Mid-Cape Stripers & Sea Bass
The first full week of June has arrived on Cape Cod, and the fishing couldn't be much better. From the rips of Vineyard Sound and Middle Ground to the protected waters of Barnstable Harbor, from the storied shoals Monomoy to the beaches along the south side, multiple species are on the move and anglers are having success.
Amy Wrightson of Sports Port in Hyannis provides us with an early June fishing report that covers striped bass, bluefish, black sea bass, and winter flounder. Here is everything you need to know heading into this beautiful stretch of summer weather.
The Squid Invasion
If you were anywhere near the Cape Cod Canal this past weekend, you already know what happened. Squid — large, plentiful, and seemingly everywhere — washed up on the rocks and beaches in what can only be described as a biblical bait event. And where bait goes, big striped bass are not far behind.
Amy had the full story from customers who lived it firsthand. "They were talking about the squid just kind of washing up on the rocks and on the beach and they were very large striped bass, just gorging themselves on them," she said. The method couldn't have been simpler: anglers grabbed a fresh squid right off the rocks, dropped it on a hook, and the moment it hit the water — bang. Fish on. Reports came into Sports Port of stripers measuring 45-50 inches or better hammering squid on the surface, with multiple anglers having to walk away from the bite simply because they were too exhausted from fighting large fish.
Big Fish from the Bay to the Sound
Beyond the squid blitz, the striper bite across the region is firing on multiple cylinders right now, with fish showing up in a variety of locations and responding to several different presentations.
On the south side, Captain Ben Sussman — who fishes virtually every weather-permitting day — has been running charters around the rips of Vineyard Sound and finding slot-size bass responding to soft plastics. Amy noted the fish have been "a little more finicky" in the Sound, but the quality has been there, with slot fish — those prized stripers in the keepable range — present and willing to bite for anglers willing to work the rips.
Out at Monomoy, the fishing was described as a bit more challenging this weekend. Anglers found that fish were not necessarily concentrated in the rips but were instead schooled up under birds in different locations — a classic summertime sign that requires some patience and mobility to capitalize on. The class of fish at Monomoy was encouraging, with slot and larger stripers in the mix. As the season develops and bait continues to funnel through the area, Monomoy figures to get more consistent.
Cape Cod Bay has been producing some of the most consistent action of the early season. Just outside and inside Barnstable Harbor, Amy's customers have been finding mackerel — and where there's mackerel, there are big striped bass. One of Amy's regular customers was chunking mackerel inside the harbor while his fishing partner live-lined them, and remarkably, the presentation didn't seem to matter: both were catching over-slot bass with regularity. Lure-casters working the same harbor were having equal success.
Anglers fishing Barnstable Harbor with artificial presentations also had success on multiple days this weekend with bone-colored Yo-Zuri pencil poppers paired with a white or bone SP Minnow. These topwater and subsurface lures in natural baitfish colors have been dialed in for the conditions.
Bluefish
If there is one species that has Cape Cod anglers scratching their heads this season, it's bluefish. Blues have historically been a staple of the Mid-Cape summer fishery, prized for their blistering runs, their value in the smoker, and their utility as live tuna bait. These fish were conspicuously absent in 2025, and thus far have been wildly inconsistent in 2026.
Amy confirmed what many have been experiencing: a brief appearance by bluefish in good numbers three weeks ago — including some larger gator blues — followed by a frustrating disappearance. "It's been a couple of weeks since we have heard of any being caught in our area of the Mid-Cape," she said.
There is a glimmer of hope, however. A late-day update after our recording on Monday, June 8th yielded fresh intel: customers coming into Sports Port on Monday evening reported cocktail-size bluefish caught in Vineyard Sound. With a southwest breeze in the forecast for much of this week, there's a real possibility those fish get pushed back inshore. Stay tuned.
Black Sea Bass: Moving Shallower
Black sea bass have been a consistent target for south-side anglers all season, but for a while the quality fish were holding deep — 60 feet or more — making them accessible only to offshore-capable boats with favorable weather windows. That appears to be changing.
According to Amy, her network of charter captains have recently found sea bass pulling into significantly shallower water, anywhere from 25 to 40 feet of depth. That is a meaningful development. It opens the fishery up to a wider range of boats and creates more days when the wind and seas allow anglers to get out and fish.
The methods that have been working are straightforward and effective. Customers have had success dropping bare diamond jigs — no added bait — down to bottom. They have also been productive with bucktail jigs tipped with either squid or Gulp! baits, and both presentations have been getting results. The key is getting the jig to the bottom in the zone where the fish are holding and working it with short, sharp lifts.
For anglers targeting sea bass from boats in the 25-to-40-foot range, this is your window. The fish are there, they are catchable, and you don't need ideal offshore conditions to reach them.
Winter Flounder: Still Going Strong
While stripers and sea bass dominate most fishing conversations this time of year, a loyal contingent of anglers is still very much dialed in on winter flounder in Cape Cod Bay — and rightfully so. Amy reported that the winter flounder bite remains consistent and productive.
The depth range that has been productive is 30 to 35 feet of water, and the bait choices are classic and simple: seaworms are the top pick, with clams serving as a productive alternative. The technique is equally no-frills — drop your baited rig to the bottom, let it settle, and wait. Flounder fishing rewards patience, and right now the patience is paying off for those committed to targeting them.
For anglers looking for a relaxed, productive day on the water that doesn't require chasing blitzes or reading rips, the winter flounder fishery is worth keeping on your radar through the early weeks of June before the water temperatures rise.
Surfcasting the South Side
With a stretch of warm, traditional summer weather on the horizon and the southwest wind replacing last weekend's punishing nor'easter, conditions for surfcasting along the south side of the Cape are shaping up nicely.
For lures, Amy's first recommendation is an SP Minnow or something similar in the needle-fish or swimmer style. She mentioned the Bomber and JoeBaggs Swarter as comparable options. Her color theory is simple and effective: white or bone for daytime fishing when you want a lure that mimics a natural baitfish in clear water, and blurple — that classic blue-purple combination — for fishing after dark when the contrast and silhouette do the work.
Her second recommendation is the Fish Snax XL Soft Plastic, rigged on an Owner Beast hook. She was emphatic about the hook choice: the Beast hook is heavy and strong, designed to hold up when a 40-plus-inch striper decides to strike. With fish of that caliber a real possibility along the south side right now, this is not a detail to overlook.
As for where to go, Amy pointed to two spots she'd start with: South Cape Beach and Oregon Beach in Cotuit. Both are south-side locations with good structure and access, and both have the kind of current and beach contour that attracts big bass looking to ambush bait.
A Note on Green Crabs
One brief but notable sidebar: green crabs, a staple bait for tautog fishing, appear to be unusually scarce. Amy confirmed she has heard from harvesters who have been struggling to find them in their traps — a peculiar situation given that green crabs are an invasive species and are typically abundant. With the tautog daily limit now reduced to one fish for recreational anglers, demand for green crab bait has softened somewhat, but kayak anglers and those targeting tog on rock piles are still finding it difficult to source them locally. Some MFCC members have resorted to purchasing their own traps to harvest crabs. It's worth calling ahead to your local shop before making a dedicated tautog trip.
See the Team at Sports Port
Sports Port in Hyannis just received a major restock — 32 boxes of new inventory arrived last week and the shelves are full. Whether you need soft plastics, pencil poppers, jig heads, hooks, or bait, the shop is well-stocked heading into the heart of the season. With a premium weather week ahead and a variety of species cooperating, now is the time to get out on the water!
Tight Lines & Take Care! 🎣