This past Saturday I asked My Fishing Cape Cod Facebook fans to post their favorite Cape Cod Canal fishing photo of 2013 to the MFCC Facebook page. We had a TON of awesome photos come in and some pretty cool stories as well
Click Here to check out all the photos.
As I was browsing through the photos I noticed that many of the pictures were taken during or after a good old fashioned Cape Cod Canal blitz. These are the rare days when the Canal is loaded with fish and just about everyone has a bent rod.
All out Canal blitzes do not happen often, but when they do occur, it is one sight that is not soon forgotten. In this post we'll break down the anatomy of a Cape Cod Canal blitz, so that you can be there for the next one, and not at home sitting on the couch.
What a Blitz Looks Like
I spent a little time browsing YouTube this morning and found a video that pretty much sums up what a Cape Cod Canal blitz looks like. The below video was taken during one of those rare days that we all dream about.
So how can you increase your odds of being at the Ditch on a day like the one in the above video?
Well there's a certain degree of guesswork and uncertainty with everything related to striped bass fishing, but there does seem to be a few things that lead up to a really good bite.
Big Bait and Lots of It
Stripers love to eat lobsters, crabs and other bottom dwelling animals. Some good fishing can be had when fish are honed in on eating crustaceans.
However for a big time topwater blitz to occur, there needs to be some big bait swimming in the depths of the Cape Cod Canal-and lots of it.
For example, pogies...
mackerel...
and sea herring...
are 3 common bait fish that can really get the bite going.
For your best chance at encountering a blitz, be sure to be at the Canal when the big bait is showing.
You Need Bass for a Blitz
Even if there's a bunch of bait in the Canal there is no guarantee that a blitz is going to occur. On some days the bass are simply not around.
When viewed from above it's easy to see that the Canal is really one big enormous inlet, that connects Buzzards Bay in the south to Cape Cod Bay in the north.
Sure there are bass that spend the summer "hanging out" in the Canal. But for a big time blitz to occur you need a big time school of stripers to move in to this enormous inlet we call the Canal.
You can bet a Sebile that having thousands of mackerel, pogies and herring swimming in the Canal will help to attract a large school of fish into the Ditch.
But what else will bring fish into the land cut?
For starters, a few things that seem to entice a big school of bass into the Canal include:
- Migration - the Canal seems to have become a relatively "new" migration route opposed to the long swim around the Outer Cape that bass have been making for eons
- Wind direction - certain winds seem to entice prey (and subsequent bass schools) into the Ditch
- Tide - certain tides undoubtedly increase your odds of finding a big school of bass feeding ferociously in the Canal
If you fit all the pieces to the equation together, and get a little lucky, you will eventually end up with a bent rod.
More Info for Members
As mentioned above there's a lot of guess work with anything striped bass fishing related. We are really looking at increasing our odds of success - and not guaranteeing anything.
If you are a My Fishing Cape Cod member and would like more detailed information on timing a blitz, then be sure to check out these Cape Cod Canal fishing member articles.
Also, remember that every 7 days you gain access to a new Weekly Spot. Weekly Spots highlight great areas to fish and explore from the Canal to Provincetown and everywhere in between.
The new Weekly Spot is live today, so if you haven't checked it out yet you can do so right now.
Blitzes of 2013
I can recall a few incredible blitzes of this past season.
There was the Memorial Day Blitz (isn't it nice when bass cooperate with the long weekend?) as well as a few more I recall happening during early summer.
Have you experienced a Canal blitz before? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
I have been at the Ditch for many of the past blitz’s. I DO remember Memorial day weekend being a great day to be on the canal. But I also remember that just like many blitz’s in the canal, it can go from crazy, to nothing, in the matter of minutes. On the Sunday of Memorial day it was on FIRE, you could not cast your line without hooking up. And just like a light switch, Monday…..dead.
This year had a few good mini blitz’s but not really any solid day after day action that usually comes with the migration. We had a streak of four days in a row in mid September and four more consecutive days in October, but nothing to write home about.
I will be looking forward to the spring, as my poles are now in retirement for the winter.
Tight Lines Ryan, and to all who are still braving the cold! 🙂
Hey Jamie,
“Crazy to nothing in a matter of minutes” sounds about right to me. Here one day and gone the next.
Probably a good thing they operate like that, or else they’d all be caught. They can be mysterious creatures when they want to be.
I think spring of 2014 will be here before we know it!
Tight lines to you as well and stay in touch,
Ryan