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Fishing has been good this week, but the swell and riptides have been increasing with the approach of Hurricane Earl, so be careful out there on the beach — if it's even open. Two anglers were swept away this week; one died and one was rescued by the Coast Guard. It goes without saying, no fish is worth your life.
Marblehead: (3 hooks) Surfcasting off the Neck with large Kastmasters or swimming plugs has been somewhat productive for bass at night. Blue fishing has slowed to almost a halt in and around the harbor, but bass are still feeding around the moorings at dawn.
Salem: (3 hooks) Fishing off Salem Willows Pier and around Castle Island has slowed, but for the persistent angler, bass can be found. Slow twitching of pencil-poppers or a steady retrieve of a Kastmaster has been working well. Some bass are hanging around the harbor and Islands.
Beverly: (3 hooks) The fishing pier has been delivering some fish after dark, but not many keeper-sized fish. The harbor has also seen some fish at dusk and dawn while fishing off West Beach and other nearby environs has been somewhat slow.
Cape Ann: (4 hooks). As mentioned, there was a tragedy in Gloucester this week when an angler was swept off the rocks on the Back Shore near Brace Cove. Prior to the big seas and riptides, the beaches from Magnolia to Rockport had been fishing quite well. Bait anglers as well as those fishing with soft plastics, metals and pencil poppers have all been working quite well. Tuna fishing has been good of both Tillies and Stellwagen, with a mix of giants and smaller fish being seen and taken. Party boats have been getting into good numbers of fish this week.
Ipswich: (3 hooks) Crane and Pavilion beaches have been hit or miss this week that have had some anglers scratching their heads. It seems that fish have been present at both locations, but quite finicky. Bait fishermen, especially those using eels at night have had the best hook-up percentage.
Newbury: (3 hooks) Parking Lots 2 and 3 at the refuge have been fishing the best in the region this week. The Parker River and Plum Island Sound have been slow, but again, should see a pick-up in activity over the next week.
Newburyport / Plum Island: (3 hooks) The combination of last week's storm and this week's pre-hurricane swell has led to some tough fishing around the Port this week. Fish landings have been down, with the best locations being Joppa Flats at night and two hours before and after low tide at Plum Island Point. Before the swell, tuna fishing off NWC of Stellwagen had been quite good. Bluefish numbers have been way down this week, but hopefully they will show back up in numbers after the storm passes. Party boats are still putting customers on fish.
Salisbury: (3 hooks) The Salisbury oceanfront has been somewhat stagnant this week with a low ratio of catch to cast. Your best bet would be to join the crowd on the banks of the Merrimack and dunk some clams or worms.
New Hampshire Seacoast: (4 hooks) Tuna is the word on most fishermen's lips as giant and school-sized bluefin have been in as a close as a few miles from the Isles of Shoals. Even those targeting groundfish are getting in on the action as the tuna have been quite active. Additionally, bass fishing has been good from Rye to Portsmouth as many surface feeds have broken out over the past five days.
Tip of the week:
Fall frenzy at hand
The next 30 to 45 days will be some of the most exciting times for saltwater anglers as bass start their annual feed for the long migration south. Your mission, should you chose to accept it is to spend as much time on the water or on the beach as you can chasing these fish.
Frank Dwyer is a freelance fishing and outdoor columnist. Contact him at dwyer.f@gmail.com or www.frankdwyeroutdoors.blogspot.com Facebook users search for Frank Dwyer Outdoors.
