Waterlands

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ScupPeak season

Bar · Massachusetts

Chickadee Ledge

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

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 PM · Scup

76/100Great
Now
639 PM EDT
Best window
9-10 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.4 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Wednesday, Sep 30 · 7 PM

Time7P
Score78Great
Tide1.1 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.7 kn · toward NE
Wind6 kn NEgusts 18 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.6 ft · 6 s
Air temp64°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water65°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Scup 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 Scup is best here

Peak season for Scup · 1 more week at peak

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

Scup in Massachusetts

Spot profile

Chickadee Ledge

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

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 bluefish, Atlantic cod and black sea bass. It is peak season now for bluefish, Atlantic cod, black sea bass and little tunny, and shoulder season for tautog and summer flounder. Bluefish peak from June through July and in 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

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.
Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.
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

  • Westport Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    79
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 79
    • Bluefish 76
    • Little tunny 74

    4 kt NEL 11:42 PM · 0.7 ftH 5:19 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Hen and Chickens

    Bar · 1.2 mi

    78
    Top: BluefishPeak season
    • Bluefish 78
    • Striped bass 72
    • Little tunny 71

    4 kt NEL 11:42 PM · 0.7 ftH 5:19 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Black Rocks

    Bar · 2.2 mi

    78
    Top: BluefishPeak season
    • Bluefish 78
    • Striped bass 72
    • Little tunny 71

    4 kt NEL 11:42 PM · 0.7 ftH 5:19 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Coxens Ledge

    Bar · 2.2 mi

    73
    Top: BluefishPeak season
    • Bluefish 73
    • Atlantic cod 72
    • Black sea bass 72

    4 kt NEL 11:08 PM · 0.9 ftH 5:05 AM · 2.9 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.