Waterlands

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ScupPeak season

Bay · Massachusetts

Frostfish Cove

41.77°N · 69.97°W · Bay · Nantucket Sound

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 AM · Striped bass

82/100Great
Now
642 PM EDT
Best window
4-11 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.8 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Wednesday, Sep 30 · 7 AM

Time7A
Score76Great
Tide2.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb1.2 kn · toward SE
Wind5 kn SWgusts 10 · steady
Air temp57°Mild
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water60°FPersisted

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

Frostfish Cove

Depth
2-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
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 Frostfish Cove

Frostfish Cove is a bay in Nantucket Sound, Massachusetts. Depth is 2-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 10 species here; the best right now are scup, little tunny and bluefish. It is peak season now for scup, little tunny, bluefish and black sea bass, and shoulder season for summer flounder and tautog. Scup peak from June through September. Little tunny peak from September through October. Bluefish 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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Namequoit River

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    64
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 64
    • Little tunny 60
    • Bluefish 58

    6 kt NH 7:44 PM · 3.1 ftL 3:13 AM · 0.6 ft

  • The River

    Bay · 1.1 mi

    64
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 64
    • Little tunny 60
    • Bluefish 58

    6 kt NH 7:44 PM · 3.1 ftL 3:13 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Little Pleasant Bay

    Bay · 2.0 mi

    64
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 64
    • Little tunny 60
    • Bluefish 58

    6 kt NH 7:44 PM · 3.1 ftL 3:13 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Namequoit Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    63
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 63
    • Scup 59
    • Striped bass 59

    6 kt NH 7:44 PM · 3.1 ftL 3:13 AM · 0.6 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.