Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

HaddockPeak season

Bar · Massachusetts

Chickadee Ledge

41.48°N · 71.01°W · Bar · Buzzards Bay

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 AM · Haddock

76/100Great
Now
594 PM EDT
Best window
4-10 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.9 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Chickadee 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

Wednesday, Sep 23 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score67Great
Tide2.4 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.4 kn · toward WSW
Wind9 kn NEgusts 19 · building
Sea stateRough4.6 ft · 5 s
Air temp59°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy78% cloud
Water66°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Haddock 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 Haddock is best here

Peak season for Haddock · 1 more week at peak

Haddock season by week of the year. Peak season for Haddock · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Haddock in Massachusetts

Spot profile

Chickadee Ledge

Depth
35-60 ftSlope
Structure
Ledge · Outer · ExposedLedge · slope
Season
Peak seasonHaddock

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 Chickadee Ledge

Chickadee Ledge is a bar in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. Depth is 35-60 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads ledge, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 10 species here; the best right now are scup, Atlantic cod and black sea bass. It is peak season now for scup, Atlantic cod, black sea bass and bluefish, and shoulder season for tautog and summer flounder. Scup peak from June through September. Atlantic cod peak from May through June and from September through October. Black sea bass peak from June through July and in September.

Tackle & technique

Haddock
Haddock feed on gravel, sand and clay bottom along the edges of banks and ledges, mostly in 120 to 400 feet. They have small, soft mouths, so fish clam or squid on small hooks on a high-low rig, or a light jig with teasers, right on the bottom. Set the hook gently and keep steady pressure on the way up.
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

  • Black Rocks

    Bar · 2.2 mi

    72
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 72
    • Black sea bass 64
    • Atlantic cod 63

    8 kt NEH 4:56 PM · 2.6 ftL 11:42 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Coxens Ledge

    Bar · 2.2 mi

    69
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 69
    • Black sea bass 61
    • Atlantic cod 60

    8 kt NEH 4:53 PM · 3.0 ftL 11:08 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Westport Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    66
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 66
    • Little tunny 64
    • Scup 63

    8 kt NEH 4:56 PM · 2.6 ftL 11:42 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Hen and Chickens

    Bar · 1.2 mi

    63
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 63
    • Bluefish 62
    • Little tunny 61

    8 kt NEH 4:56 PM · 2.6 ftL 11:42 PM · 0.7 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.