Waterlands

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Black sea bassPeak season

Bar · Maine

Pulpit Rock

43.59°N · 70.21°W · Bar · Casco Bay

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Best score today · 7 PM · Scup

84/100Great
Now
769 AM EDT
Best window
5-8 PMHigh slack
Tide now
Ebbing4.6 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Tuesday, Sep 29 · 3 PM

Time3P
Score75Great
Tide8.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.7 kn · toward SE
Wind5 kn Sgusts 13 · steady
Air temp75°Warm
WeatherClear17% cloud
Water59°FPersisted

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 Maine DMR before you keep a fish.

Source: Maine DMR · 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 Maine

Spot profile

Pulpit Rock

Depth
3-35 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 Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock is a bar in Casco Bay, Maine. Depth is 3-35 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, little tunny and Atlantic cod. It is peak season now for black sea bass, little tunny, Atlantic cod and bluefish, and shoulder season for tautog and summer flounder. Black sea bass peak from June through July and in September. Little tunny peak from September through October. Atlantic cod peak from May through June and 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.
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.
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

  • Spring Cove

    Bay · 0.1 mi

    74
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 74
    • Little tunny 72
    • Bluefish 69

    5 kt NL 11:43 AM · 2.3 ftH 6:03 PM · 8.3 ft

  • Boat Cove

    Bay · 0.2 mi

    74
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 74
    • Little tunny 72
    • Bluefish 69

    5 kt NL 11:43 AM · 2.3 ftH 6:03 PM · 8.3 ft

  • Zeb Cove

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    74
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 74
    • Little tunny 72
    • Bluefish 69

    5 kt NL 11:43 AM · 2.3 ftH 6:03 PM · 8.3 ft

  • Whale Back

    Bar · 0.3 mi

    73
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 73
    • Bluefish 71
    • Striped bass 70

    5 kt NL 11:43 AM · 2.3 ftH 6:03 PM · 8.3 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.