Stripers, Flounder, and Basking Sharks: Cape Cod Bay Heats Up Early with Bruno Demir

The 2025 fishing season on Cape Cod is off to a stellar start, with multiple species already providing excellent action throughout the region. According to MFCC Member, Bruno Demir, the combination of ideal water temperatures and exceptionally clear conditions suggests we might be in for not just a great season, but an earlier-than-usual peak for many favorite species.

Cape Cod Bay: Striped Bass and Winter Flounder

Bruno reports that Cape Cod Bay is currently "on fire" with fishing activity. Water temperatures have reached an ideal 55°F, creating perfect conditions for striped bass. During his recent outings, Bruno observed massive schools of sand eels throughout the bay, providing abundant forage for hungry stripers.

"There's striper everywhere," Bruno enthusiastically shared. "There's a ton of sand eels right now in Cape Cod Bay. I mean everywhere you look, there's piles of sand eels."

While the stripers weren't showing themselves on the surface, they were actively feeding lower in the water column. Bruno found trolling to be particularly effective:

"The bite right now for stripers is the troll. We were trolling deep divers—things that can get down about 10, 15, 20 feet—and those were extremely productive. Just about every pass we were getting a striper."

Most impressive was the quality of fish being caught—Bruno reported that nearly all their catches were slot-sized fish with sea lice, indicating these are fresh arrivals from the migration.

Winter flounder fishing has also been productive, though showing signs of slowing down from the red-hot bite that started about four weeks ago. Bruno still managed to catch his limit during a morning trip and offered some valuable tips for anglers targeting these tasty flatfish:

• Use the freshest clams possible for bait
• Sea worms also work well
• Fresh mussels from local fish markets can also be effective
• Use flounder specific hooks to accommodate their small mouths
• Fish mud bottom using a three-way weight and hook rig
• Look for locations outside Dennis or Hyannis harbors...

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