October 19 2016

Exploring & Surfcasting Buzzard’s Bay

13  comments

Ryan Collins

This October I've been chasing stripers as they migrate south through the weed beds, ledges and rock piles of Buzzard's Bay.

Surfcasting here is very different than surfcasting in other areas throughout Cape Cod.

Aside from the swift currents and huge rocks, private property and no trespassing signs are posted all over creation. Buzzard's Bay is a challenging place to fish.

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Due to these challenges there are still many miles of Buzzard's Bay coastline which I am yet to fish. Some of these areas I have fished before from a boat, but only recently have I tried accessing them on foot.

Quite often I "strike out" and fail to find a suitable place to park and legally access the shoreline. However, I figured I had to try again when I my friend Todd (pictured below) tipped me off to a spot holding bass up to 46 inches.

Quite often I "strike out" and fail to find a suitable place to park and legally access the shoreline. However, I figured I had to try again when I my friend Todd tipped me off to a spot holding bass up to 46 inches.

In this area the current sweeps along the beach at an alarming rate, and the bottom drops off very quickly. There are lots of boulders and weed beds, and the bass often swim very close to shore.

 happened to already be fishing with my cousin Kevin (who hosts the MFCC podcast) when I received I heard about Todd's 46 inch striper. Immediately I pulled up Google Earth and began searching for a way to access the spot.

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buzzards bay striped bass surfcasting

  • I’ve been working the canal since October 1st and caught numerous stripers on the east side of the canal .
    But since October 13th the canal went dead as well as no bait fish. So I started in the last 4 nights on scusset beach and on the 2nd hour of incoming tides I saw lots of bait fish and I was catching keepers as well as huge blue fish. Weird thing is all bites came between the 2nd hour up to the 4th hour of an incoming tide. God bless

  • Thanks for doing this. I love hearing about your fishy adventures.
    We are a bunch of retired schoolteachers who would love to earn how to fish . Is there a fisher person out there who would be willing to give a couple of us a lesson or two ?
    sally ray

    • More in-person lessons may be in the future for 2017 Sally Ray. Stay tuned!

      In the interim I think the posts and videos here on MFCC can help you get started (especially during the winter offseason).

      If you need help with anything specific just ask. Tight lines!

  • Fished fairly hard ( daytime only ) in and around Plymouth the past three days. Schoolies only for me, but a few people caught keepers.

    • Nice Jeff. I kayaked Plymouth Bay today and only managed 1 schoolie on the fly rod. I probably could of caught several if I was using spinning gear.

      I heard yesterday and the day before there were some good topwater blitzes in Plymouth Bay, but apparently I was a day late and a dollar short.

      • I relocated to Mashpee yesterday from Albany NY. My family bought a house here last fall. I grew up during the summers here as a little boy. Have great memories of fishing all day off the rocks at Smugglers beach while Mom sat in the sun. Fell in love with the Cape many years ago. Now back for good, I hope! I’ll be working at the Mashpee True Value Store. Been doing striper charters for many years and now that we have a boat I want to be able to catch fish like the big boys on my own! :). Love being on the beach or out on the water. I came across MFCC on FB and signed right up. Thank you for what you are doing! I hope to get involved and learn lots. Look forward to meeting you and the rest of the crew!

        Oh I forgot to say…I got here around 2:30pm yesterday…unloaded the car…grabbed my gear and hit the beach for high tide! Although I didn’t have any luck…It was absolutely beautiful out and I met some cool dudes!

        • Wow that is quite the story Ric! Thanks so much for sharing it. Big CONGRATULATIONS on the epic relocation! You must be pumped.

          Keep me posted with how things are going. MFCC will be a big help for you, especially this offseason if you have the time to go through all the past posts/videos.

          If there’s anything I/we can assist with please don’t hesitate to post your questions to the forum. Just let us know.

          Tight lines Ric and gluck out there this weekend!

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