Late May, the squid move onto the south-side rips and the striped bass stack on the current edge under them, eating topwater in the middle of the day. Southwest breeze, a building flood, gulls dropping on the slashes at Succonnesset, Hedge Fence and Middle Ground. Cape Cod Bay runs the opposite clock: glassy first light on the Billingsgate and Scorton crowns, over when the breeze fills in. The blues hit the Sound flats right behind it all.
The habit is leaving the ramp in the dark and hitting the rips on slack water. On the squid rips I'd rather show up at ten on a building flood. The June Topwater Angler already knows that. This is the plug box I'd hand one.
A light tackle angler who targets big fish on top, the kind you see smash the lure. From late May through June they're on a boat in the Sounds or Cape Cod Bay, casting plugs into rips where bass eat squid on the surface, or on the rocks at Nobska at dusk. Trips follow the tide more than the clock, and a calm first light in the Bay gets them up early.
They'd rather raise one fish on a plug than catch ten on a jig. A tell: the plug box is bigger than the jig bag, and they can tell you which tide stands up their rip.
The full set is $98.75 MSRP. One of each covers it, from the first squid on the rips to the July blues.
Already has some? Good. Blues take the same plugs and give them back chewed, and June is when they show up.
Buying the Pocket Squid? It ships unrigged. If they don't already carry soft circle hooks, add a pack of 4/0 Hogy Keeper Soft Circle Hooks.
Giving the full set? Print the guide and tuck it in the box.
THE LINEUP
1 FRANKEN Macro Chug Popper “The Long-Range Caller”
WHEN Late May through June, bass slashing squid on the south-side rips. They sit in the soft water just off the break, not in the white water, and a big chug gets heard across the seam. Amber is where I start on any squid feed.
FISH IT Stem the tide on the shoulder of the rip, not in the middle of it. Cast up-current across the seam, one hard pull, then let it hang; big fish eat it on the hang. Follows with no eat? Drop the tip and walk it on slack line.
WHY THEY'LL LOVE IT Squid feeds spread across a whole rip. This one gets found from the far side, and the hybrid face and belly taper let it pass for a squid on the seam or walk quiet when they turn fussy. Leave it home when the bait is small.
“Franken Popper has been hot, out fishing my fishing partner, throwing other top water lures” James K.
Add to cart | MSRP $23.95See details ›
2 Dog Walker “The Quiet One”
WHEN Calm first light in Cape Cod Bay, bass up on the Scorton Ledge crown edge before the breeze fills in. On the squid rips, it's what I throw when fish slash the chug and won't eat it.
FISH IT Tip low, slack line, steady side-to-side twitch. The walk needs slack; fish it on a tight line and it's a stick. When one follows, walk it twice and stop it dead. At first light, go slower than feels right.
WHY THEY'LL LOVE IT Rip fish that have seen too many chuggers still eat a quiet walk, Bone shows clean in low light, and tuna-grade through-wiring shrugs off the June blues.
“Nothing better for stripers feeding on squid” Stephen K.
Add to cart | MSRP $19.95See details ›
3 Surface Eraser XL “The Wind-Cutter”
WHEN Late May the first blues blitz the Nantucket Sound flats, and by July they own the daylight surface. Blitzing blues, wind, or fish breaking past where anything else reaches. Pink is my call for bluefish chaos.
FISH IT Tip high and crank steady so it skips and darts; cast past the school and bring it through. Most people work it like a popper. It's a wake bait. Lazy rolls behind it? Drop the tip and slow it to a wake.
WHY THEY'LL LOVE IT Blues cut soft plastics in half and leave everyone retying. This one has a heavy-duty body, through-wiring and a sharp VMC in-line hook, and it throws thirty yards past a soft plastic into a headwind.
“They did great on huge bluefish and spring bass.” Michael S.
Add to cart | MSRP $17.95See details ›
4 Pocket Squid
WHEN June dusk at Nobska Point and the Trunk River corner, where the squid run comes within casting range of the rocks. Amber and a long soft bait swung in the current is the shore play.
FISH IT Rig it on a soft circle hook. Cast up-current, let the tide swing it, twitch and let it glide. Don't set on the first tap; let them take it. No hits at sunset? Stay for darker water. This is a dusk and dark-tide bite.
WHY THEY'LL LOVE IT Most of the squid run is boat water. This limited-run squid bait has a long-casting aerodynamic body, so the shore angler reaches the few rip lines in range of the rocks.
Add to cart | MSRP $12.95See details ›
5 OG Swimmer Fatty “The Subsurface Default”
WHEN The rip goes quiet on top. The fish usually haven't left; they've dropped a few feet, and that's the most common miss in June. I keep a plug on one rod and this swimmer on the other, so I can test the surface and go under it without re-rigging.
FISH IT Cast up-current and let it swing down the face the way a squid drifts. Slow, steady crank; the roll needs time to build. Still nothing? A quiet rip is usually a tide-stage problem, not an empty rip. Wait for the build.
WHY THEY'LL LOVE IT When the topwater shuts off, the easy move is to run to another rip. This keeps them on the fish they already found. The short lip holds it just under the surface, and it floats at rest, so it can still be twitched on top.
“...with a steady retrieve, these have an unbelievable swim action.” Ryan H.
Add to cart | MSRP $23.95See details ›WHICH ONE, WHEN
| WHEN YOU SEE THIS | TIE ON |
|---|---|
| Bass slashing squid on a rip, need noise across the current | 1 Macro Chug |
| Glassy first light, or fish follow the chug and turn off | 2 Dog Walker |
| Bluefish blitzing, or wind and fish out of range | 3 Surface Eraser XL |
| Dusk from the rocks, squid in the current | 4 Pocket Squid |
| Surface goes quiet but the fish are still there | 5 OG Swimmer Fatty |
7-foot medium-heavy spinning rod, 30 lb braid, 30 lb fluorocarbon leader, 40 lb when the blues show up. Use a snap: in June you change plugs more than anything else.
Squid draggers dump weed mats on the outgoing, and a back treble is the hook that collects it. The walker, chug and swimmer here each run one belly treble and a flag, which is how I want them in June.
Keep the fish in the water, back the treble out with pliers, and hold it head into the current until it kicks off on its own.
New to the squid rips? Start with Fishing a Rip with Topwater Squid Plugs on Salty Cape. More from me on Hogy: the Franken Popper at Handkerchief Shoal and four retrieves for finicky stripers on micro squid.
QUESTIONS ANGLERS ASK
What are the best topwater lures for striped bass?
A loud popper, a quiet walker and a wake bait. On the squid rips I start with the FRANKEN Macro Chug, switch to the Dog Walker when fish slash the chug and won't eat it, and throw the Surface Eraser XL into bluefish blitzes and wind. From the rocks at dusk it's the Pocket Squid, and the OG Swimmer Fatty fishes just under the surface when a rip goes quiet.
When is the best topwater striper fishing on Cape Cod?
Late May through June. The squid move onto the south-side rips at Succonnesset, Hedge Fence and Middle Ground, and the bass eat on top in the middle of the day on a building flood. Cape Cod Bay runs on glassy first light over the Billingsgate and Scorton crowns. The blues hit the Nantucket Sound flats in late May and own the daylight surface by July.
What color topwater plug is best for stripers?
Amber is where I start on any squid feed, so the Macro Chug, the Pocket Squid and the OG Swimmer Fatty here are all Amber. Bone shows clean in low light, which is why the Dog Walker is Bone for glassy first light in Cape Cod Bay. Pink on the Surface Eraser XL is my call for bluefish chaos.
