen so far this week in the Bay have all been monstrous. We had good success on fat, 34+ inch blues on Thursday. These larger specimens of the bluefish population make prime bait for giant bluefins.

Techniques to Try

Kite fishing is one of the most exciting ways to catch a giant tuna. It’s essentially the same thing as topwater bass fishing, except the fish is about 100 times bigger.

Details matter when kite fishing. Using braided line on Penn 80 or 130 conventional reels can really help a kite to fly high and strong even in a light breeze. Dropper lines set at intervals from the line running off the kite rod will help to decrease the severity of the angle of the main line running from the reel to the bait. “Bridling” baits can help to increase the longevity of precious live bluefish, pogies and mackerel.

Check out Kite Fishing for Giant Tuna 101 for more information.

Nothing beats seeing a giant tuna at boatside. Photo courtesy of TR Schilb.

Balloon fishing allows a tuna fisherman to strategically place live baits at specific depths. An appropriate size egg sinker, say 8 ounces, is attached a distance up from the live bait on the main line using an elastic band. If the depth you desire to place your bait at is 80 feet, then 80 feet of main line is paid out. A balloon is then attached 80 feet up from the live bait. Float the balloon away from the boat and start the drift.

We’ll discuss the finer details of balloon fishing in subsequent articles. Until then, tight lines and good luck in your pursuit of giant tuna!

30 Pounders, Lightning, Big Waves and Wind – Cape Cod Bay Report July 12-14

by Ryan Collins

If you don’t like the weather on Cape Cod, then wait 15 minutes for it to change.

This past week’s weather has been crazy to say the least. Monday night featured a refreshing 30 + knot southwest breeze, 3 foot waves and a bunch of water splashing over the bow. Conditions like this = no chance for a successful night trip.

Tuesday night was beautiful with flat calm seas, clear skies, a nearly full moon and a few nice fish kicking around. Brian McCowan was onboard and basically killed it. He didn’t drop a single bass and boated fish up to 31 pounds.

Brian with a pair of nice Cape Cod Bay striped bass.

Early on in the night we picked up a nice, corky 25 + pounder on a tube, which McCowan quickly brought to boatside. A half an hour later we found ourselves pitching eels to the hundred or so bass that decided to take up residence beneath the hull of the boat. McCowan had no trouble handling the fish on spinning tackle, and once again quickly brought 3 more stripers to the boat.

Later on in the trip we switched back to the troll and picked up 3 more quality bass between 15 and 30 pounds. At this point we weren’t marking anything on the sonar, but the bass were in the area, and had no trouble slurping down a tube and worm or two.

And then Wednesday night happened. Things looked great initially, with a light north breeze and sunny skies. However good Old Cape Cod decided to throw a monsoon coupled with a lot of electricity into the mix, as soon as we launched the Miss Loretta at the Sandwich Marina. Needless to say we spent a lot of time sitting at the dock and zero time catching bass.

So what do you do when you get blown off the water? Head down to the Cape Cod Canal of course, for some early morning plugging!

After a quick bike ride down the service road to the Herring Run, I had a nice batch of fish set up smack dab in front of me. It took a heave of a cast into a harsh 25 knot north wind and peltering rain, but despite the conditions the fish had no trouble zoning in on the homemade pencil popper.

Smack! Whitewater sprayed into the air as a nice sized bass sucked in the wooden lure and made a mad dash for the bottom. Instead of chasing the fish down the rip rap, I opted for locking down the drag and horsing him into shore. To my surprise the bass ended up tipping the scale at a hefty 35 pounds. I’ll take it!

It’s rough right now in the Bay, as you can see in the background of this picture. However there were some really nice bass this morning in the Cape Cod Canal.

So to sum it all up, the fish are out in the Bay, if the weather allows you to get to them. At the moment the waves are HUGE in the Bay and I wouldn’t recommend anyone head out unless you plan on fishing from a mega-yacht.

The canal was bustling with surface activity this morning. Maybe the fishing in the Big Ditch will hold steady for the weekend warriors.

Let’s hope this weekend’s weather is a bit more cooperative!

Tight lines,

Ryan

July 12 Report

by Ryan Collins

Well the tough streak continues for another day. I’ve got to report the good and the bad.

Things started off fantastic. Marked A LOT of nice fish. Put the tubes out, and BANG – 30 pounder.

And then the wind started blowing. The predicted 10-15 out fo the Southwest turned into a howling 20-30mph. A bit too much for the Miss Loretta.

This pic was taken last fall. It wasn’t quite this bad out there last night, but it wasn’t all that much better either.

We spent the rest of the night trudging back to the canal. A long, wet sloppy ride.

The weather for tonight looks better though, and with the amount of fish marked on the sonar last night, it’s just a matter of time until it breaks wide open.

It’s 7am, time to go to bed!

Catch em up!

Ryan

July 9th and 10th Weekend Report

by Ryan Collins

Friday

Well sometimes it’s best to just suck up your pride and throw in the towel. Problem was that none of us were willing to quit Friday night, and we got absolutely drenched to the bone because of it.

To make a very long, wet, and dry as a desert night story a heck of a lot shorter, we just plain didn’t catch anything.

I give Bob, Pat, and Sean Cassidy a lot of credit for sticking it out. Don’t worry fellas I’ll make it up to you guys later this summer. Let me know when you want to go.

Saturday

With clear skies, light winds, and no rain in the forecast, I had a lot more confidence coming into Saturday night. I had a powerhouse crew from Taunton-Randy, John and Brian. All three were experienced Capt. John bottom fishermen, and were looking for some corker Cape Cod Bay striped bass.

Right off the bat we began marking bait and the tubes went in the water. A few hours later we still hadn’t hooked up, and I’m starting to think that we may have a repeat of Friday night. Dreading the rare and infamous “back-to-back skunk” I got us on the move and headed east.

Finally, after a lot of searching, we marked a small pile of bass and dropped the lines back. A half an hour later and the clicker started going off on John’s starboard side rod. Thank god, I quietly said to myself.!

A few minutes later and we had a nice, fat, 32 pounder flopping on the deck of the Miss Loretta. It was John’s first ever striped bass-what a start! It took me over a decade of trying before I beat the 30 pound mark. John broke into the 30 pound club after just a couple hours!

John with his first ever striped bass-a nice 32 pounder.

With tubes back in the water and a sense of renewed energy we trolled onward. An hour later and the clicker started clicking again.

This time it was Randy’s turn, and he battled what would turn into his largest striper of his life-a healthy, sea lice covered 22 pounder. Nice fish!

Randy with his biggest striper to date-a 22 pounder.

Unfortunately Brian left the party empty handed, however he’ll be sure to have the lucky stick next time.

All in all, still a very slow trip, but a heck of a lot more productive than the night prior.

The fishing in the Bay will only get better from here forward. A year ago this coming week produced two 15 plus keeper striper trips, with the largest topping the scales at just under 40 pounds. Can’t wait to see what tomorrow night brings to the table.

Catch ‘em up!

Ryan

We’ll get you a nice fish next time Brian.

Lot of Bait, Few Nice Bass – July 7 Fishing Report

by Ryan Collins

A report! Finally!

With all the website work, other shenanigans, and recent Fourth of July activity, it’s been a while since I’ve been on the water-and even longer since publishing a fishing report. Nevertheless here is the first of what should be many more to come.

After a very slow showing off Barnstable during our previous Cape Cod Bay night trip, things seem to be picking up, at least for the moment. Waxing moons seem to produce better than waning moons in our neck of the woods, so with flat calm seas and a waxing moon at our backs, my confidence was riding high.

A “just before dark” striper.

Not to mention I had the man, the myth and the legend Jake Collins at my side.

Like previously mentioned, with all the Independence Day nonsense going on it had been a while since I had a trip. With a full weekend of fishing ahead, I figured a little recon couldn’t hurt.

The first surprise of the night was the water temperature. My Humminbird was reading a balmy 70 degrees, much warmer than the low 60 degree temperatures encountered during my last expedition. Tons of bait, birds and schoolie bass had infiltrated the East End of the Cape Cod Canal. It was a welcoming, and encouraging site.

As soon as I had the Miss Loretta clear of the last of the canal’s green cans we began marking bait. Before I knew it, we were pretty much surrounded by bait balls.

A nice Cape Cod Bay 25-30 pound striped bass.

The bait was extremely skittish. From the looks of it I’d say they were tinker mackerel. Skittish or not the baitfish were everywhere. Individual bait balls could be seen across the horizon to the east and to the west.

About a half hour later we had our first definitive marks on the sonar-a school of around a half dozen bass. Tubes in!

A half hour into the troll and the clicker started clicking. 4 colors and a 24 inch long red tube proved to be the ticket for a nice 25-30 pound striper. Great start!

Jake with his first bass of the year.

Tubes back in, and twenty minutes later, “click, click, click CLICK!” fish on! The bass put up a healthy fight, and a few minutes later we had another 25-30 pound bass flopping on the deck.

The stinger hook on the tube was responsible for both hookups.

A few bluefish later and it was time to head for the docks. Lots to do tomorrow morning. A few hours of recon is certainly better than none at all. All in all a beautiful evening on the water, and a lot of life out there on the Bay.

Hopefully the bait, bass, and good weather will stick around.

Check back this weekend for more reports.

Tight lines and catch ‘em up!

Ryan

Cape Cod Night Surfcasting Hot Spots

by Ryan Collins

This article was published in July of 2011.

With Fourth of July weekend knocking at our front door, it’s about that time for serious striped bass fishermen to transition into fishing during the night. The weather’s getting hotter, the fish are starting to settle into their summertime haunts, and the bite is best, by far, after dark.

Fishing Cape Cod from shore during July and August can be tough. The bulk of the striped bass population will be holding in deeper water only accessible by boats. Things can get frustrating at times. However hitting the right spots after dark will greatly increase your chances of tying into one of the Cape’s summertime cow striped bass.

Hitting the following hotspots, after dark, will give you a good chance at hooking up with a nice striped bass.

This 25 pound bass came on a slug-go bounced along the bottom of the Cape Cod Canal.

Fishing The Cape Cod Canal

Some of the best and most consistent canal fishing occurs during early July. This ribbon of water may seem devoid of life during daylight hours, however do not be fooled-things get going once the sun sets.

Pip’s Rip at the canal’s east end may very well be the most consistent producer of big bass during early July. Pip’s Rip is also one of the most dramatic and impressive rips in the entire canal. The rip rises sharply from the bottom, then plunges down into a gulley. The back-end of the rip then rises dramatically from the bottom, creating two distinct valleys that will hold striped bass when the current is moving.

Big bass settle into Pip’s Rip like clockwork at this time of the year. The bass will hold on each tide, as long as the current is cranking. Hitting the rip from shore can be difficult at times. The best opportunity for the shorebound angler occurs on an incoming tide, when the current is moving east.

The rest of the Cape Cod Canal is littered with rips, gulleys, holes and valleys that all hold striped bass. The difficult part is figuring out where the rips are and what tides produce best at each locale.

If you are a Cape Cod Canal rookie, walk the Big Ditch during the day when the current is really flowing. Bring along a pad and pencil and take note of the pole numbers that coincide with rip water on the surface of the canal. Return during the night and fan cast the area with a heavy jig, keeping track of how long it takes the jig to hit bottom.

When you locate a gulley, you will notice that it takes considerably longer for your jig to hit bottom. For example, one of my favorite canal jigging spots features an enormous hole, surrounded on both sides by impressive rock peaks. It only takes my four ounce jig 7 seconds to hit the top of the rock peaks, however it takes 15 seconds for it to reach the bottom of the hole.

Fishing Sandy Neck Beach

Here’s a small keeper taken at night at the Cape Cod Canal. Notice the blue glove. Wearing a glove to protect your casting finger from braided line cuts is very important if you fish often with braid.

There are a lot of great bonuses for anglers fishing Sandy Neck. The place is gorgeous, and it’s one of the few beaches left on Cape Cod where it is OK to drive on the sand.

The striped bass fishing can be downright awesome too. Fortunately for Sandy Neck fishermen, there exists a large population of striped bass sitting just offshore in areas like the “Parking Lot” and the “Fingers.” The striper schools offshore can, at times, be very large.

It is a real treat for surfcasters when these fish move in tight to the beach. This usually happens during late August and early September, however it does on occasion occur in July.

I remember being in just 7 feet of water last summer off Sandy Neck, drifting eels from the Miss Loretta. We could not have been more than 50 yards off the beach. There were acres of bass slurping down our eels all night. It would have been an epic night of surfcasting, had there been anyone casting from the beach.

Fishing Scorton Creek

Scorton Creek flows into Cape Cod Bay just to the west of Sandy Neck. The creek itself is an impressive ecosystem. Its upper reaches even hold schoolie striped bass throughout the winter.

Just offshore of the creek lies Scorton Ledge, which is at its essence a muddy, boulder strewn hump. At certain times throughout the summer, the Ledge holds large amounts of keeper size stripers. During the night these fish will often venture within casting range of anglers fishing East Sandwich beach and Scorton Creek.

I have found the outgoing tide at the creek to be the most effective. Casting a live eel, or chunk bait into the current, and allowing it to catch a free ride offshore is a productive way to present a bait. There are a few holes and gulleys at the mouth of the creek that bass flock to.

The most important consideration when fishing the creek after dark is safety. A strong current mixed with darkness and invisible drop-offs can be very dangerous. Taking extra precaution when fishing the area is an absolute necessity.

No fish is ever worth risking your life.

Tight lines, good luck and don’t forget your headlamp!