With Fourth of July weekend knocking at our front door, it's about that time for truly serious striped bass fishermen to transition into fishing in darkness. The weather's getting hotter, the fish are beginning to settle into their warm weather haunts, and the bite is the best, without doubt, at night.
Fishing Cape Cod from the shoreline during July and August is usually challenging. The bulk of the striped bass population will be holding in deeper water only accessible by boats. Things may get frustrating now and then. However, showing up in the right spots, at night, will greatly increase your odds of tying into one of the Cape's summer season cow striped bass.
Hitting the following hotspots, at night, will offer you a good chance at linking up with a nice striped bass.
The Cape Cod Canal
Some of the best and most dependable canal fishing takes place during early July. This ribbon of water might seem devoid of life during daylight, however don't be fooled-things get going as soon as the sun sets.
Pip's Rip, inside the canal's east end, may likely be one of the most reliable producers of sizeable bass during early July. Pip's Rip is furthermore one of the most dramatic and outstanding rips within the entire canal. The rip rises sharply away from the bottom, then falls down into a gulley. The backend of the rip then climbs up dramatcially from the bottom, creating not one, but two distinct valleys that will hold big bass if the current is running.
Large stripers settle into the rip like clockwork during this period of the year. The stripers will hold on each tide, provided that the current is flowing. Casting to the rip from shore can be difficult from time to time. The best opportunity for the shorebound angler happens on an incoming tide, when the current is flowing east.
The rest of the canal is littered with rips, gulleys, pockets and valleys which all hold big fish. The hard part is figuring out where they are and what tides deliver best at each place.
If you are a canal novice, walk the canal during the day when the current is really turning. Bring along a pad and pen and take notice of the pole numbers that coincide with rip water on the surface of the canal. Return during the nighttime and fan cast the location with a heavy jig, keeping track of just how long it takes the jig to reach bottom.
When you locate a gulley, you will realize that it takes considerably longer for your jig to strike bottom. For instance, one of my favored canal jigging spots boasts an enormous hole, surrounded on both sides by remarkable rock peaks. It'll only take my four ounce jig 7 seconds to hit the top of the rock peaks, however it takes 15 seconds for it to reach the bottom of the gulley.
Sandy Neck Beach
There are a lot of excellent benefits for fishermen fishing Sandy Neck. The location is amazing, and it's one of the few shorelines left on Cape Cod where it is OK to drive on the sand.
The fishing can, at times, be downright awesome too. Luckily for Sandy Neck fishermen, there exists a significant population of stripers sitting just off the beach in areas like the "Parking Lot" and the "Fingers." The schools offshore can, now and then, be very large.
It is a real treat for fishermen when these fish move in close to the coastline. This usually occurs through late August and September, however it does, on occasion, occur in July.
I recall being in only 7 feet of h2o last summer off Sandy Neck, pitching eels from the Miss Loretta. We couldn't have been much more than 50 yards off the beach. There were massive amounts of stripers gulping down our eels through the night. It would have been an impressive night of surfcasting, had there been anyone casting from the beach.
Scorton Creek
Scorton Creek flows into Cape Cod Bay, just to the west of Sandy Neck. The creek on its own is an impressive environment. Its upper reaches sometimes hold schoolie striped bass throughout the winter.
Just offshore of the creek lies Scorton Ledge, which is, at its essence, a muddy, boulder strewn hump. At specific times throughout the summer, the Ledge holds large numbers of keeper size stripers. Throughout the night these fish will frequently venture within casting range of anglers fishing East Sandwich beach and Scorton Creek.
I have found the outgoing tide at the creek to be the most effective. Pitching a live eel, or chunk bait into the current, and allowing it to catch a free ride offshore is a productive way to present a bait. There are a few holes and gulleys at the mouth of the creek that bass flock to.
The most important consideration when fishing the creek at night is safety. A powerful current, combined with darkness and unexpected drop-offs can be very dangerous. Taking extra precaution when angling in the area needs to be an absolute priority.
No stripers is every worth risking your life!
Tight lines, good luck and don't forget your headlamp!
Fishing Cape Cod from the shoreline during July and August is usually challenging. The bulk of the striped bass population will be holding in deeper water only accessible by boats. Things may get frustrating now and then. However, showing up in the right spots, at night, will greatly increase your odds of tying into one of the Cape's summer season cow striped bass.
Hitting the following hotspots, at night, will offer you a good chance at linking up with a nice striped bass.
The Cape Cod Canal
Some of the best and most dependable canal fishing takes place during early July. This ribbon of water might seem devoid of life during daylight, however don't be fooled-things get going as soon as the sun sets.
Pip's Rip, inside the canal's east end, may likely be one of the most reliable producers of sizeable bass during early July. Pip's Rip is furthermore one of the most dramatic and outstanding rips within the entire canal. The rip rises sharply away from the bottom, then falls down into a gulley. The backend of the rip then climbs up dramatcially from the bottom, creating not one, but two distinct valleys that will hold big bass if the current is running.
Large stripers settle into the rip like clockwork during this period of the year. The stripers will hold on each tide, provided that the current is flowing. Casting to the rip from shore can be difficult from time to time. The best opportunity for the shorebound angler happens on an incoming tide, when the current is flowing east.
The rest of the canal is littered with rips, gulleys, pockets and valleys which all hold big fish. The hard part is figuring out where they are and what tides deliver best at each place.
If you are a canal novice, walk the canal during the day when the current is really turning. Bring along a pad and pen and take notice of the pole numbers that coincide with rip water on the surface of the canal. Return during the nighttime and fan cast the location with a heavy jig, keeping track of just how long it takes the jig to reach bottom.
When you locate a gulley, you will realize that it takes considerably longer for your jig to strike bottom. For instance, one of my favored canal jigging spots boasts an enormous hole, surrounded on both sides by remarkable rock peaks. It'll only take my four ounce jig 7 seconds to hit the top of the rock peaks, however it takes 15 seconds for it to reach the bottom of the gulley.
Sandy Neck Beach
There are a lot of excellent benefits for fishermen fishing Sandy Neck. The location is amazing, and it's one of the few shorelines left on Cape Cod where it is OK to drive on the sand.
The fishing can, at times, be downright awesome too. Luckily for Sandy Neck fishermen, there exists a significant population of stripers sitting just off the beach in areas like the "Parking Lot" and the "Fingers." The schools offshore can, now and then, be very large.
It is a real treat for fishermen when these fish move in close to the coastline. This usually occurs through late August and September, however it does, on occasion, occur in July.
I recall being in only 7 feet of h2o last summer off Sandy Neck, pitching eels from the Miss Loretta. We couldn't have been much more than 50 yards off the beach. There were massive amounts of stripers gulping down our eels through the night. It would have been an impressive night of surfcasting, had there been anyone casting from the beach.
Scorton Creek
Scorton Creek flows into Cape Cod Bay, just to the west of Sandy Neck. The creek on its own is an impressive environment. Its upper reaches sometimes hold schoolie striped bass throughout the winter.
Just offshore of the creek lies Scorton Ledge, which is, at its essence, a muddy, boulder strewn hump. At specific times throughout the summer, the Ledge holds large numbers of keeper size stripers. Throughout the night these fish will frequently venture within casting range of anglers fishing East Sandwich beach and Scorton Creek.
I have found the outgoing tide at the creek to be the most effective. Pitching a live eel, or chunk bait into the current, and allowing it to catch a free ride offshore is a productive way to present a bait. There are a few holes and gulleys at the mouth of the creek that bass flock to.
The most important consideration when fishing the creek at night is safety. A powerful current, combined with darkness and unexpected drop-offs can be very dangerous. Taking extra precaution when angling in the area needs to be an absolute priority.
No stripers is every worth risking your life!
Tight lines, good luck and don't forget your headlamp!
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