Going Back to Basics
By: Capt. Hap Farrell
I fish Cape Cod Bay out of Rock Harbor in Orleans. I've been running a charter business since 1980 and fished the bay for a few years before that. I did some cod fishing out of Nauset Inlet and Chatham for 5 or 6 years also. Actually, I've been fishing either the Cape Cod Bay , Pleasant Bay or off shore since 1955, when I first came to the Cape. I moved down here soon after getting out of the service in 1972. So, I have seen some of the changes, especially in the actions and habits of the fish in this area. Most of my experience is in Cape Cod Bay. However, I am not claiming to be an expert or to have all the answers. But, the Bay is going through some changes.
When I first started running a charter boat we would steam out to the deep water off Billingsgate Shoals, set out my umbrella rigs and start catching bluefish. Occasionally, and I mean occasionally I would hook up on a bass. The only way you got any stripers was early morning on the shoals or jigging with the 450 feet of wire. Does this sound familiar? This is pretty much what is happening now. The big difference is there is a lot of small stripers on the shoals now. The average length is 26 to 27 inches which means they will be legal next season. This is a good thing.
What I'm doing now is showing my regular clients that taking on the abundance of bluefish we have using light tackle can give an angler as much of a challenge as any big striped bass could. It can also give that action you need to keep a family busy landing fish. Kids can be an impatient lot. The hard fighting bluefish keeps them concentrated on getting their fish to the boat. The bluefish was and really still is the mainstay of our industry fishing Cape Cod Bay. When I listen to what the other Captains say over the radio the statement,"well, there is always the bluefish..." is repeated often. The big stripers will be back, but until then hooking up on the bluefish while trolling 6 lb. test line will more than keep our most seasoned angler happy.
www.capecodbaycharters.com
stunmai@copper.net
