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Marthas Vineyard Fishing Report

Updated Mon, Nov 9, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

An island south of Cape Cod where striped bass, bluefish, bonito and false albacore draw shore and boat anglers, and the Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby has run each fall since 1946.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Next tide
Low 3:38 PM
Air / High
45 / 54 F
Wind
W 6 mph

Sources: NOAA tides 8447930, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Tap a marker for today's tip
Monday
9
November 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Marthas Vineyard feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. Today brings clear skies, wind W around 6 mph, rising pressure near 1005 hPa and a high of 54. Tides: high 7:36 AM and 7:54 PM, low 1:31 AM and 3:38 PM: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:06 PM-1:06 AM and 10:42 AM-12:42 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassGood

Spring and fall are the shoreline seasons: ODWC points to windblown points, riprap and dams during the May shad spawn and the pre-winter feed.

BluefishFair

Fall turns the migration south toward the South Atlantic Bight, and fish feed along beaches and inlets on the way. Follow the bait and the birds.

Tomorrow: Similar at 52 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Tue, Nov 10, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Water and weather

Live readings.

Tides

NOAA station 8447930 (Woods Hole, MA). Fish the moving water either side of each change.

Mon
LOW1:31 AM0.5 ft
HIGH7:36 AM2.5 ft
LOW3:38 PM0.2 ft
HIGH7:54 PM1.6 ft
Tue
LOW1:54 AM0.5 ft
HIGH8:21 AM2.5 ft
LOW4:12 PM0.3 ft
HIGH8:38 PM1.6 ft

Cape Cod Canal tide chart: the week and the month β†’

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp45 F
High / Low54 / 44 F
WindW 6-23 mph
Pressure1005.2 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain1% cloud, 9%
Sunrise / Sunset06:23 / 16:28
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Which day to fish Marthas Vineyard this week

The best day on Marthas Vineyard this week looks like Saturday Nov 14, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Nov 14 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Nov 9 β€” Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
11:06 PM-1:06 AM and 10:42 AM-12:42 PM
Minor period
6:34 AM-7:34 AM
Sun
06:23 to 16:28
Moon
New Moon, 0% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 11 mph
Rain chance
9%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Marthas Vineyard: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Spring and fall are the shoreline seasons: ODWC points to windblown points, riprap and dams during the May shad spawn and the pre-winter feed.

Bluefish illustration

Bluefish

Peak harvest: May-Oct, most in Jul-Aug (NOAA)

Bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) are sharp-toothed schooling predators that move up and down the Atlantic coast with the seasons and feed in surface blitzes on menhaden, silversides and squid. Fall turns the migration south toward the South Atlantic Bight, and fish feed along beaches and inlets on the way. Follow the bait and the birds.

When to come: the Marthas Vineyard calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Striped bass
Bluefish
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovNov, ~55 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Marthas Vineyard today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Sun, Nov 8

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 56 F, wind to 15 mph.

Sat, Nov 7

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 64 F, wind to 14 mph.

Fri, Nov 6

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 68 F, wind to 17 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Massachusetts requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Massachusetts recreational saltwater fishing permit required at 16 and older. DMF limits (updated April 28, 2026, read 2026-10-05): striped bass 1 fish, 28 to under 31 in., year-round, inline circle hooks with natural bait; bluefish 5 (7 on for-hire boats); Atlantic bonito and false albacore 16 in. curved fork length, 5 combined; summer flounder May 24-Sept. 23; scup May 1-Dec. 31. American shad and river herring may not be kept.

Access

Steamship Authority ferries from Woods Hole. Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge, Wasque and Leland Beach (The Trustees): oversand vehicle permit for driving the beach; fishing-only access 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Other beaches have their own town or private rules.

About this water

An island off the south coast of Cape Cod, Dukes County, Massachusetts. The page's tide station is NOAA 8447930, Woods Hole, on the mainland across Vineyard Sound.

Fishing Marthas Vineyard: the full guide

Getting there

Martha's Vineyard sits off the southwest corner of Cape Cod in Dukes County. The Steamship Authority runs the ferry route between Woods Hole and the island, for passengers and vehicles. Anglers need a Massachusetts recreational saltwater fishing permit from age 16, unless they fish from a permitted for-hire boat.

Wasque and Cape Poge

On Chappaquiddick's east edge, the Trustees' Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge runs seven miles of barrier beach from Wasque Point past the Cape Poge Lighthouse to the Gut. The Trustees say the currents there draw striped bass, bluefish, bonito and albacore, and they manage the adjoining Leland (East) Beach for the Division of Marine Fisheries, which bought it in 1993 to keep fishing access to Wasque Point open. Driving on the sand requires the Trustees' oversand vehicle permit, and from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. the property is open for fishing access only.

The Derby

The Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby began in 1946, a year after World War II ended, and the 81st Derby is running in fall 2026, with boat and shore divisions for bluefish, bonito, albacore and striped bass. The organizers say it now regularly draws more than 3,000 participants and has awarded more than $1 million in scholarships.

Common questions

What is the Derby?

The Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, a fall fishing contest held since 1946; 2026 is the 81st edition, with boat and shore divisions.

Do I need a permit to fish from the beach?

Yes, a Massachusetts recreational saltwater fishing permit from age 16. Driving onto Trustees beaches such as Cape Poge and Wasque also needs their oversand vehicle permit.

Can I keep a striped bass?

Under 2026 DMF rules, one fish a day from 28 to under 31 inches, measured with the tail squeezed. Gaffing striped bass is prohibited.

Is fishing good at Marthas Vineyard right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Buzzards Bay19 miCape Cod Canal27 miSakonnet River32 miStafford Pond33 miNarragansett44 miWickford Harbor45 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Tide predictions
NOAA CO-OPS 8447930 β€” Woods Hole, MA
Harmonic predictions, datum MLLW, local time. 12 high and low events returned for today and the next two days. A prediction, not a measured water level: wind and surge move the real thing.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 41.3900, -70.6100 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.