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Black sea bassPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 5 PM · Black sea bass
- Now
- 725 AM EDT
- Best window
- 5 PM-12 AMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Flooding4.9 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Harding Ledge scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions
Wednesday, Sep 23 · 12 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
99Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
89Wind: 11 kt ENEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
37Water temp: 62°F, hotLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 3.4 ftSeason & habitat · Atlantic cod
Species seasonality
100Season: PeakHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Black sea bass is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with MassDMF before you keep a fish.
Source: MassDMF · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Black sea bass is best here
Peak season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Harding Ledge
- Depth
- 20-60 ftSlope
- Structure
- Ledge · Outer · ExposedLedge · slope
- Season
- Peak seasonBlack sea bass
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Harding Ledge
Harding Ledge is a bar in Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. Depth is 20-60 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads ledge, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 10 species here; the best right now are black sea bass, scup and Atlantic cod. It is peak season now for black sea bass, scup, Atlantic cod and bluefish, and shoulder season for tautog and summer flounder. Black sea bass peak from June through July and in September. Scup peak from June through September. Atlantic cod peak from May through June and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Black sea bass
- Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
- Scup
- Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.
- Atlantic cod
- Cod hold near coarse, rocky bottom on ledges, banks and wrecks, commonly from 80 to 300 feet in the Gulf of Maine. Drift over the structure with a diamond or cod jig and a teaser fly above it, keeping the jig within a few feet of bottom, or fish clams on a high-low rig. Check the stock area and season before keeping one, because most of the year cod must be released.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Strawberry Ledge73
Bar · 1.1 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 73
- Black sea bass 72
- Bluefish 71
11 kt NH 8:05 AM · 7.9 ftL 1:56 PM · 2.4 ft
- Ultonia Ledge72
Bar · 1.2 mi
Top: Black sea bassPeak season- Black sea bass 72
- Scup 72
- Atlantic cod 70
11 kt NH 7:59 AM · 7.5 ftL 1:51 PM · 2.2 ft
- Utonia Ledge72
Bar · 1.2 mi
Top: Black sea bassPeak season- Black sea bass 72
- Scup 72
- Atlantic cod 70
11 kt NH 7:59 AM · 7.5 ftL 1:51 PM · 2.2 ft
- Thieves Ledge72
Bar · 1.6 mi
Top: Black sea bassPeak season- Black sea bass 72
- Scup 72
- Atlantic cod 70
11 kt NH 7:59 AM · 7.5 ftL 1:51 PM · 2.2 ft
Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with MassDMF before you keep a fish.