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Atlantic bluefin tunaPeak seasonBay · Maine
Back Cove
44.48°N · 68.18°W · Bay · Intra Coastal Waters from Schoodic Point, ME to Stonington, ME
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 5 PM · Atlantic bluefin tuna
- Now
- 5911 AM EDT
- Best window
- 5-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing7.8 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Back Cove scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions
Thursday, Oct 1 · 5 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
78Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 8 kt SSWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
98Water temp: 59°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Major periodSeas: 1.2 ftSeason & habitat · Atlantic bluefin tuna
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Atlantic bluefin tuna 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 Atlantic bluefin tuna is best here
Peak season for Atlantic bluefin tuna · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Back Cove
- Depth
- 4-20 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · slope
- Season
- Peak seasonAtlantic bluefin tuna
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 Back Cove
Back Cove is a bay in Intra Coastal Waters from Schoodic Point, ME to Stonington, ME, Maine. Depth is 4-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 13 species here; the best right now are scup, black sea bass and striped bass. It is peak season now for scup, black sea bass, striped bass and Atlantic cod, and shoulder season for tautog, summer flounder and mahi-mahi. Scup peak from June through September. Black sea bass peak from June through July and in September. Striped bass peak from May through June and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Atlantic bluefin tuna
- Bluefin tuna follow schools of herring, mackerel, sand eels and menhaden over banks, ledges and shoals, mostly in the top 150 feet. Troll spreader bars and daisy chains to find fish, then switch to live bait, chunks or stick baits once a school is located. Heavy tackle and a NOAA HMS permit are required, and size-class limits change through the season.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Bean Point74
Cape · 0.5 mi
Top: Atlantic codPeak season- Atlantic cod 74
- Black sea bass 73
- Scup 71
7 kt NEL 3:09 PM · 1.5 ftH 9:18 PM · 10.6 ft
- Sullivan Harbor74
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Atlantic codPeak season- Atlantic cod 74
- Black sea bass 73
- Scup 71
7 kt NEL 3:09 PM · 1.5 ftH 9:18 PM · 10.6 ft
- Sorrento Harbor72
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Black sea bassPeak season- Black sea bass 72
- Scup 70
- Tautog 69
7 kt NEL 3:09 PM · 1.5 ftH 9:18 PM · 10.6 ft
- Eastern Point Harbor72
Bay · 0.8 mi
Top: Black sea bassPeak season- Black sea bass 72
- Scup 70
- Tautog 69
7 kt NEL 3:09 PM · 1.5 ftH 9:18 PM · 10.6 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 Maine DMR before you keep a fish.