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| Northern Puffer |
September 12, 2018
By the end of the Summer the water in Buzzards Bay and Nantucket Sound gets warm enough to attract a host of warm water species. This year was no exception. The local fishing reports told of False Albacore blitzes all over Southern New England. Stories of exotic catches included southern species such as Snappers, King Mackerel, and Cobia. Diversity of saltwater species is at a peak at this time of year. With that in mind it was time to make another attempt at breaking my personal record of fourteen species caught in one day that was set last year in October.
Wood’s Hole Blitz
Kayaking the waters around Woods Hole would be a good way to start. Lately I’d been catching small Striped Bass near rocky structure and a lot of Bluefish. The warm water here also attracts a number of southern species as well as holding the usual resident bottom dwellers.
I arrived just before sunrise and paddled out past the docks. As I turned the corner near the National Marine Fisheries facility, the water suddenly erupted with breaking fish and diving birds. I paddled towards the commotion and hurled a brightly colored Kastmaster at at some breaking fish. Something grabbed the lure just as I started the retrieve. Soon netted the day’s first fish, a medium sized Bluefish. Caught a couple more Blues but none of the False Albacore that frequent this area in September.
Next I paddled over towards a small rocky island in search of Striped Bass. It didn’t take too long to catch one small schoolie. Switched over to bottom fishing with bits of clam on a small hook. Caught a very small Cunner near the island and a few Scup as I paddled back into more open water. Switched over to using a clam baited Bucktail Jig bounced along the bottom. Caught a couple of Black Sea Bass. Stayed with the bucktail for a while hoping for a Fluke. After catching more Sea Bass it was time to move on. Five species down with ten more to go.
Warm Water Exotics
Next stop was Megansett Harbor for more kayak fishing. Started out with a hi-lo rig baited with clam. As to be expected the pesky Scup started stealing the bait. However I persisted as other species might also find the bait. After releasing a bunch of Scup I reeled in a “double” of what at first appeared to be two Scup, one on each hook. To my surprise one of the “Scup” was actually a Pinfish, a rare southern visitor to Cape Cod. I caught Pinfish for the first time last year in North Carolina.
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Pinfish
Next I decided to use a baited bucktail jig to target Fluke and Sea Robins near a sandy beach. Success followed and I pulled in two Fluke that measured 16 and 17 inches.
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Fluke
A warm water species commonly found on Cape Cod at this time of year is the Pufferfish. Megansett Harbor is usually where I catch them. To target the puffers I switched to a hi-lo rig with very small hooks and bits of clam. Next I paddled closer to the beach where the water would be warmest After a couple of drifts and a few tiny scup, I managed to catch species number eight, a Northern Puffer.
I could have stayed a bit longer to try for a Sea Robin or a Kingfish, but decided instead to move on to some other spots that were a sure bet for catching more species. Next was a short visit to the Cape Cod Canal. The Canal is loaded with small baitfish in September. Using a Sabiki rig, it didn’t take long to catch a Silversides and a small Menahaden (a.k.a. peanut bunker). At this point the species count was ten, all of them from saltwater. Only needed to catch five more species. Targeting freshwater species seemed like the best strategy. It was 3pm which would give me about four hours before dark.
The Final Stretch
Drove a few miles to Spectacle Pond in Sandwich. Used a sliding bobber rig with a small #12 hook baited with an earthworm. I fished it close to shore and caught four Yellow Perch, two Pumpkinseed Sunfish, and one Smallmouth Bass. Two more species to go!
Santuit Pond in Mashpee has a nice variety of freshwater species. It’s too warm and shallow for trout but has an abundance of just about everything else. I used two poles with sliding bobber rigs. One was baited with an earthworm while the other had a live Killifish. Before too long something grabbed the Killifish and swam off with the bait. I counted to ten and then set the hook. It was a Chain Pickerel. Then a fish swam off with the worm on the other rod. This time it was a Golden Shiner, species number fifteen. Finally succeeded in breaking my personal record for most fish caught in one day!
After catching a few more shiners and one more pickerel, the sun began to set, casting long shadows over the water. A prime time to catch White Perch. As if on cue schools of perch started to break the surface chasing small baitfish. So I finished the day by catching seven feisty White Perch and set a new personal record of sixteen species.
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White Perch
This record will be hard to beat. More time is definitely required. The long days of June will be best time to make another attempt. The earlier in June the better because the trout might still be active. Ocean kayaking is also a key to success, although the warm water summer visitors won’t be here yet. However the longer day will allow me to kayak in more than just two saltwater locations.
Until then I’m thinking that the next species hunt challenge could be largest number of species caught in one day of ice fishing.
List Of Species Caught On 9/12/18
- Bluefish
- Scup
- Black Sea Bass
- Cunner
- Striped Bass
- Pinfish
- Fluke
- Northern Puffer
- Menhaden
- Silversides
- Pumpkinseed Sunfish
- Yellow Perch
- Smallmouth Bass
- Chain Pickerel
- Golden Shiner
- White Perch
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