Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Black sea bassPeak season

Bar · Massachusetts

Ultonia Ledge

42.32°N · 70.86°W · Bar · Boston Harbor

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 AM · Scup

79/100Great
Now
704 PM EDT
Best window
5-10 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding3.9 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

Notify me when Ultonia Ledge scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions

Saturday, Sep 26 · 9 AM

Time9A
Score53Good
Tide6.3 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.6 kn · toward WNW
Wind22 kn NNEgusts 30 · steady
Sea stateVery rough7.0 ft · 8 s
Air temp56°Mild
WeatherOvercast74% chance of rain
Water61°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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.

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

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Peak season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Black sea bass in Massachusetts

Spot profile

Ultonia Ledge

Depth
35-45 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Ledge · Outer · ExposedLedge · flat bottom
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 Ultonia Ledge

Ultonia Ledge is a bar in Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. Depth is 35-45 ft, with a flat bottom. 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

  • Shag Rocks

    Bar · 1.4 mi

    73
    Top: Black sea bassPeak season
    • Black sea bass 73
    • Scup 73
    • Atlantic cod 71

    8 kt ENEH 8:08 PM · 8.6 ftL 2:36 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Harding Ledge

    Bar · 1.2 mi

    71
    Top: Black sea bassPeak season
    • Black sea bass 71
    • Scup 70
    • Atlantic cod 69

    8 kt ENEH 8:14 PM · 9.0 ftL 2:41 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Utonia Ledge

    Bar · 0.0 mi

    70
    Top: Black sea bassPeak season
    • Black sea bass 70
    • Scup 70
    • Atlantic cod 68

    8 kt ENEH 8:08 PM · 8.6 ftL 2:36 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Boston Ledge

    Bar · 1.3 mi

    70
    Top: Black sea bassPeak season
    • Black sea bass 70
    • Scup 70
    • Atlantic cod 68

    8 kt ENEH 8:08 PM · 8.6 ftL 2:36 AM · 1.4 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.