The Tight Lines Fishing Report is brought to you by Corey and Cam Gammill via Bill Fisher Tackle and Bill Fisher Outfitters. Visit their website, their shop at 127 Orange Street, or give them a call at (508) 228-2261.
Dear Fisherman and Friends,
What a crazy week last week was. Hopefully, with a little less wind and a lot less of this windmill mess, we can focus on fishing. Don’t get me wrong, we are opinionated on the windmills and would welcome the conversation at any time, but the purpose of these notes is hope and fun, not debate and anger. None of the windmill news is new to anyone anymore, but one big component that we need to remember is that we always need to be aware of what is in the water. These days, we are spoiled to have incredible electronics, but your eyes continue to be the most important tool you have when operating a boat or fishing from the shore. I narrowly missed a piece of fiberglass leaving the opening on a big swell day. And a few days before I made contact with a piece of lumber… Debris is out there. Pay attention!
Onto our fishery! The last two weeks have been a bit of a lull, but it is beginning to turn the corner…. Over the last week water warmed dramatically, bass were tough to find other than the rough water and blues were a slow pick, but in the past few days, bait has found us and fish have found the bait.
We are starting to see bonito in decent numbers. There are not quite enough to target them, but there are enough not to be surprised when you get one. We are hearing them being caught off the beaches, in the rips, and in the open waters… Maybe this will be a bonito season of old?! I have caught bones in the last week off Muskeget, in the rips to the east and in the rips to the west. A bunch have been caught up at Great Point from the beach. They are here, just not super thick yet… but they are here and hopefully with all the sand eels/butterfish and squiddos in our water, numbers will follow.
In the last few days we have also seen a big increase in bluefish. All in time for the August Blues Tournament starting in a few days! They are now being caught in great point rip as well as Miacomet rip throughout the west end and on the east side of the island. It is not as thick as we would like, but WAY better than last week and they are active and fun. And as stated with the bonito, it is all because of the bait. A new round of bait has ignited the fishery and brought fresh fish in.
As for what to have in your tackle box, this time of year, we love fast-moving sleek/versatile lures. We love deadly dicks and Epoxy jigs, but my personal favorite is both the 120 and 180 Hellfire. It is such a versatile lure. You can cast it a mile for blues or hardtails or you can splash it in the wash for bass. I also have a bunch of swimming lures in my boxes as well. Spend enough time with something on the surface and it is not working, go below… My personal favorite is the Rapala X-rap as they come pre-rigged with a single hook. Home run of a lure.
Bass are still around but in smaller numbers. You have to work for them, but in a tide, you certainly will have your chances, especially on the days with some swell or wind, find the white water and work. The rips to the east have slowed dramatically as that water has warmed up as well, but with a fresh round of bait and some big tides we certainly expect a resurgence of these rips.
Lastly, we have gotten into bottom fishing more and more. My partner Billy is a fluke expert, I have always shied away. In the last week I have embraced it a bit more and have loved it and even had a bunch of success on the western edges. A big difference for me was having pre-rigged out-of-the-box bottom fishing rods. I highly recommend all boaters do this. The Yankee in me has always just re-rigged my rods, but what a difference when you can grab and go. A fluke rig with some gulp and a conventional set-up. Game on!
Go out and fish and enjoy our incredible fishery. And with every cast you make, remember how lucky we are!
Tight Lines,
Captain Corey Gammill: 203-962-8867
Captain Cam Gammill: 508-332-9149
Captain Mike Ruby: 508-221-7144
Captain Nat Reeder