By Striper Mike, Sports Port Pro Staff

 As the vast majority of Cape Cod striped bass fishermen look forward to spring and the return of our beloved Striped Bass, for those adventurous souls, Cape Cod has a tremendous freshwater fishery 12 months a year and winter is definitely trout time. With the state stocking tiger, rainbow, brook and brown trout spring and fall, these beautiful fish thrive in many of the Cape’s deep kettle ponds. Trout thrive in cold water and are very active this time of year and are very catchable from shore. A good pair of warm waders or just warm boots and you are ready for Cape Cod trout hunting and hopefully catching. These past mild winters leave the ponds unfrozen and enjoying a sunny, mild winter’s days catching trout and other species like yellow perch, pickerel and on occasion, largemouth and smallmouth bass make for a challenging and enjoyable day.

This year I have targeted ponds from the upper Cape to Nickerson park and enjoy catching trout all along the way and encourage you to give it a try. I’m 100% catch and release and seeing these beautiful fish swim away adds to the enjoyment of fishing.

Here are a few of this winter’s catches:

Lots of Sports Port anglers have been having great luck fishing for trout in our beautiful Cape Cod ponds. Thanks to Glen for sending the picture of the trout seen below. He reports that lately the nightcrawlers have been producing tight lines pretty consistently.

Jim and Mike were kind enough to share a couple of pics below from one of their trout outings. They reported that kastmasters and other spoons were doing the trick on that day.

As always, send us your fish pics and stories and we will include them in our emails! And be sure to follow us on all the social channels!

Shellfishermen and women have been enjoying their clam and oyster harvests. We are FINALLY restocked on the long sleeve gloves that are imperative when going for those shellfish. Stop by if you need a pair or you can always shop at our web store as well. I wish you all bountiful harvests, especially during this holiday season!

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy New Year!
Amy

Carl and a few other customers reported that they are still catching Stripers in the canal. There has been schools of mackerel and if you are willing to put the time in and can still feel your fingers enough, you just might get a Striper in December!

Most anglers have already stored their salt water gear and switched over to fresh water activity. The trout fishing has not disappointed! Shiners are the go-to choice for bait fishermen and for anglers that prefer to use lures then all the usual trout lures have been catching; metal spoons like Thomas and Kastmaster, Rapalas, and of course powerbait.

And we have LOTS of shellfishermen and women getting their limits on their favorite shellfish.

Lots of oysters ready to be harvested in Barnstable Harbor.

And for all of you shellfishermen and women and anglers reading this…if you didn’t already know, Our Annual Holiday Sale has officially started! It’s also the first year that we will have the same discounts available to our online shoppers that our in-person customers have enjoyed year after year. (We are continually adding to our web store, but in-person shopping does offer our largest selection.) Come see us in person or shop online!

Until next time, Tight Lines!

Amy

On the freshwater front many anglers are having a great time casting gold spoons from shore for a nice trout from one of the many beautiful Cape Cod ponds. Shiners are always a choice bait and if in a boat, trolling a Rapala has been very productive. Bass fisherman have been doing well with rubber worms and metal spoons.

Mark with a whopper of a small mouth bass

Some anglers have begun their 2022 salt water fishing season by fishing for squid out in Nantucket Sound. Reports in the shop have been of varying results. Some days and nights have been fruitful with full buckets and coolers of the ink squirting creatures that are so delicious while also making an excellent bait. While other reports have been lackluster with only half full buckets after battling cold, wind and rain for hours. But, a wise man once told me “You know how much you will catch if you don’t go fishing.” SO, get out there!

Here is Carl with a beautiful 25” striped bass that he safely caught and released.

For our Tautog anglers we have live green crabs in the fridge and Joe Baggs Lay Perfect jigs to get your bait to the bottom. I have talked with several customers who have done well fishing for tog in the canal. For our boaters, Colliers is definitely a rock pile to try your luck.

As for the Striped Bass, schoolies are starting to come into the inlets and harbors and we have many reports of a fish or 2 being caught in Centerville, Osterville and Cotuit areas. With a few more warmer days that report will change to lots of fish and some bigger ones too!

Remember that May 14th 9am at Keyes Memorial Beach in Hyannis we will host our 2nd annual Surfcasting Seminar. Register for this informative, fun and FREE event at our Hyannis location or now on our website.

Sports Port’s Pro Staffer, “Striper Mike” will lead the group with a rundown on proper gear and general surfcasting information. We will then take that info and put it to use by taking some casts from the beach. Bring your own gear or you are welcome to use rods and reels we will have on hand for the event.

All ages are welcome. This event is perfect for beginners but also helpful for the more experienced anglers who may want some helpful tips to improve their cast. We will have a few prizes to raffle off too, so register now!

By Striper Mike, Sports Port Pro Staff

It’s been a tremendously successful trout season since early March and April has continued the solid bite. The pond temperatures are now in the low 50’s and the omnipresent cruising trout will soon be headed to the deeper colder waters, however the largemouth and smallmouth bass will be taking over. What a great time to be a Cape Cod fisherman, a tremendous trout season with some bass mixed in but some fantastic bass fishing ahead these next few weeks and a couple more weeks before the arrival of our beloved striped bass, fishing heaven here on Cape Cod.

A special shoutout to Max for catching this enormous 13 inch (I measured it) yellow perch. I was fishing from shore and saw Max catch this perch from his kayak, certainly the biggest yellow perch I ever saw!

With all this tremendous fishing happening around us it is a perfect time to stop by the shop so Amy and her staff at Sports Port can get you properly geared up. Remember, the Sports Port FREE Surfcasting seminar is happening Saturday May 14th at Keyes Memorial beach at 9:00 am. Please register in person at Sports Port or online to reserve your spot.

Some saltwater anglers have had some luck catching tautog using clams or green crabs - both in stock at the shop. Rocky structures along the shoreline have been producing keepers.

Mike’s at it again! The photos above show a perch Mike caught as well as a rainbow trout he has at the end of his line. That water looks coooold! With the right gear you can still get out there to safely enjoy some time by the water and if you are lucky, land a fish.

And where there are yellow perch there are usually bass nearby. I was kayak fishing in Shubaels pond last week and hooked into a few rainbow trout. I paddled past a shore angler and after chatting across a stretch of water we figured out we know each other from the shop! While fishing from shore he was catching perch as well as trout. The fish were very active on this warmer evening, right around sunset. The usual lures were working…gold spoons and the jointed rapala in perch color.

As always, send us your fish pics and stories and we will include them in our emails! Be sure to follow us on all the social channels.

Wishing you the happiest of holidays!

Tight lines and full peck baskets!
Amy

Sports Port Pro Staffer Mike and I took his 14’ boat out to a pond in Falmouth in search of trout and bass. It was my first trout fishing trip EVER! Hard to believe, I know. I grew up really just fishing salt water with my dad. Now that I fish with my kids and we love pond fishing, we have yet to try our luck with the trout. The pond we frequent is loaded with large mouth and perch. I figured before I take my kids out for trout I should at least look like I have done this before! Mike was the perfect angler to show me the trout ropes as he has been fishing the ponds since he was a kid. We trolled and casted our hearts out while enjoying one of those beautifully sunny and warm “can’t believe it’s November” days. While the perch and bass were not jumping into the boat I did land a stocked rainbow trout while Mike managed a nice smallie with one of his custom made spinner baits. The choice lure for the trout was the Rapala Jointed in perch color.

I know other trout anglers are doing well with gold spoons as well as nightcrawlers and shiners. Fishermen and women are still catching schoolies in a few spots. Creeks, estuaries as well as the canal. In shellfishing news, oyster season is off to a great start and I know lots of folks are excited to have their oysters and “stuffies” for Thanksgiving!

Tight lines and full peck baskets!
Amy