February 4 , 2010

By Rick Bach

Cape anglers are waking up each day to find similar conditions each day, too cold for open water fishing, and only a handful of ponds are frozen solidly enough for safe ice fishing. It’s almost like…Groundhog Day.
     But Bill Murray’s character made the best of his situation in the 1993 comedy, and Cape anglers can do the same, until spring arrives and we turn a calendar page. Lows dropping into the 20s and teens over the weekend could lock some iffy ponds back up for safe ice angling, but take every precaution and check and double-check ice thickness before heading out.
     Starting on the outer Cape, West Reservoir in Harwich has been keeping ice fairly consistently when the temperatures allow for it, and has been coughing up some monster perch, according to Dan from The Hook-Up in Orleans. Dan mentioned that anglers could save some money by registering for the Big Game Bash, which will be held in Mariott in Quincy February 26 and 27. The 2-day event will enable you to use this off-season to learn tactics and approaches to improve your upcoming offshore season. Check out big-game-bash.castafari.com for more details.
     The most promising news I heard this week came from Cliff Pond in Nickerson State Park. The pond has been fishing well for salmon in the past week, according to the guys at the Goose Hummock in Orleans. Strong winds tend to break up the ice and create open water opportunities. Check to the right of Fisherman’s Landing if you’re going to go. Big shiners and orange spoons and spinners, fished very slowly will give you a good crack at salmon.
   Just over the bridge, Wareham, specifically Spectacle Pond, is offering some solid ice fishing as well.

Best Bets for the Weekend

Bundle up, find some safe ice, grab some shiners, set some tip-ups, and embrace winter fishing on the Cape instead of waiting for spring. Smaller ponds on the Cape could lock up with overnight lows in the teens this weekend, and you can get in some pre-Super Bowl ice action. From a strictly piscatorial standpoint, I’d say the Colts hold the edge, with two players on the roster with fish-related names,  Mike Pollak (spelled differently but close enough), and John Gill to the Saint’s one, Anthony Waters.

Do you have a current great catch photo? Email it to us and you might just see it in the fishing report. Send photos to photos@onthewater.com, and be sure to include the angler's name and the size of fish.