Massachusetts Fishing Report – May 7, 2015

As Bob Dylan famously wrote, “I feel a change comin’ on”. Odds are good that the cultural icon/composer was not referring to the May migration of striped bass when he wrote the song but he could have! To that end, “they” might already be here! In order to maximize your opportunities when they arrive, I asked shop owners from the South Shore through the North Shore, where they expect stripers to strike first!

Saltwater

Scotty Sinclair is now the owner of Green Harbor Bait and Tackle. He’s got big shoes to fill with the previous owner being Bob Pronk but Scotty’s already tapping into Bob’s wealth of knowledge by employing him in a consulting capacity. Count on the South River as among the first places to hook a migrant striped bass. Access from the Rexhame Beach parking lot will situate you right at the deep hole by the bend in the river. Bill Hurley Swim Baits are a good option here. You may have heard of the whale show that’s been the buzz in the news just off Plymouth. Evidently what is attracting the right whales is schools of sea herring just off The Gurnet. Many are seeing a lot of flounder scurrying about in Green Harbor as they set moorings for the season. In spite all the flatties observed, the catching has not been the greatest; look for that to change quickly as water temperatures breach the magical 50-degree mark.

“The Herring River and Damon’s Point”, replied Pete Belsan when I queried him on where the hysteria will begin. For best baits he felt the Daddy Mac blueback herring which was a winner last year should continue to fool those stripers. Tautog are being taken off the Cedar Point Jetty at the mouth of Scituate Harbor. This is not surprising since they spawn in estuaries during the month of May. Tog are more numerous in these parts than most realize. Chances are that if you find a bridge, pier or jetty at the gateway of an estuary you will be able to intercept tog traveling upstream to spawn. And you don’t need crabs this time of the year, they will have a hard time passing up a juicy seaworm. The shop shad savant is seeing them in most every pool where the North River meets up with the Indian Head River.

If you are curious as to what’s going on at Stellwagen now that the GOM cod moratorium lengthens, Russ Eastman from Monahan Marine provides us with a clue. Along with Captain Rob Green and a veritable who’s who of charter captains in the Scituate area, they jumped aboard the Elizabeth Marie and decided to find out. They pounded the pollock, hauled in some beautiful haddock and even caught and released 40 cod, some of which were close to 20 pounds. The guys only used jigs and watched every cod swim away back towards the 100 foot depths they were fishing. The same could not be said for the nearby dragger which left dead discards in its wake!

Laurel from Hull Bait and Tackle said that the Weir River in Hingham is one of the earliest striper producers in the area. World’s End is a winner as is the bridge on Route 3A. While modest, Laurel is giving the nod to her “own” plug as an effective offering for that first striper. Laurel’s plug is being marketed under the Surf Pro Tackle name and is a multi-segmented, very realistic swimmer which uses a strip of Dyneema to keep all the pieces in line. As you may recall, Dyneema is often used in the making of braided line so you know it’s tough! The plug is gaining quite a following and is being carried in other shops such as Fore River and Monahan Marine. Another top spot is Hull Gut where the first notable striper of ’14 came from on May 1^st – a 42-inch fish taken on clam.

Lisa from Fore River Bait and Tackle suggests the multitude of parks along the Weymouth Back River as great early season spots. Beginning at Webb Memorial State Park and up through Bare Cove Park what attracts early season bass is the strong river herring run in the Weymouth Back River. Another best bet is Blacks Creek especially on an ebbing afternoon tide.  Lisa suggests the Queen Cocahoe Minnow as good early season lure. Flounder fishing has been challenging which probably has been a result of inactive fish in sub-50 degree water temperatures. However, by this weekend water temperatures should be firmly above that pivotal 50 degree figure and flounder should become markedly more active.

Here’s where conjecture shifts to actual catching! There have been recent schoolie catches at Marina Bay! Tomo from Tomo’s Tackle said patrons are catching flounder from the Pines River during the first few hours of the flooding tide. He’s also heard of schoolies being taken from both the Pines River as well as the Saugus River! A sharp-eyed regular of the shop spotted diving birds and busting fish throughout the Swampscott/Marblehead area! Could they have been mackerel, or…? Tomo’s take on the first fish of the year is to toss out a Jumpin’ Minnow at OBear Park in Beverly. The Kernwood area often gets the first slug of stripers! Joey from The Fisherman’s Outfitter in Gloucester said that the Annisquam River section behind the Nichols Candy store is historically the first to go off in Gloucester. The nearby railroad bridge is worth a look as well as is the Dogbar Breakwater. Mackerel chasers are finding them from The Groaner out through Marblehead. Kay from Surfland said that the first stripers of the year will be taken at the sandbar where the Merrimack River meets up with Plum Island Beach. This fishes best on an outgoing tide and since sand eels are a staple, you could do a lot worse than cast out a Bill Hurley Cape Cod Sand Eel or a Slug-Go!

Freshwater

Eddie of B&A said that business is still booming regarding all things Wachusett Reservoir. Some have been surprised about the lack of smelt sightings along the shoreline. Usually this happens soon after opening day when the smelt shoal close in to spawn and many die from exhaustion. A likely explanation is that the smelt had already spawned by the time Wachusett finally opened to fishing. Owing to its late start, it’s feasible that we missed it! In both Maine and New Hampshire there were accounts of spawning smelt while ice was still present this season. Of course, In Wachusett there were no such roving eyes to look for such a happening. The shop has been weighing up slab smallies such as Chris Kowalczyk’s 5-7, nice salmon such as John Benoit’s 4-1 and there was finally a double-digit laker weighed into the shop, namely a 12-7 caught on a 1 ounce gold Kastmaster by Alex Innamorati.

Rod from Flagg’s said that while there have been plenty of salmon taken, the overall size is off as he feels smelt numbers continue to be down. You’ll have no problem trolling up plenty of lake trout if you stick with shiners or streamers and hug the shoreline by Gate 31. They’ve been knocking them dead by The Narrows as well. To tilt your odds of catching a salmon in your favor, try trolling a Canopache or Maynard Marvel streamer. If fishing a river is more to your liking than you are in luck as there are plans to stock the Miller River by this weekend with a truck load of brown trout!

Best Bets for the Weekend

For many it’s time to start that first striper of the year vigil! Every spare chance you get on the South Shore work the South River or the Herring River in Scituate. A clam or chunk bait on the bottom of Hull could result in that first healthy striper of the year as it has in years past. Closer to the Hub, stripers will soon sniff out river herring in the Weymouth Back River, the Charles River and the Mystic River. Now that water temperatures have crested 50 degrees look for flounder to be feeding by Peddock Island, Hospital Shoals, Sculpin Ledge and Deer Island Flats. Schoolies should be available soon, if they’re not there already, in the Saugus River and Pines River and just may be already pounding bait in Swampscott! Gloucester will soon get the green light for the Annisquam River and farther north magic will begin at the Sandbar at the mouth of the Merrimack.