10/28/04 Cape and Vineyard Report from John Waring

Here on the Upper Cape, we are winding up one of the worst fall saltwater seasons in memory. Weather--persistent, strong easterly winds for weeks on end--kept many boats out of the water and fishermen off the beaches.

On top of the bad weather, there was a noticeable shortage of the our traditional fall bait--baby pogies and baby herring. No one seems to have an explanation, except that the spring herring runs were off and more and more of the big menhaden never make it to Nantucket Sound.

During September and October, bass and blues were caught, but most people had to put in a lot of hours on the water. False albacore, however, were the one bright spot of the fall. Albies were plentiful for about six weeks, including some phenomenal fly and light tackle fishing at the west end of the Cape Cod Canal.

Right now, there are migrating schools of bass pushing through, but with bait scarce, they're not lingering for long. As usual at this time of year, the best fishing is in and at either end of the Cape Cod Canal. Large schools of bass and blues are showing on top most days, and that should continue for the next week or so.

For freshwater fishermen, the ponds have cooled down, and that has brought trout up from the deep holes. Bass fishing for both largemouths and smallmouths is very good.

-- John

Eastman's Sport and Tackle
783 Main St.
Falmouth, MA 02540
phone: (508) 548-6900
e-mail: eastmans@cape.com
web site: http://www.eastmanstackle.com

Click here to go back to Fishing Reports.