Yesterday at 12:30pm I drove to the town of Sandwich where I picked up my friend Garet for an afternoon fishing trip aboard my 21 foot Hydra Sport the Miss Loretta.
Some of you might recognize Garet from the articles he's contributed over the years to My Fishing Cape Cod. Garet also joins me on occasion at fishing expos and seminars throughout New England.
There was a moderate breeze from the north yesterday afternoon, but it was predicted to die down. I expected to have an enjoyable and calm evening on the water.
Finding some fish would be a bonus!
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By 2pm we had the boat and gear ready. We launched at this marina and began searching for birds and fish.
Over the past few days I really enjoyed reading all the bluefish reports that were being shared inside the MFCC forum.
Those reports help inspire me to put Garet onto a big blue, which was our goal for this trip!
Searching For Schools of Bluefish
Suddenly we saw a huge whitewater explosion off the port side of the boat. We did not see the animal, but based on the splash I figured it was probably a large gray seal.
Perhaps the seal was feeding on the baitfish the bluefish were feeding on. Or maybe the seal was feeding on the bluefish?
Garet and I kept our eyes peeled for more signs of life as we continued working our way down the coast, and about an hour later we began seeing birds diving and fish breaking.
Based off the splashes there was little doubt in my mind that we were dealing with bluefish! I motored the Miss Loretta over to the action for a closer look.
By this time the seas had calmed down significantly and the water's surface was smooth and slick. I glanced down off the starboard side and could clearly see big blues cruising by.
We had definitely found the fish!
Hey Ryan…Went out in the boat last Tuesday. Ended up over at Billingsgate a couple of hours before hightide. Me and the wife got into a nice school of Gators trolling tube and worm right over the southern end of the shoal line…ended up landing 5 between 28 to 32 inches lost a few more to. Nothing like the fight a blue gives you…great day..
Sounds like a great day to me David. Another memorable fishing experience with the wife! That is awesome. My dad and I got into some really big bluefish last Wed/Thur much closer to home than Billingsgate. Good luck if you head out this week!
Hey Ryan ..Was out there last Thursday with my brother. Tried to go out to Billingsgate but was a bit challenging and got pretty wet so we decided to get close to the shoreline and get out of Tsunami Ville..lol..Got a few small blues at Sesuit and trolling Barnstable harbor channel…Got my largest Gator of the season over at Scortons..34.5..Hoping to get out one or two times before she goes away for the season. Do you think it will still be good for the next few weeks…Any suggestions where to try in the bay would be great…Tight lines brother..PS saw about a half dozen ocean sunfish out there and 2 in the canal together on the way in…weird looking things but cool
Hey David,
Yeah it’s been pretty windy out there! I can definitely relate. Fortunately yesterday and later this week is looking pretty calm.
Glad to hear you were able to get into some of those big bluefish. Right now I am hearing the big blues are still in the bay from the canal east to Brewster. Looking forward, I do not have much experience during October at Billingsgate or off Brewster. I tend to fish that area more from late May-early July.
I have done well in the past from the canal to Barnstable Harbor as late as early November. The East End of the canal to the Sandwich Boardwalk is also a good area for October fishing, especially when the canal’s current is moving east into Cape Cod Bay. The West End of the canal is always worth a checking during October too, plus there are tautog down there. I’ve also done well at Race Point and in Plymouth Bay during October.
Funny you mention the sunfish. My dad and I saw a small school of a half dozen of them all swimming together last week in CCB!