Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay
A complete fishing forecast for the Massachusetts South Coast, Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.
February 02, 2012
Writing these reports each week, I’m starting to feel like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day, which, coincidentally, is today. If you haven't seen the movie, Bill Murray relives the same exact day over and over again, which is exactly what Cape Cod fishermen have been doing for the past few weeks. It's been too warm for ice, but too cold for most anglers to bother fishing. Not that the fishing is bad – in fact, it's pretty good, at least for largemouth bass. Read More
January 26, 2012
I wish I had some better news about fishing on Cape Cod, but the reality is, the fishing this week was as slow as it gets. Anglers continue to bemoan the mild weather that has taken ice fishing off the menu for 2012 – but the cold nights and few very cold days have been enough to skim over many of the small, shallow ponds and drop the water temperature into the 30s for the larger, deeper ponds. Read More
January 19, 2012
Allow me to sum up the 2012 fishing season so far. It’s bitter cold, then unseasonably warm, then bitter cold, then unseasonably warm. Mother Nature can’t seem to settle on a consistent weather pattern for more than a couple days – and the indecision is killing us! Read More
January 12, 2012
Of all the weather conditions ice-fishing hopefuls were looking for, torrential rain had to be last or second to last, lagging behind only “heat wave” as the worst possible ice-building weather. But the storm did have some benefits. Anglers venturing out in the rain and wind this morning were rewarded with early-biting trout. Read More
January 05, 2012
Plenty of ice wishing, but still no ice fishing on Cape Cod. Despite some frigid temperatures this week, most lakes barely skimmed over, and with temperatures into the high 40s forecasted over the weekend, the likelihood of safe ice forming drops further. Read More
December 22, 2011
Happy New Year – The next Fishing Forecast will be published on Thursday, January 5, 2012. It certainly didn’t feel like the first day of winter when I was wading around Peter’s Pond in Sandwich this morning. The air temperature was a relatively balmy 50 degrees when I hopped out of my truck and … Read More
December 15, 2011
We got our first real taste of winter this past week, but with some layers on, anglers should have no problem fishing in comfort. The temperature gauge in my truck read 44 degrees at 6:30 this morning when I went out in hopes of snaring a before-work broodstock salmon. The salmon were stocked this week in Cliff, Sheeps and Peters ponds, though due to hatchery damage from Hurricane Irene, each pond received a paltry 12 fish. But for anglers who like a challenge and needle-in-a-haystack odds, the fish range from 3- to 8-pounds. Though I wasn’t surprised by a salmon, I was happy just to be able to cast comfortably without gloves. I did manage one very fat brown trout for my efforts. Read More
December 08, 2011
You couldn’t have asked for warmer weather in the first week of December than we had this week. The question remains whether or not anyone got out and took advantage of it. I’ll admit it, when I saw the weekend forecast, I fled the Cape for the Salmon River to sneak in one last steelhead trip before the bitter cold settled in for the Long Haul. So what happened on Cape? Read More
December 01, 2011
Participation was way down this week in Cape waters despite phenomenal weather for late November. The temperature is going to dip some this weekend, with highs forecasted in the low 50s, which is still plenty warm enough to do some fishing. Here’s what the few anglers who ventured forth found: Trout Still the top choice … Read More
November 23, 2011
With the first Thanksgiving happening just over the bridge from Cape Cod, it’s not a stretch to speculate that in addition to staples such as turkey and corn, the menu in 1621 included some fare from the local waters as well. According to the History Channel, the Pilgrims may have chowed down on crane, eagle, eel and seal. While I’d love to club a couple seals this Thanksgiving – in the spirit of authenticity of course – that may be frowned upon by the USFWS. Instead, I might go out and try to add a little seafood to my Thanksgiving spread. Read More
November 17, 2011
This was the first week since April that striped bass didn’t come up in any of my calls. It’s time to put the focus on freshwater, and thankfully, the Cape has plenty to offer. Read More
November 10, 2011
Freshwater is front and center for Cape Cod anglers right now. A few diehards are still chasing – and catching – stripers, but for the most part, anglers have called the 2011 striper season a wrap. Bottom fishing for blackfish and groundfish is looking good, and the bluefin tuna have not yet called it quits. Read More
November 03, 2011
Much of the talk, even here at the OTW Office, has been more focused on hunting than fishing lately. But for devoted anglers who refuse to trade their rods for shotguns, there are still opportunities for fish, of both the salt and freshwater variety. Read More