Plymouth/Duxbury on fire this morning 5/30

May 30, 2008 - What a great morning to be on the water. The wind was blowing yesterday and it has already picked this morning but for the first couple of hours after sunrise it was absolutely perfect out on the water.

We took the 23' Key West CC (Reel Fun) out of Plymouth this morning. On board was FBC member Jim, his friend Scott, prospective member Mike and our mutual friend Stephen. It didn't take us long to find the fish either - we could see the birds working as we pulled away from the dock.....or at least 'eagle eye' Stephen could.

We worked these fish for about a half hour with a steady pick of fish up to 26". We could see more birds working out towards Bug Light so the decision was made to press forward in the hope of bigger fish. We hit a few more pods with similar results. Then we found one where the fish were just that little bit bigger.

It wasn't long before Stephen and Mike were doubled up on a couple of nice Keepers.

Not to be outdone, Jim quickly found a keeper of his own.





Unfortunately at this time the number of boats working these fish started to increase and they disappeared. We hit a few more pods with another pretty steady pick of nice fish. Sure enough, once everyone left them alone, the big fish came back up. We made our way over and Stephen managed to pull yet one another keeper out of the bunch.

At this point the sun was getting higher in the sky and the wind picked up. We made a quick run out to Gurnet to see if anything was working out front, up to Powder Point bridge and back to Saquish. Managed couple more fish and then called it a morning.

A beautiful sunrise, great group of guys, birds working, fish busting and four keepers. Not a bad way to start the day.

Take care,
Scott Washburn

Fishing Report 5/23

Sorry for the delay in reports. I've been busy with our open house and now we have the opening of the bay event in Duxbury tonight and tomorrow. We had a solid stream of people during our open house and we're really looking forward to the opening of the bay this weekend. If you are in the area, swing by and say hi.

Fishing remains strong. I haven't had much of an opportunity to put in a concerted effort but I've managed to catch at least a couple of schoolies each time I've wet a line. Even managed to get a shad last night. Fun little fish with the light tackle set up.

There seems to be fish working the bay at all hours of the day right now. During our open house we watched as small flocks of terns worked the water with fish splashing underneath all afternoon. Most of these fish seem to be schoolies but I have heard some reports of some much larger fish getting caught as well. The North River this time of year is always a hot spot as the big fish follow the Herring up river. A couple of my fly rod buddies have been hammering the schoolies there as well.

In addition the Macks are showing out front. I had to bring our boat Hogwart's from Quincy to Plymouth the other day and the Mack fleet were lined up from just north of Scituate Harbor to the North River in about 80' of water. I've heard some solid reports recently of guys getting 40+ inch fish with live Macks. If you are looking for that elusive cow (and with the Herring ban in its last year) this is probably your best method. Punch some holes in a can of cat food, drop it over the side (with a line) and have at it with a sabiki rig. I hear the live wells are getting filled quickly...so good luck.

Looks like we're going to have some great weather this weekend and I think the fishing is going to be out of this world. I am seeing an amazing amount of bait in the water too. Everything is in place for this to break wide open. So get out and enjoy. And please...send me your reports. I'd love to hear them!

Take care,
Scott Washburn

Fishing Report 5/14 and 5/15

Managed a to sneak out a little bit last night and this morning. Last night I had to drop off a prop for repair in Kingston so I decided to just keep going and try my hand at fishing "The Ditch"...aka the Cape Cod Canal. I've tried it a few times with mixed results...but certainly not my normal type of fishing. Fishing the canal is an art all to it's own. Massive current and as the guys down there say if you are not paying as much in lost tackle as you are on your mortgage...you are not doing it right. Well I managed to bounce a Spro Jig off the bottom for about and hour or so...but didn't lose it....and didn't catch anything. I think 40 minutes of that time was spent picking seaweed off my line. Anyway, after that I switched over to a big swim shad and managed a couple hits. Then I saw about a half dozen chasing it down and nipping at the tail. Ran back to the car, grabbed the light tackle rod with my trusty 4" sluggo and managed to land a 16" schoolie. Cool - skunk is off, time to go home.

Got up early this morning and met the guys on the dock in Quincy. We took the G-Boat and Mako out with a couple of members. Nice morning on the water. Found a sight for sore eyes. Birds diving and fish busting. FINALLY. We dragged an umbrella rig around the outside of the school and casted in with our spinning rods. They were pretty skittish but we landed a couple of 20"+ schoolies in our boat and they got another couple in the other boat...including a 29" Keepah!

So the action seems to be getting more consistent and things seem to be heating up a bit. In another week or two I'm willing to bet that things will bust wide open. It's a great time to go wet a line! Enjoy.

Take care,
Scott Washburn

Fishing Report 5/8/08

They're Baaaaaaaaack!

It’s official, the almighty Striped Bass are back in our local waters. Not a lot of them...but some. FBC was exhibiting at the women's expo held at the Radisson in Plymouth on Friday and so Thursday evening I had to go down to set up for the event. Around 7pm, after setting up for the show, I headed to one of favorite early season spots in Duxbury Bay. Low tide was set for around 9pm. In the past this combination of sunset, last two hours of the tide and a nice warm day has produced some early season fish for me so I was fairly optimistic about my chances.

I waded out to find about a dozen gulls diving. Perfect! - I thought. However, as I made my way over, I realized that they were in no more than 6 inches of water on the edge of the channel. Hmmm....ok. Hoping there would be stripers sitting on in the channel feeding on whatever the birds were, I started casting. Nothing. After about 15 minutes of this I decided it was time to move down current, casting as I went.

Finally right as the sun was setting I felt something. Couldn't be bottom....could it? Next cast I was rewarded with a very fat, bright and shiny 20" Striper. NICE! Mission accomplished. I then proceeded to pick up 4 fish in 5 casts - all around the same size.Unfortunately as fast as it turned on, it turned off.

Figuring they were continuing to move down current with the tide, I moved down. Still nothing. Well maybe they went up current. Sure enough 50' up current from my original spot I got another hit. Still shaking off my winter kinks, I pulled the hook. However, as my 4" Sluggo skipped the surface of the water I saw a nice fish come up and roll on it. After a healthy fight I managed to land a 26" fish. Unfortunately he managed to rip my only Sluggo off. I switched it out for a Tsunami plastic...which did solicit a few hits but I only managed to land one micro for my efforts.

Soon it got dark, the tide died and the fish disappeared....but I was happy. Landing that first fish of a new year is always a great feeling. You know it is the start of a new season which, if anything like years past, will be filled with great memories.

So our little striped friends who have the amazing ability to drive grown men into a frenzy are starting to show up again. If you haven't already done so, get that gear cleaned up, throw on some new line and take a few casts at your local favorite spot. You just never know.

Take care,
Scott Washburn