Current Waters: Fish Everywhere
Captain Carl Bois, Topspin Fishing •
The stripers are everywhere right now so get out there when you can! They’re not all big, but there is a noticeable number of large fish around, and there are opportunities for personal bests right now. Just look at Albacore Charters, which had an amazing 48-incher; possibly a personal best for the boat. We, as well as others, have landed our fair share of over 40-inch fish this season, so they are definitely out there.
And please remember to get them back in the water in a timely manner. You can’t keep anything over 31” or under 28” but check the regulations if you’re confused.
Bluefish are improving, but not at the rate we would expect for this time of year. It may be slow, but we’re landing a few. There have been beach and boat landings too.
Nantucket waters have produced a couple of bonito this season so far. So you never know when it will be your turn.
What we’re seeing for bait right now are squid, sand eels, mackerel, and some bunker. The amount of sand eels is improving. Small mackerel, cigar mackerel, are getting pushed to the rip edges. There are some areas where the bait is getting a little thin right now. Hopefully, that will improve to keep the bass around. Also been seeing schools of bunker around. They are moving through, but it all works for attracting the bigger fish.
There are fish EVERYWHERE. All depths, all types of water, boat or beach. Any fishing style. And the reason? Bait, bait and more bait. Sand eels, squid, bunker, and a pile of small scup (which is like candy for stripers and bluefish) are all helping to keep the fish around for a while.
Squid, in particular, are most abundant in Nantucket Sound right now. Like many of our summer sea creatures, squid are a migratory species that come to our waters every spring to spawn. They live offshore in deeper, cooler water during the winter. Large groups of squid aggregate both south and north of the island each summer. Female squid lay hundreds of eggs in capsules that they attempt to attach to the sea floor, but these often come loose and wash ashore. Right now and into July is when you may see squid egg masses wash up on the beach or “squid mops” as they are usually called. Let us know if you see any!
You may have seen the infamous videos of Provincetown squid washing up in the shallows. These are the short-fin or “summer squid” (Illex illecebrosus).
Hundreds and hundreds of them had washed up dead along the harbor beachfront earlier in June.
There were lots of questions about what was going on. I know the video circulated around Nantucket a bit. In truth, it’s just part of what squid do. Their reproductive strategy is called semelparity — also known as “big bang” reproduction.
When they reach sexual maturity, squid gather in massive schools and then move inshore to bays and sounds to mate and lay eggs. Once they arrive, the females deposit their egg capsules on the sea floor – hence the squid mops. After spawning, their bodies literally begin to break down. The Center for Coastal Studies has said that these locally abundant “summer squid” likely beached following a predator-prey chase scene: the squid chasing smaller fish and the big bass chasing the squid. That, combined with wind and tide, made for a big beaching event. Whatever it was, all parties agree that the die-off was not related to an environmental crisis.
Here on Nantucket, we’ve had some feeding frenzy with squid. We had an absolute NatGeo moment when bass managed to push a school of squid to the surface. The squid are inking and trying to decoy. Sometimes the squid win, sometimes the bass. We captured a short video clip here. You never know what you’ll see on a fishing adventure!
There have been a few instances lately that remind me how important boater safety is.
As of April 1st, 2026, a valid boater safety certificate is required for the operation of motorboats and PWCs in Massachusetts. That means everyone has to take the boater safety course. My son did it when he turned 12, but my wife just did it this spring. She said that there were boaters of all experience levels at the class. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been boating; you need a certificate now. Massachusetts is one of 36 states that have such requirements. The good news is that most U.S. states recognize out-of-state certificates as long as the course is approved by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA). Details for approved courses can be found here.
Head’s up that the 3rd Annual Jamie Topham Scholarship Fishing Tournament will be held June 26-28. Follow @jtscholarship for registration and tournament rule info.
Speaking of tournaments, the Nantucket Sea Run Opener finished up last Sunday. Check out the Sea Run Opener leaderboard to see some of the winners. The final results will be announced at the awards ceremony sometime next week. Keep an eye on their social media for exact details. In the meantime, take a kid fishing. This weekend is Father’s Day after all. The junior division still has prize spots available. The junior category will run until all 10 slots have been filled. So get out there!
Until next tide…