Plum Island Sound (south end), MA Fishing Guide

Species at Plum Island Sound (south end)

• Striped bass

  low-light ambush on moving water over structure

  Season: May–Jun, Sep–Nov · Tide: moving water · Light: low light · Water: 50–68°F

• Bluefish

  warm-water blitzer slashing bait on current

  Season: Jun–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: any light · Water: 64–78°F

• Fluke (summer flounder)

  drift a moving dropping tide over sand for ambush

  Season: May–Sep · Tide: the outgoing tide · Light: bright daylight · Water: 58–75°F

• Tautog (blackfish)

  crab-crunching on rock structure, best on strong ebb

  Season: Apr–May, Oct–Dec · Tide: the outgoing tide · Light: bright daylight · Water: 48–60°F

• Black sea bass

  structure feeder, bite slows once water tops ~68F

  Season: May–Jul, Sep–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: bright daylight · Water: 55–68°F

• Scup (porgy)

  schools pile on structure once water passes ~45F

  Season: May–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: bright daylight · Water: 50–72°F

• False albacore (albie)

  speedsters crashing bait on moving water

  Season: Aug–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: any light · Water: 60–72°F

• Winter flounder (blackback)

  warming back-bay water on the ebb wakes the bite

  Season: Mar–May · Tide: the outgoing tide · Light: bright daylight · Water: 45–58°F

• Weakfish (squeteague)

  after-dark hunter over channel edges on big-moon tides

  Season: May–Jun, Sep–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: low light · Water: 55–70°F

• Atlantic mackerel

  cold-water schools pass inshore on spring/fall migration

  Season: May–Jun, Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: any light · Water: 46–58°F

• Northern kingfish (sea mullet)

  warm-water bottom feeder rooting sand for crabs/worms

  Season: Jul–Sep · Tide: moving water · Light: any light · Water: 68–76°F

• Hickory shad

  schools stack in tidal rivers chasing small bait

  Season: Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: low light · Water: 50–65°F

• Atlantic bonito

  fast pelagic crashing bait on clean moving water

  Season: Aug–Oct · Tide: moving water · Light: any light · Water: 62–72°F

What's biting at Plum Island Sound (south end), month by month

Typical seasons for this stretch of coast — a warm or late year shifts them by a few weeks. The live forecast scores today's actual conditions.

Coastal runs that pass Plum Island Sound (south end)

These species travel the coast with the seasons, so they show up on a schedule rather than living here year-round.

• Striped bass

  the fall run south is the event of the year — the most reliable cascade signal in the NE

  Timing: northbound Mar–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov · Driven by: water temp (55–68°F); follows bunker & sand eels · Pace: ~50–100 mi/week along the surf; ~1,000 mi in 6–8 wks

• Bluefish

  blitzes alongside the stripers

  Timing: northbound Apr–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov · Driven by: temp + bunker/herring · Pace: fast, tracking the bait

• Bonito

  Atlantic bonito — erratic year to year; NC spring blitz + NE summer

  Timing: northbound Apr–Jun · southbound Sep–Oct · Driven by: sand eels, anchovies, butterfish · Pace: moderate; often just ahead of the albies

• False albacore

  false albacore — fall cascade Nantucket→Cape Cod→NJ→NC; the Cape Lookout run is famous

  Timing: southbound Aug–Nov · northbound Apr–May · Driven by: temp (75–86°F); bay anchovies, silversides · Pace: very fast — NC→Keys in ~23 days, ~50 mi/day

• Atlantic mackerel

  best inshore May–Jun & Sep–Oct in New England

  Timing: northbound Apr–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov · Driven by: temp + spawning; copepods/sand eels · Pace: school-driven, fast

• Bunker (menhaden) bait run

  bunker/pogies — the stripers & blues are right under them

  Timing: northbound Mar–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov · Driven by: temp + plankton blooms · Pace: huge schools shift the coast; the #1 trigger for the fall striper/blues blitz

How Plum Island Sound (south end) fishes

Open water lies to the east of Plum Island Sound (south end). A wind out of the east is onshore here — it stacks swell and chop into the mouth and pushes stirred-up water inshore, while a west wind flattens the surface and tends to clean it up.

This is an inshore station — bay, river or lagoon water rather than an open ocean mouth. Tide stage and water temperature drive the bite here far more than swell does.

Tides here are read from NOAA station 8441241 at 42.7101, -70.7886 — see it on NOAA CO-OPS.

Shops & partners near Plum Island Sound (south end)

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Common questions about Plum Island Sound (south end)

What fish can you catch at Plum Island Sound (south end)?

Striped bass, Bluefish, Fluke (summer flounder), Tautog (blackfish), Black sea bass, Scup (porgy), False albacore (albie), Winter flounder (blackback), Weakfish (squeteague), Atlantic mackerel, Northern kingfish (sea mullet), Hickory shad and 1 more. Each has its own season, preferred tide and water-temperature window at Plum Island Sound (south end).

When is the best time to fish Plum Island Sound (south end)?

September and October have the most species in season (10 of 13) — Striped bass, Bluefish, Fluke (summer flounder), Black sea bass, Scup (porgy), False albacore (albie), Weakfish (squeteague), Northern kingfish (sea mullet). Seasons shift by a few weeks in a warm or late year.

Is there anything biting at Plum Island Sound (south end) in winter?

January, February are the quiet stretch — none of the species we track are in their window then. The bite picks back up in March.

What tide is best for fishing Plum Island Sound (south end)?

10 of the 13 species here feed best on moving water. Moving water is what pulls bait through the mouth, so the hours either side of a tide change usually beat dead slack.

Which wind is bad for Plum Island Sound (south end)?

Open water lies to the east, so an east wind is onshore — it stacks swell and chop into the mouth and pushes dirty water inshore. A west wind flattens and cleans it up.

Do migrating fish run past Plum Island Sound (south end)?

Yes — Striped bass (northbound Mar–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov); Bluefish (northbound Apr–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov); Bonito (northbound Apr–Jun · southbound Sep–Oct); False albacore (southbound Aug–Nov · northbound Apr–May); Atlantic mackerel (northbound Apr–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov); Bunker (menhaden) (northbound Mar–Jun · southbound Sep–Nov). These travel the coast with the seasons rather than living here year-round.

Where are the tides for Plum Island Sound (south end) measured?

NOAA CO-OPS station 8441241, at 42.7101, -70.7886. What Inlet? scores the live tide, current, solunar and weather for that station.

Inlets near Plum Island Sound (south end)

• Annisquam, Lobster Cove 7 mi
• Plum Island, Merrimack River Entrance 8 mi
• Gloucester Harbor 10 mi
• Beverly, Beverly Harbor 13 mi
• Hampton Harbor 13 mi
• Salem, Salem Harbor 14 mi
• Lynn, Lynn Harbor 19 mi
• Gosport Harbor, Isles of Shoals 21 mi

Fishing a different inlet today? Every one has its own species roster and bite pattern.

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