Waterlands

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HaddockPeak season

Channel · Maine

Lower Hell Gate

43.88°N · 69.73°W · Channel · Casco Bay

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Best score today · 6 AM · Haddock

79/100Great
Now
573 PM EDT
Best window
5-8 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Low1.9 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Monday, Oct 5 · 4 AM

Time4A
Score60Good
Tide3.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.8 kn · toward WNW
Wind9 kn SSWgusts 19 · steady
Air temp62°Mild
WeatherOvercast97% cloud
Water59°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.

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

Lower Hell Gate

Depth
5-45 ftDrop-off
Structure
Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · 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 Lower Hell Gate

Lower Hell Gate is a channel in Casco Bay, Maine. Depth is 5-45 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads channel, 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

  • The Boilers

    Bar · 0.3 mi

    65
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 65
    • Atlantic cod 62
    • Black sea bass 62

    5 kt NNEH 9:31 PM · 8.7 ftL 4:04 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Pea Cove

    Bay · 0.4 mi

    65
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 65
    • Atlantic cod 62
    • Black sea bass 61

    5 kt NNEH 9:10 PM · 8.7 ftL 3:35 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Little Hell Gate

    Channel · 0.5 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Black sea bass 59
    • Striped bass 59

    5 kt NNEH 9:10 PM · 8.7 ftL 3:35 AM · 1.0 ft

  • North Point

    Cape · 0.5 mi

    61
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 61
    • Little tunny 57
    • Scup 57

    5 kt NNEH 9:31 PM · 8.7 ftL 4:04 AM · 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 Maine DMR before you keep a fish.