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Phenomenal September Fishing on Cape Cod, MA
Without a doubt, September is one of the best months for fishing Cape Cod. There’s plenty of reasons why this is the case. The early morning air has a crisp bite to it that was not present during August, the crowds at the boat ramp dissipate, and the fish show up in larger numbers and are more aggressive.
There’s a lot of good news for folks fishing in September. The weather is often times very conducive to striped bass and giant tuna fishing. Although there will be windy days throughout the month, odds are that we will also have many calm days and evenings. Often times the waters around Cape Cod are as flat as a pond. Its days like this that make you forget that you are fishing on the ocean. And then there will be those breezy days and nights. However in September, a big wind is not always a bad thing. A brisk onshore breeze often lights up the fishing in spots that are surprisingly close to shore.
Striped bass behavior changes during September. This is the month when bass on Cape Cod begin to stage for their southerly migration. Many of the stripers that you could not entice a single bite from during July will now hop all over a tossed offering. The bass become noticeably more aggressive as October approaches. During September, there is a good chance that if you find the bass, you will be able to catch them. “Lockjaw” does not seem to be as much as a problem during this month.
Locating bass in the first place is often one of the most difficult challenges to catching stripers. Luckily, during September, finding stripers also becomes easier in most Cape Cod locales. As October approaches, big schools of bass move closer to the beachfront. Of course bass are found throughout the year in close to shore, however greater numbers of fish seem to move closer to the beach throughout this month. The days of trolling and cruising around in 60-70 feet of water are now (hopefully!) over. Spending time fishing and searching in 15-40 feet of water is the protocol during this time of the year.
As September wanes into October, giant tuna and striped bass really become aggressive. This is the start of the annual southerly migration for bass. Fortunately giant tuna will stick around after the bass leave. I’m getting a little ahead of myself here, but I can not help but remember the great fishing we had during late September 2010. I’m crossing my fingers that we will have a repeat this year.
Giant tuna could be found surprisingly close to shore during the fall of 2010. We saw giant tuna in 70 feet of water off Sandy Neck (about 3-4 miles from the beach). We even hooked up with a giant tuna off the East End of the Cape Cod Canal during the third week in September. Even if you don’t hook up, seeing tuna this close to shore is a treat in and of itself.
Large bluefish, as well as Snappers, will invade the near shore haunts throughout this month. Big Blues can be found in the usual Cape Cod Bay hot spots such as the Ledge, the Parking Lot, Race Point and Billingsgate.
Snappers on the other hand, infiltrate the estuaries and harbors on the south-side of the Cape. Snappers are a ton of fun on light tackle. This is great fishing for the under 10 years of age crowd. Even these tiny bluefish make great bait for giant tuna. We hooked up with a giant last September using a 6 inch snapper in Cape Cod Bay.
Aside from giant tuna, bluefish and bass, many other species are also infiltrate the waters around Cape Cod during September. Bonito, false ablacore and school bluefin tuna, for example, can all be found swarming around Cape Cod throughout the month. Spanish mackerel are caught on occasion in Nantucket and Vineyard Sound during September. So far this season I have heard some very positive reports of mahi-mahi being caught with regularity around the high flyers south of the Vineyard.
Fishing on Cape Cod is just an awesome experience. The opportunities are virtually endless. All of these opportunities only get better as September turns into October. Now is the time to go fishing before the cold, windy days of November arrive!
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