Hi Folks,
Yes, it has surely been a while since our last true fishing report. It’s hard to write about something that’s not very exciting. This winter and early spring hasn’t really been all that. The cod seem to all be in the upper Massachusetts Bay and not around the Chatham area at all. Folks that have called looking to go cod fishing I have just told to try the Gloucester or Green harbor boats, as we just don’t have them down here as good as up there. That said, there has been a decent showing recently around the Race and north of there on the Bank.
Now though, things have improved considerably. Our Striped Bass seem to be everywhere now, with the larger ones being found in Cape Cod bay and close to the Vineyard. If you use bigger baits you will catch the larger fish in the school. Smaller bass are flying up and down the backside beaches. My friend Craig tells me he has to keep the engine running in the truck, when he finds fish on the backside, as by the time he reels in the first one, the school is 100 yards down the beach. The Bluefish are in Nantucket Sound pretty heavy, feeding on the still abundant squid in the area. They are moving into Cape cod Bay this week in increasing numbers.
The Marilyn S will be splashing down the on ramp on Thursday. I have made a few changes this year. I have added a new 1000-watt Furuno fish finder to replace the 600-watt one I had. It will give me more clarity and detail in finding tuna and bait. I ordered about $3500 worth of new Shimano tuna fighting equipment as well. A couple of 50 pound class custom standup outfits complete with 2 speed Tiagra’s for the trolling, as well as a nice “quiver” of the newest very light and strong Trevala rods and Torsa and Trinidad reels. This lightweight system is for the butterfly jigging techniques for finding fish in the thermoclines and deeper that just wont come up to the rigs on the surface. I put a new non-slip gel coat on the surface of the deck so Mary (of Mary & Rich from NH) won’t slip this year while battling her tuna fish. You can see her on the “Fish and Chicks” photo gallery page as one of the two pretty girls (brunette) with the Red Sock caps on. Lets see what else, oh yeah, and new propeller and a total redo of the old one. I just restocked the freezer with 125 pounds of beautiful fresh frozen squid from my friend Kurt that runs a fish weir or trap in Nantucket Sound. That will come in handy for the Bearse’s Bass Blitzes. That is something to see when the squid are trying to cross the rips at Monomoy and the bass are chasing them to the surface.
I sincerely hope to see you with me this season.
Thanks very much,
Capt Bruce and the “ Marilyn S”
