Waterlands

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Black sea bassPeak season

Channel · Massachusetts

Pollock Rip Channel

41.56°N · 69.95°W · Channel · Nantucket Sound

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Best score today · 12 AM · Black sea bass

54/100Good
Now
284 AM EDT
Best window
4 AM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Low0.9 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 AM · now

Time4ANOW
Score28Fair
Tide0.9 ftLow
CurrentFlood2.0 kn · toward NE
Wind26 kn ENEgusts 33 · steady
Sea stateRough5.3 ft · 6 s
Air temp61°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy77% cloud
Water68°FObserved

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.

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

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

Pollock Rip Channel

Depth
20-40 ftSlope
Structure
Channel · Outer · ExposedChannel · 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 Pollock Rip Channel

Pollock Rip Channel is a channel in Nantucket Sound, Massachusetts. Depth is 20-40 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, outer water and exposed.

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

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.
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.
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

  • Bearse Shoal

    Bar · 0.5 mi

    30
    Top: Atlantic codPeak season
    • Atlantic cod 30
    • Bluefish 30
    • Little tunny 30

    26 kt ENEH 10:33 AM · 3.5 ftL 3:54 PM · 1.0 ft

  • Pollock Rip

    Bar · 1.4 mi

    30
    Top: BluefishPeak season
    • Bluefish 30
    • Little tunny 30
    • Striped bass 30

    26 kt ENEH 10:33 AM · 3.5 ftL 3:54 PM · 1.0 ft

  • Monomoy Shoals

    Bar · 2.5 mi

    30
    Top: BluefishPeak season
    • Bluefish 30
    • Little tunny 30
    • Striped bass 30

    26 kt ENEH 10:33 AM · 3.5 ftL 3:54 PM · 1.0 ft

  • Schooner Bar

    Bar · 2.6 mi

    30
    Top: Atlantic codPeak season
    • Atlantic cod 30
    • Bluefish 30
    • Little tunny 30

    26 kt ENEH 10:33 AM · 3.5 ftL 3:54 PM · 1.0 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.