Night Time Cape Cod Canal Fishing Hot Spots and Secrets

Summertime on Cape Cod and at the Cape Cod Canal means it is time to adjust fishing strategies. The weather’s getting hotter, the striped bass are starting to settle into their summertime haunts, and the bite is the best, by far, after dark. Fishing at night will usually result in much bigger and better catches of striped bass-especially at the Cape Cod Canal.

Fishing Cape Cod from the shoreline during July and August is usually challenging. The bulk of the striped bass population will be holding in deeper water only accessible by boats. Things may get frustrating now and then. However, showing up in the right spots, at night, will greatly increase your odds of tying into one of the Cape’s summer season cow striped bass. Bring some extra batteries for your flash lights, because often times the fishing is much better than during the day.

Fishing these locales, after dark, may very well result in a fine catch. Fish above the 50 pound mark are caught each year at these spots. Good luck!

Cape Cod Canal Fishing After Dark

Some of the best and most dependable Cape Cod Canal fishing takes place during early July. This ribbon of water might seem devoid of life during daylight, however don’t be fooled-things get going as soon as the sun sets.

Pip’s Rip, inside the Cape Cod Canal’s east end, may likely be one of the most reliable producers of size-able striped bass during early July. Pip’s Rip is furthermore one of the most dramatic and outstanding rips within the entire canal. The rip rises sharply away from the bottom, then falls down into a gulley. The back-end of the rip then climbs up dramatically from the bottom, creating not one, but two distinct valleys that will hold big striped bass if the current is running.

Large striped bass settle into the rip like clockwork during this period of the year. The bass will hold on each tide, provided that the current is flowing. Casting to the rip from shore can be difficult from time to time. The best opportunity for the shore bound angler happens on an incoming tide, when the current is flowing east.

The rest of the Cape Cod Canal is littered with rips, gulleys, pockets and valleys which all hold big striped bass. The hard part is figuring out where they are and what tides deliver best at each Cape Cod Canal fishing location.

If you are a Cape Cod Canal fishing beginner, walk the canal during the day when the current is really moving. Take along a pad and pencil and be aware of the pole numbers that coincide with rip water on the surface of the canal. Return during the nighttime and fan cast the spot with a hefty jig, keeping track of just how long it takes the jig to hit bottom.

When you locate a gulley, you will see that it takes considerably longer for your jig to strike bottom. For example, one of my preferred Cape Cod Canal jigging areas includes an enormous gulley, enclosed on both sides by extraordinary rock peaks. It’ll only take my four ounce jig 7 seconds to reach the top of the rock peaks, however it takes 15 seconds for it to reach the bottom part of the hole.

Sandy Neck Beach

There are a lot of excellent benefits for fishermen fishing Sandy Neck. The location is amazing, and it’s one of the few shorelines left on Cape Cod where it is OK to drive on the sand.

The fishing can be downright awesome too. The good news is for Sandy Neck fishermen, there exists a considerable population of bass sitting just off the beach in areas like the “Parking Lot” and the “Fingers.” The schools offshore can, now and then, be very large.

It is a real treat for shore bound anglers when these bass move in tight to the coastline. This often occurs during late August and September, however it does, from time to time, occur in July.

I recall being in merely 7 feet of water last summer off Sandy Neck, casting eels from the Miss Loretta. We couldn’t have been more than 50 yards off the beach. There were massive amounts of striped bass gulping down our eels all night. It would have been an impressive night of surf casting, had there been anyone casting from the beach.

Scorton Creek

Scorton Creek flows into Cape Cod Bay, just to the west of Sandy Neck. The creek on its own is an impressive environment. Its upper reaches sometimes hold small striped bass throughout the winter.

Just offshore of the creek sits Scorton Ledge, which is, at its essence, a muddy, boulder strewn underwater hill. At times throughout the summer, the Ledge holds significant amounts of big striped bass. At nighttime these fish will often venture within range of anglers casting from East Sandwich beach and Scorton Creek.

I have found the outgoing tide at the creek to be the most effective. Casting a live eel, or piece of bait into the creek, and allowing it to catch a free trip offshore is a productive way to fish a bait. There are a handful of holes and gulleys at the opening of the creek that bass are attracted to.

The most important consideration when fishing the creek at night is safety. A powerful current, combined with darkness and unexpected drop-offs can be very dangerous. Taking extra precaution when angling in the area needs to be an absolute priority.

No fish is ever worth risking your life!

Tight lines, good luck and don’t forget about your headlamp!

Captain Ryan Collins is a striped bass commercial and charter fishing captain. His fishing blog, myfishingcapecod.com, is focused on helping novice and veteran fishermen catch more and bigger striped bass. Visit his blog today to learn more cape cod canal fishing secret spots and tips.