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Black sea bassPeak seasonBar · Massachusetts
Emersons Rocks
42.71°N · 70.77°W · Bar · Massachusetts Bay and Ipswich Bay
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Scup
- Now
- 7210 AM EDT
- Best window
- 4-9 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing6.0 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Emersons Rocks 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 10 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
85Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.6 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
92Wind: 7 kt NNEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
73Water temp: 64°F, primeLight: Partly cloudySolunar: Near a majorSeas: 2.0 ftSeason & habitat · Black sea bass
Species seasonality
93Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
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
Emersons Rocks
- Depth
- 7-20 ftSlope
- Structure
- Ledge · Inner · Semi-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 Emersons Rocks
Emersons Rocks is a bar in Massachusetts Bay and Ipswich Bay. Depth is 7-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads ledge, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 10 species here; the best right now are black sea bass, scup and little tunny. It is peak season now for black sea bass, scup, little tunny and Atlantic cod, 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. Little tunny peak 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.
- Little tunny
- Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Ipswich Bluff73
Cape · 1.1 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 73
- Striped bass 70
- Bluefish 67
7 kt NNEL 2:10 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:19 PM · 8.4 ft
- Sandy Point73
Cape · 1.1 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 73
- Striped bass 70
- Bluefish 66
7 kt NNEL 2:10 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:19 PM · 8.4 ft
- Plum Island Sound70
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 70
- Scup 68
- Striped bass 67
7 kt NNEL 2:10 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:19 PM · 8.4 ft
- Third Creek69
Channel · 2.5 mi
Top: Black sea bassPeak season- Black sea bass 69
- Scup 68
- Striped bass 68
7 kt NNEL 2:10 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:19 PM · 8.4 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.
