Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Channel · Maine

Pell Island Passage

44.10°N · 68.62°W · Channel · Intra Coastal Waters from Schoodic Point, ME to Stonington, ME

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Best score today · 11 PM · Little tunny

85/100Epic
Now
469 AM EDT
Best window
11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
High8.4 ft

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: today · 85

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score46Good
Tide8.4 ftHigh
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind13 kn NEgusts 17 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.9 ft · 5 s
Air temp53°Cool
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water56°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Little tunny is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with Maine DMR before you keep a fish.

Always check with Maine DMR ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: Maine DMR · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Little tunny is best here

Peak season for Little tunny · 4 more weeks at peak

Little tunny season by week of the year. Peak season for Little tunny · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Little tunny in Maine →

Spot profile

Pell Island Passage

Depth
5-30 ftDrop-off
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · drop-off
Season
Peak seasonLittle tunny

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 Pell Island Passage

Pell Island Passage is a channel in Intra Coastal Waters from Schoodic Point, ME to Stonington, ME, Maine. Depth is 5-30 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 13 species here; the best right now are scup, Atlantic bluefin tuna and Atlantic cod. It is peak season now for scup, Atlantic bluefin tuna, Atlantic cod and black sea bass, and shoulder season for tautog, summer flounder and mahi-mahi. Scup peak from June through September. Atlantic bluefin tuna peak from July through October. Atlantic cod peak from May through June and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
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 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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Pond Point

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    69
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 69
    • Atlantic bluefin tuna 59
    • Striped bass 57

    13 kt NEL 2:42 PM · 1.3 ftH 9:17 PM · 9.3 ft

  • Burnt Island Thorofare

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    67
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 67
    • Atlantic bluefin tuna 56
    • Striped bass 56

    13 kt NEL 2:42 PM · 1.3 ftH 9:17 PM · 9.3 ft

  • Laundry Cove

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    67
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 67
    • Striped bass 56
    • Black sea bass 50

    13 kt NEL 2:42 PM · 1.3 ftH 9:17 PM · 9.3 ft

  • Birch Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Striped bass 58
    • Black sea bass 50

    13 kt NEL 2:42 PM · 1.3 ftH 9:17 PM · 9.3 ft

Open in the tide map

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.