Fish On!: Night time is the right time

It’s time to switch to the night shift! This week’s heat wave didn’t just make Lynn residents take shelter in air conditioned places, the bass felt it too, and stayed out in deeper, cooler, “air conditioned” waters themselves during the day, only heading into shore to feed at night under the cover of darkness. Such was the case this week, as it usually is every year around this time, and although there were fish to be had by day, most of the action occurred when the sun went down. The big news is that pogies, our most prized baitfish and arguably striped bass’ favorite food, are around in numbers. This week we managed to snag a dozen just off the beach by the Tides Restaurant in Nahant, as well as a few dozen more in Boston Harbor. These prized baits did the job, and some pretty fat stripers were caught on them when the sun went down. Ron Powers calls them the M.V.B., or “Most Valuable Baitfish” of the Striper Coast. And he’s right. The biggest bass around seem to always be close by around the Pogy schools. So get out there around sunset with a few snag hooks, and look for the pogies. And don’t be afraid to live line a large pogy, because remember, big bait, big fish!Boston HarborBig stripers have sniffed out the abundance of pogies in Boston Harbor, and some truly quality fish have been taken on live and chunk pogies, both from shore and around those pogy schools out in the Harbor. Mackerel have been hit or miss, but best bets for them have been around Boston Light. Flounder still remain active, but that shouldn’t be for long with these water temps. Look for pogies from Crystal Cove, Winthrop to Deer Island, and if that doesn’t work, check Wollaston Beach, Quincy. Live mackerel, pogies, or eels around any of Boston Harbor’s Rips and ledges at night are always a great bet.Lynn/NahantOur area is still seeing solid fishing, and even more so after dark. There are still mackerel to be had from the Nahant Town Wharf to East Point, as well as the mouth of Lynn Harbor, but they’ve been spotty and tougher to find. The bright side is that schools of pogies are cruising around Little Nahant, Lynn Harbor and Revere Beach, and there have been good-size stripers right on their tails. Bass in the 20-30 pound range have been caught this week around Bass Point, Nahant after dark on live pogies and mackerel. Look for topwater surface feeds in the morning on Lynn Beach, from Red Rock to the Red Rock Bistro and into Swampscott Harbor.Salem/MarbleheadFishermen in the Salem/Marblehead area had this week what we had last week, that good slug of stripers in the 31-35 inch range that moved North, blasting all over the area. The kayak crowd reported solid fishing, both on topwater lures as well as the fly. Beverly Harbor saw some decent topwater blitzes that lasted most mornings, and pearl sluggo’s as well as Jumping Minnows worked the best. Pogies have been in and around Salem and Marblehead harbors in the mornings and afternoons, and mackerel were spotty out by the Islands. Football Tuna are rumored to have been spotted out by the Groaner can way out off Bakers Island.Cape Ann/NewburyportDespite the hot weather this week, the Newburyport area held fish. The nighttime crowd reports that Joppa Flats comes alive at night, with bass to 40 pounds being taken on live eels. The folks over at Surfland Bait on Plum Island report pretty good fishing around the Newburyport area, with the mouth of the Merrimack River still a hot spot. Bluefish in the 30-34 inch range were cruising up and down the Plum Island oceanfront this week. The South side of Cape Ann saw decent fishing this week, where Gloucester fishing was pretty quiet, surprising with the cool, deep water around Cape Ann.The Bottom LineNight time is the right time. Striped Bass are nocturnal. Even more so when water temperatures rise to near 70 degrees, and with how well local fishermen are doing lately at night, its time to hit the surf for the graveyard shift. If you’re looking to score a trophy stri