Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

HaddockPeak season

Cape · Maine

Chops Point

43.98°N · 69.83°W · Cape · Casco Bay

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 12 AM · Haddock

84/100Great
Now
5710 AM EDT
Best window
6-9 PMFlood tide
Tide now
High4.4 ft

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

Notify me when Chops Point scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions

Friday, Oct 2 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score66Great
Tide3.6 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.6 kn · toward ESE
Wind6 kn NWgusts 12 · steady
Air temp58°Mild
WeatherPartly cloudy40% cloud
Water60°FPersisted

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 Maine DMR before you keep a fish.

Source: Maine DMR · synced yesterday

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 Maine

Spot profile

Chops Point

Depth
6-50 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · drop-off
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 Chops Point

Chops Point is a cape in Casco Bay, Maine. Depth in the nearest water is 6-50 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

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 striped bass, 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

  • Trotts Rock

    Bar · 0.5 mi

    78
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 78
    • Black sea bass 63
    • Atlantic cod 61

    6 kt NL 3:49 PM · 1.3 ftH 10:04 PM · 5.1 ft

  • The Chops Passage

    Channel · 0.1 mi

    77
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 77
    • Atlantic cod 62
    • Black sea bass 62

    6 kt NL 3:49 PM · 1.3 ftH 10:04 PM · 5.1 ft

  • Grace Rock

    Bar · 0.8 mi

    76
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 76
    • Black sea bass 61
    • Atlantic cod 59

    6 kt NL 3:49 PM · 1.3 ftH 10:04 PM · 5.1 ft

  • Goose Cove

    Bay · 0.5 mi

    75
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 75
    • Atlantic cod 60
    • Black sea bass 60

    6 kt NL 3:49 PM · 1.3 ftH 10:04 PM · 5.1 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 Maine DMR before you keep a fish.