Fresh Safe Harbor Onset Bay Fishing Reports

Cap has perhaps the earliest start date in and around Cape Cad with two Trout Trips and two Bass/pickerel Trips already in the books. When it comes to the bass and pickerel, per usual bog country is already heating up compared to the rest of the state. His shore trips saw double digit pickerel landed with a few over 23". The bass were a little less cooperative with only a few landed and no giants. With the uptick in temperatures the upcoming week that should all change. Cap is exclusively fishing his favorite lure the Storm 360 Searchbait and strikes have been no problem. The best fishing has been on the windward side of the pond. When it comes to trout Cap's patrons have landed one Brook Trout, One Brown Trout, and a slew of Rainbows. All fish have been caught on a gold spoon trolling very very slow. These fish make for great table fair and come get them while the fishing is red hot!

Herring runs are loaded, trout ponds are stocked like a soup bowls, bait can easily be trapped, and salt water action has turned on. This is arguably the best time of year in bog country! Here is the bite by species. Bass- Since our last post live bait (chubs or chogs to some) have been much easier for Cap to trap and for patrons who want to use them a three pound bass is almost guaranteed. With most herring runs loaded the big bass bite should continue for the next few weeks before the non spawning bass start to dominate the bite. On smaller ponds the time of day does not seem to matter on bigger ponds first light and the last couple hours of the day have been most productive Trout - Since our last report cap has had three trips targeting trout. Twice the fishing was unreal with Rainbows and Brookies hitting the three fish limit. The other time was in the middle of the day and a bit slower. It appeared the fish were hitting the spoons quite a bit; however, there were only two hook ups and one landed. Cap is a little puzzled as to why, his only guess is these were fish that were stocked quite some time ago and they were weary of the bait. He was glad to get back on them the next time out! Pickerel - The slime darts have continued to slam everything. If you are looking for a trophy pickerel your time is starting to close out as they tend to habitat more weedy ponds and Cap has noticed lily pads starting to pop up and soon his favorite pickerel ponds will be choked out by weeds, limiting your lure selection. Tautog - Although captain is not offering Tautog Trips the bite is on! Trapping green crabs is a fun way to spend time with his daughter as they will be headed down to the dock nightly soon to drop the trap for the best tog bait around. Captain urges boat fishermen to use a single hook rig and shore fishermen to use a jig should the current allow. Feel free to message Cap with any questions!

Trout Ponds are stocked, pickerel have been biting since mid march, and Johnny's bass ponds recently picked up action. All is shaping up to be another great April out here in bog country! Whether you want some trout to bring home, perch or crappie to bring home, or land a trophy pickerel or largemouth we got you covered. The bass bite - Bass have been hitting everything and the presentation doesn't seem to matter; however, it hasn't quite "turned on" yet as most of the bass landed are on the larger side and have only been landing one or two a trip. The Pickerel Bite - Seen by some as a trash fish, they are Johnny's favorite fish to target. Often they create a wake behind your bait before they pummel it and Johnny loves the excitement. We have had multiple double digit fish days on a gold Kastmaster or a Storm 360 Searchbait Trout bite - we have done well 3-4 days after stocking; trolling yellow spoons and small red crankbaits. The rainbows that have been stocked this year seem slightly larger than past seasons.

April and early may is over and we have shifted away from trout and shore casting; and shifted to fishing from the 17"6 Jon Boat called "The June Bug". Early on the bite has been hot with double digit bass numbers, monster pickerel, and some great side perch that make great table fair while the water is still cool. It is a matter of time before a customer puts a lunker on the deck. Tight Lines and Sunshine - Cap

If the past week is a prelude to what Setember will bring it will be a good one. We started the weekend Friday putting our customers on an epic morning bite of stripped bass, landing multiple schoolies and four keeper fish out of the gate. Saturday and Sunday those same hungry feeders all but dissapeared in the morning, leaving captain scratching his head. However, The scup bite remained strong, the fluke bite was okay on Saturday, but out of this world on Sunday. On Monday while Cap was waiting for his crew he noticed a few big swirls right on the beach and sprinted to grab a pole, he was able to land this 29" slot bass in one foot of water showing that those hungry feeders had come in tight with the cooling water temperatures crushing a school of Peanut Bunker. With all the rain coming this week inshore fishing should only improve as more bait will move out of the estuaries. In addition by the end of this week Tautog/Blackfish will begin arriving, which is Cap's favorite fish to target. Not to mention on the ride out there is always he chance of running into a blitz of blues or funny fish. Tight Lines and Sunshine! Captain John