It's 6:05am right now and I am watching the sun rise out of Cape Cod Bay. The Bay is flat calm, and the rays of orange and pink refract off the water as if it is a pane of glass. The terns are chirping, and there is a gull splashing around at the water's edge. I dreamt about mornings like this back in December and now, magically, they are here.

Yesterday I set off to Nantucket Sound under a bright blue sky and a very warm sun. It really did feel like summer at certain points throughout the excursion. The light sea breeze that flowed off the sound and into the estuary I was fishing, carried a hint of salt into my nostrils and down my throat.

To say being outside yesterday was refreshing would have been an understatement. Yesterday was a sure-fire sign that summer is on its way. Flat calm days perfect for the boat, and bright sunny skies ideal for the beach, are just around the corner.

My previous Cape Cod surf casting trip took place in less than ideal conditions. I think the cool and wet weather we have enjoyed thus far this April has caused the striped bass to tap the brakes on their migration. Yet a few more warm days like today may be all the fish need to show up in throngs.

Nantucket Sound Fishing Report for April 23

I began today's excursion by setting off on foot into the dunes. The first thing I noticed was the complete silence you can find once you step away from the shoreline. The sound of the waves, birds and people are muffled by miles of eel grass and dunes.

By following a trail through the dunes I was able to reach a calm bay with warm water. So warm in fact, that I debated jumping in for a swim. It still would have been a bit nippy, but it was the first time all season I have felt the urge to jump in, which means spring has certainly sprung.

I worked the entire flats area which ran along the shore. With more polarized sunglasses I could easily see bait fish, crabs and a subsurface cormorant hunting some sort of small fish. The sulfuric smell of low tide was in the air as I made my way down the Bay towards the inlet.

I chose to abandon the flats area because if there were bass on the flats, I quite simply would have seen them. The bright sun, along with my polarized lenses, made it easy to see just about everything that was happening over the flats. At that point I made a mental note to return during the incoming tide, which I think would tempt stripers into hunting over these shallow expanses.

The water became much deeper as I approached the spot where this Bay emptied into Nantucket Sound. If there were bass around, then this would be the spot.

Click here for the full report...