By tomconley
Last week’s big blow stirred up the fishing grounds initially, and on the first trip after the storm last Wednesday, Capt. Josh reported that all of the locations which had been producing a good bite of haddock offered only a slow pick of the silver ones and a handful of cusk. Since then, however, he, along with Capts. Kirk and Pete, have relocated the schools of haddock and have been enjoying fair to good fishing on them with cusk and market cod mixed in too. Some racer pollock have recently joined the party as well.
Fishing with clams is still the best bet in regard to putting good numbers of haddock in the boat, but jiggers have been getting the better-quality cod and pollock. And a slow jigging technique interspersed with the tried-and-true “haddock wobble,” when the angler simply jiggles the rod tip to make the jig and teaser twitch on the bottom, has been producing its share of nice haddock as well.
As I mentioned, last Wednesday’s trip aboard the Yankee Clipper produced only a slow pick of haddock. Thursday’s 5-5 trip on the Clipper was generally more of the same, although they did get into some nice market cod as well as a 31-pound steaker that inhaled a jig and took pool honors.
The fishing was better on Friday, both for the all-day trip on the Yankee Patriot, with Capt. Kirk in the wheelhouse, and for the charter aboard the Yankee Clipper run by Capt. Josh. Both captains reported fair fishing for haddock on bait, mostly on the anchor. Jiggers had some better cod but also had to weed through numerous short fish in order to capture a keeper.
Saturday was slower on the all-day trips aboard both the Yankee Clipper and the Patriot, mainly because of the strong tidal current and the inability of anglers to maintain contact with the bottom. I was aboard the Clipper, and the fish were definitely willing to bite in the deeper water (I had 4 haddock and a decent pollock in five casts at one point), but conditions were difficult and as a result the fishing was just fair as a whole, a grinding pick on haddock with the occasional cusk or pollock mixed in. I ended up with half a dozen haddock, a handful of cusk, and a stray pollock. Dogfish (pregnant females) were present but manageable.
I decided to jump on Saturday’s Half-day trip on the Clipper as well, and despite being close to home we enjoyed good haddock fishing on the anchor—better, in fact, than it had been during the all-day trip! Many nice haddock came over the rails as well as a few cusk and scrod-sized codfish.
Capt. Pete Mondello took the Yankee Clipper on Sunday, and reports fair to good haddock fishing, with a steady pick at each anchor stop and the occasional flurry during which 8-10 fish would come up at once. Some cusk, pollock, and a handful of keeper cod were mixed in as well.
Once again on Monday, it was Capt. Pete aboard the Yankee Clipper, and he reports a good day of haddock fishing in somewhat deeper water. Favorable conditions and proficient anglers allowed them to effectively fish the deeper water that had been difficult to probe over the weekend due to the strong tide and inexperienced anglers. Some cod, pollock, and cusk spiced the catch.
Overall, it looks like the grounds have settled into the typical summer pattern, offering pretty reliable haddock fishing on bait each day. Dogfish have not been too big of an issue, and we can only hope it remains that way. And you never know when the boat might drift across a patch of market cod or pollock and provide some extra excitement.
Willy G
By tomconley
It’s June 22—hooray for summer! Right…this nor’easter is not only making life miserable for most New Englanders but is also putting a damper on efforts to cash in on the good haddock bite that’s been taking place off Gloucester over the past few weeks. The boats haven’t been out since Saturday, and it looks like they won’t be getting out again until at least Wednesday. Tomorrow’s trip has already been canceled.
Capt. Josh reports that last Wednesday-Friday’s (6/17-19) trips aboard the Yankee Clipper experienced a good haddock bite, with some nice market cod mixed in. When conditions allowed, drifting provided the most consistent action, but if anglers were patient while sitting on the anchor the scent of the clams would eventually draw a school of haddock to the boat. The fishing on the anchor was generally characterized by a steady grinding pick, with a couple of haddock on at all times, punctuated by flurries of activity during which 6-10 fish would come up at once. Persistence pays off! Reel up to check your baits every couple of minutes and make sure that you maintain contact with the bottom to stay in the zone.
On Saturday’s trip, unfortunately, the bite was not to be found, and Josh had to work hard in order to scratch a day together for the full boat of anglers. There wasn’t a breath of wind but there was a ripping tidal current that not only made anchoring a necessity but also made it difficult to tend the lines and stay on the bottom, causing a lot of tangles. A slow day overall.
Other notes: Dogfish have been present but not a complete nuisance—a single, unadorned baited hook fished close to the sinker has been effective at culling out the haddock. Jiggers have been catching mostly short cod, but the more experienced among them have been able to catch some nice haddock as well as the occasional market cod or 6-10-pound pollock. Pool winners have been cod in the 12-15-pound range, which have generally snapped up jigs. But if your goal is to put meat in the boat, it’s tough to beat a strip or belly of skimmer clam presented alluringly on the ocean floor. Catch ‘em up!
Reporting live from Woods Hole,
Willy G.
By Bill C
Fishing remains very good, haddock is out numbering the cod at this time. There have been a couple trips that were on the spotty side. The fish were there but wanted nothing to do with bait or jigs. Capt Josh had a couple stops where he put some big ole fatty haddock on the boat.
Our half day fishing started last week with a great trip. We were able to find a bunch of haddock in the half day grounds. That’s a great sign for things to come.
Our pool winners this week are Mario Moran of East Boston. He jigged up a 15lb cod on the Yankee Clipper. Jacco Bourgault of Monson MA. Caught a 15lb cod on bait. Leave it to Gina Hart of Gloucester to catch a 15lb Pollock on the jig. Another Gloucesterite Chris Brown baited up a nice wolfish. Kyle Gorman of Woburn MA joined in with a 16lb wolfish of his own.
There are still plenty of schoolie stripers around the harbor, the mackerel have moved outside. Word from the dock has them out in Ipswich Bay.
Ask the Girls about our over night trips. Yankee Tackle has also got some great new items as well as plenty of bait.
Bill C
By tomconley
Hi all,
Sorry for the recent lag in reporting—I’ve been very busy with my fellowship down in Woods Hole and haven’t had a chance to write recently. For the duration of the summer, I think I’ll be putting up reports once or perhaps twice a week, or maybe more often if some really exciting stuff is going on.
Since last Thursday’s trip, the fishing has been up and down. For the most part, Captains Josh, Kirk and Dave have been steaming two or more hours offshore to some deeper bottom, where haddock on bait constitute the majority of landings. However, for those who know how to swing a jig there have been some nice market cod in the vicinity as well, especially if conditions allow the boat to drift and cover more bottom. In short, if you want to put meat in the bag, especially haddock and cusk, bait’s the right choice. But if you’re more interested in catching some better quality fish—8-15-pound cod (or larger?
) and perhaps a smattering of pollock—it sounds like jigs are the way to go. Here’s a brief synopsis of the past week:
Friday, 6/12: Capt. Josh reports a good day of fishing with a light load of anglers aboard the Yankee Clipper. The haddock bite was strong, and bait fishermen as well as jiggers did some damage on the silver ones, many of which were over 5 pounds. Some cod and cusk were in the mix as well, although not many.
Saturday, 6/13 was a slow day all around. All three boats were out, and nobody had much to report! Sounds like the groundfishing fleet as a whole experienced a poor biting day today. Kyle Gorman of Woburn won the pool aboard the Yankee Freedom with a 16-pound wolffish, while Chris Brown of Gloucester won the Patriot’s pool with a 12-pound wolfie. No pool aboard the Clipper, which had a charter.
6/14: I was on board the Yankee Clipper today with Capt. Josh running the show. Unfortunately, the fishing was pretty slow once again—just a grinding pick on haddock in the deeper water while on the anchor. There were some nice codfish down there though, as well as a few pollock, and the jiggers snapped up a few of each. I managed three market cod to 15 pounds plus a handful of haddock. Gina Hart of Gloucester jigged up a 12-pound pollock to take pool honors, narrowly defeating an 11.5-pound cod captured by one Mike Abovsky.
6/15-16: Captain Josh reports good fishing on both Monday and Tuesday aboard the Yankee Clipper. Both days witnessed a strong haddock bite for the light load of anglers, both on the anchor and while drifting. Those who worked the jigs caught a lot of codfish, some of which were shorts but many of which were keepers ranging from barely-24-inchers to 14-16-pounders, with a good number in the 8-12-pound range. Josh mentioned that most proficient jig fishermen would likely have been able to easily limit out on cod on both days. Nothin’ wrong with that!
To conclude, the fishing the past week has been a bit inconsistent, with a slow weekend but good catching the last two days. Hopefully the next few days bring more of the latter!
Willy G.
By Bill C
Yankee Fleet has had a fantastic week fishing. We started out last weekend with two steady but not blockbuster days of fishing. Each day improved through the week. Looks like Capt’s Kirk, Dave, and Josh and got the fish sighted in.
Capt Josh took the Yankee Clipper on our Thursday Marathon 5am to 5pm. The gang of hearty anglers that braved the rainy cold day were rewarded with our best day of the season so far. Everyone limited out on cod. All being fish in the 15 to 25 lb range. There was no shortage of big haddock thrown in to the mix as well.
Hearing the comments coming off the boat each day, are like the good ole days. Talk on the dock is, everyone is agreeing that the spring fishing this year has been better than it’s been in years.
Our first offshore trip of the season left Tuesday night at 10pm. The steady east wind made it a tough ride out. The fishing started of slow but Capt. Tom put the boat on a pile of big haddock and everyone had a good trip.
The pool winners this week were William Morehouse of Gloucester, caught a 15lb wolfish. James Trummer of Newtonville got himself a 23lb cod. Loretta Miner, of Vergennes VT Jigged a 12lb cod. Pete Chiapulis of Worcester added a 15lb cod. Reyes Aniceto of Springfield caught a 20lb cod. Gary Parker of Salem joined in with a 20lb cod. Jim Pittmar caught a nice 15lb cod on bait. Scott Navaroli of Leicester brought up a 10lb haddock. Congratulations to all our pool winners.
Bill Campbell
By tomconley
6/10:
Capt. Josh ran the all-day trip aboard the Yankee Patriot today. The first handful of stops in the morning gave up a quick flurry of haddock but then settled into a slow pick of haddock, short cod, and cusk. The tide was running quite hard and despite the lack of wind, they were forced to anchor for the first two thirds of the trip. In the early afternoon, however, the tide slacked and they were able to drift. During the last few hours of the day, they experienced a strong haddock bite during which they doubled the total landings on board! Josh stayed out an hour late in order to capitalize on the fast action. There weren’t many cod in the mix today, and bait definitely had the edge over jigs. Overall, the fishing was fair, with a slow morning and a good last stop. Scott Navaroli of Leicester, MA won the pool with a burly 10-pound haddock that swallowed a clam.
Capt. Tom Orell reports good results on the first overnight trip of the season aboard the Yankee Freedom. After a bumpy ride offshore in somewhat sloppy seas, the action started off a bit slow in the morning, with just a pick on haddock and some cod. In the late morning, however, the bite picked up, and they experienced a handful of productive anchor stops from about 10:30 AM-3 PM, catching mostly haddock on bait but some decent codfish as well. By 4 PM, after 11 hours of fishing, everyone was satisfied with full bags of fish ready for filleting on the ride home. Capt. Tom billed the day good overall, with a slow to fair start and a very good late morning and afternoon. A 20-pound wolffish took pool honors. The next overnighter is on June 23, and still has plenty of space available.
6/11:
An enthusiastic Capt. Josh called in to report a very good day of fishing on the Super Thursday trip aboard the Yankee Clipper today! The day began with two long anchor stop of two hours apiece, each of which resulted in fast action on haddock for the bait dunkers and cod for the jig fishermen. And these codfish were no scrod—fish averaged 8-12 pounds, there were numerous fish in the teens, perhaps a dozen and a half in the 20s, and a handful in the low 30s. The largest one that Josh weighed was 32 pounds. The cod were fat, healthy fish that pounded the jigs and whose gullets were loaded with herring. Very few sub-legal or small keeper cod today—almost all were “gaffers.” Sounds like there were slightly more haddock than cod on board by day’s end, but if you wanted quality codfish as well as some haddock jigs were the way to go. And it looks like Josh’s suspicion that there were some nice cod in the deeper water that just hadn’t wanted to bite was spot-on!
Willy G.
By tomconley
Capt. Rob reports another fair day of fishing on the limited-load trip aboard the Yankee Clipper today. Sailing with a light load of bait fishermen, Rob sought out some haddock in the deeper water, but the haddock bite was picky throughout the day. Anglers had to weed through a lot of short cod and some dogfish in an effort to put haddock in the bag. Still, everyone had at least a few dinners’ worth of fillets by the end of the trip. A handful of keeper cod and a nice wolffish came up as well; no pollock today.
The first overnight trip of the season leaves tonight–look for a report tomorrow evening!
Willy G.
By tomconley
It sounds like the fishing was just fair aboard the Yankee Clipper today. Capt. Josh reports that the haddock didn’t seem too interested in eating the clams, although those who stuck with bait did have a few of the silver ones in the bag by day’s end. Unlike yesterday, skilled jiggers did better than the bait fishermen—the high hooks for the trip were Dave and Pat, jigging in the pulpit, who each had ten or eleven legal fish. In addition to some haddock, jig fishermen had a handful of 6-10-pound pollock as well as a run of nice codfish in the 8-15-pound range that bit for a little while right before the tide change. Josh marked a lot of fish that he believes were more of those cod, and suspects that as the summer progresses and the water warms in the deeper areas they’ve been fishing, those fish will begin to bite more consistently. We’ll see! The pool winner was a 15-pound cod jigged up by Gary Parker of Salem, MA.
Willy G.
By tomconley
6/5:
Capt. Josh had the all-day trip on the Yankee Clipper today. The fishing was good overall, although the morning started off fairly slow with just a pick on haddock, both while drifting and on the anchor. After one stop produced only small cod and dogfish, Josh had seen enough and made a three-mile steam before dropping the hook. It was a good move! They sat on that spot for the last two hours and fifteen minutes of the trip, enjoying a good pick on mostly haddock. Jig fishermen caught some haddock and a couple of keeper cod, but bait definitely had the edge and most anglers had converted to fishing the clam by day’s end. Dogfish were present, but the anglers who followed the crew’s advice and fished only a single hook rigged close to the sinker avoided most of the marauding squalids and culled out the haddock. Those who fished with two hooks, or with one hook more than a foot off the bottom, had to weed through numerous dogfish before connecting with a haddock. The mates are out there every day—listen to what they have to say and odds are you’ll catch more fish! A 15-pound wolffish, one of three wolffish caught at the day’s first stop, won the pool.
6/6:
I decided to take a quick trip back from Woods Hole and go on the all-day trip aboard the Yankee Clipper, with Capt. Smitty running the boat. The day started off right–one drop over the side with a clam belly at the dock and one 20-pound striper! Released, of course .The morning started off a bit rough, with a two-foot chop snapping over four-foot easterly swell. The northeast wind abated and seas calmed throughout the day but we were still obliged to anchor for the entire trip. The first stop offered only a slow pick of haddock on bait, with perhaps 8-10 coming up in the half-hour that we spent there. I managed five short cod and a cusk (first of the year!), but all except the cusk were snagged. It was more of the same for the second and third spots: a slow pick on haddock for the bait dunkers and an assortment of small cod and cusk for the jiggers. There were some dogs around for the bait guys and I also managed to snag one on the jig, but they were by no means overwhelming. Spot four made the trip. We stayed there for the last hour and fifteen minutes of the day, enjoying a steady pick on a variety of groundfish with some good haddock flurries thrown in. Bait guys did well on the haddock while jiggers caught haddock, cusk, some pollock, and a handful of nice codfish, including the pool-winning 23-pounder. A couple of 6-10-pound wolffish made it on deck as well. Personally, it was fish-a-cast action with small cod, pollock, haddock, and one market cod of about 11 pounds. I think I managed 5 pollock, 4 haddock and the one cod at this spot, and also dropped two nice haddock on the surface. It happens! I should note that most of the haddock caught today were really good-sized ones, 20 inches or better, with many over 5 pounds. Overall, Smitty called the trip fair: a slow pick for the first three stops but a good bite at the final stop to make up for the slow morning.
Aboard the Yankee Patriot, Capt. Kirk began the day with similar slow action to what we experienced on the Clipper. The first few anchor stops found only short cod and a couple of haddock. Kirk shifted to the south and found a school of haddock that were willing to bite just before the tide changed. The haddock chewed on clams but the jig guys had some nice keeper codfish as well. The bite tapered off at slack tide, and Kirk motor-fished for a bit but only with fair results. Toward the end of the day, the bite pretty much died and they only managed to scrape up a few more haddock while drifting before calling it a day. As with our trip on the Clipper, one good anchor stop made the trip and the fishing overall was fair. A 12-pound cod took pool honors.
I have not yet had a chance to speak with Capt. Dave, who ran the Yankee Freedom for the all-day trip today, but according to Smitty and Kirk, it sounds like he had a similarly fair day of fishing, with haddock and cusk making up the majority of landings.
I also jumped on the half-day charter aboard the Yankee Clipper in the afternoon, with Capt. Josh in the wheelhouse. Dave MacDonald (redfish69) had organized the charter and was kind enough to invite me to tag along. The fishing was quite good by half-day standards. We made three stops. The first yielded a pile of short cod and a handful of nice haddock; I had 2 haddock and a half-dozen or so little codfish here. The second stop was the best of the trip—a steady pick of haddock with a LOT of redfish thrown in. No haddies for me there but I did catch around 7 or 8 redfish. The last stop was just a slow pick on haddock with some more redfish. But overall, a very fun, action-packed two hours of fishing—kudos to Capt. Josh for making it happen with such limited time! Thanks for the invite Dave!
6/7:
There were two all-day trips today: Capt. Smitty ran the Yankee Clipper, while Capt. Ray took the Yankee Patriot. Sounds like it was a pretty slow day aboard the Clipper. Said Smitty, “The day went just like yesterday, but without the good anchor stop at the end!” Just a slow pick on haddock and cusk, mostly on bait, although a dozen or so nice 8-14-pound cod and maybe twenty 4-8-pound pollock were caught on jigs as well. There were a lot of regular jig fishermen on the boat today, but many of them were out-fished by those with rental rods and clams—definitely a bait day! A 20-pound wolffish took pool honors. I didn’t get a chance to talk with Capt. Ray directly, but word has it that the Patriot also had a slow day out there, with just a pick on haddock and some cusk.
By Bill C
Bill at Yankee Fleet reports that we have had to shift gears from our spring favorite spots to the Summer time grounds. Fishing out on Stellwagen was great up until the arrival of all the commercial gear. It took a few days to zero back in on the fish.
Each day since June 1st has been a little better. Capt. Josh had a fantastic day on Thursday. An even mix of cod and haddock, were caught on both bait and jigs. Even a beautiful 26lb wolfish was caught.
Still plenty mackerel and schooling stripers around. A few striper hook ups add a little excitement to every trip. The mackerel are jumping on both the jigs and teasers. Gloucester harbor and Ipswich Bay both have no shortage of schoolie stripers and mackerel.
Our pool winners this week were Robert Goodwin of Salem, Ma with a 15lb cod. Bob Gossom of Willsboro, NY caught a 15lb wolfish. Dana Brehm of Dorchester, Ma jigged up a 20lb cod. Walter Ruzycky of NY had himself a 10 ½ pound cod. Peter Jones of Lowell, Ma added to the list with a 15lb cod caught on a jig. David Mycue of North Reading, Ma. had a nice 18lb cod. Tom Hurley from Beverly, Ma caught an 8lb cod. To round off the week, Dana Brehm of Dorchester, Ma won the pool again with a beautiful 26lb wolfish.
Our half day fishing season begins on June 13. Week days from 8am to 12:30 pm and weekends 3:30 pm to 8 pm.
Watch for our report next week on our upcoming first offshore trip of the season. Capt Tom Luke is very excited about it as we all are.
Yankee Fleet