Rock Harbor Fishing Report
By: Capt. Hap Farrell
14 Aug. 2007
We Get the Wind & They Come Back
Last week I said we needed a fairly strong northerly wind to push the bass back up onto Billingsgate Shoals. Well, we got it. At the end of last week, after I had turned in the last report we got a 10 to 20 NNW wind which pushed a good scattering of big stripers up on the shoals. Some of these bass went as high as 35 to 40 pounds but most were a good solid 36 to 40 inches in length and a respectable 20 pounds. Jigging was the method of choice and actually the only way you could fish with the weather we were dealing with. It was a sunny cool day with a sharp northerly wind reminding you of early fall. A perfect bass fishing day.
Over the years we, the charter captains at Rock Harbor, welcomed a day off from a hard NW wind as a cold front would move through. We also knew that the next day we'd find a lot of big bass on the shoals and they'd stay there for a few days. Actually we have yet to have a day like that. This last time the wind was more northerly than northwest and it was fishable. The fish only stayed the one day in any amount. As we look back to years passed there is a noticeable change in the weather patterns and in the patterns the fish seem to be holding to. Is this just a cycle this area goes through or is there something to this global warming and the changes it will bring about?
Lately, most of the bass down near Rock Harbor, Sesuit, and Barnstable Harbor are staying in the deep water in an area called the "Square". This area is about 3 miles west of Great Island and a mile north of the shoals out in 45 to 50 feet of water at high tide. The fish, both bass and bluefish, can be located by using your fish finder. At that point, depending on whether they're on the bottom or up in mid-water, you use the appropriate method of trolling to hook up on them. An umbrella rig with added weight on 150 ft. wire set up has been working with good success on both fish. Those who want to jig need a wire rod set up with 450 ft. of wire in order to get the jig to fish right. We all hope they will move back to the shoals soon.
As far as the bluefish are concerned, there are plenty to go around. Lately the main body of fish has been from Henderson's Rock just outside Great Island to just south of the Path. Get in 15 to 20 feet of water and troll your hootchies at around 5.5 to 6 knots and hang on. At times it can be wild. There is also a fair amount of bluefish in by Sunken Meadow. On the chart there is a rock southwest of the Sunken Meadow area. During high water the rock is underwater enough not to be worried about it. The bluefish are hanging around that rock. Again, hootchies trolled at a fast rate of speed will work well. At times you can cast to these fish also.
The beginning of this week I had a couple of local fishermen out for a half day trip. One man, Will Chalmers, is well known at the harbor when he's seen walking his dog almost on a daily basis. Sanford Hochman, a friend of Wills is from South Orleans and goes fishing for the small tuna fish on the ocean side quite often. Anyway, I had them out for the half day just to enjoy some of the action the bay can provide. Will landed the two keepers we got. They weren't big fish but good dinner fair. Sanford had an opportunity to use some of my really light jigging rods which were just put together a few weeks ago. The fishing was good and enjoyed by both anglers.
If you'd like to try your hand at some of this good August fishing call me at: 508-255-6211 or 508-240-8267.
