UTERAtlantic bluefin tuna fishing in Rhode Island and Cape Cod
In Rhode Island and Cape Cod, Atlantic bluefin tuna peak July–October and are around June–November, according to Fish Scouter's month-by-month season calendar. July: Giants in Cape Cod Bay and east of Chatham; school fish off Block Island. The trophy (73"+) category often closes early — check NOAA HMS.
The fall feed; tog season and the last albies. Stripers stage on Block Island and the Rhode Island beaches; green crabs for tog on the breakwaters and Buzzards Bay rocks; albies until a storm ends it.
Atlantic bluefin tuna in Rhode Island and Cape Cod, month by month
- JanuaryNot here
- FebruaryNot here
- MarchNot here
- AprilNot here
- MayNot here
- JuneArrivingCanal blitzes and big stripers on mackerel. Pencil poppers at dawn in the Cape Cod Canal; tube-and-worm in Cape Cod Bay; eels at night off Block Island; fluke start on the sand.
- JulyPeakGiants in Cape Cod Bay and east of Chatham; school fish off Block Island. The trophy (73"+) category often closes early — check NOAA HMS.
- AugustPeakBonito and the first albies; canyon tuna. Small epoxy jigs for bonito and the first albies around Martha's Vineyard; overnight runs to the canyons for yellowfin and bigeye.
- SeptemberPeakBiggest bluefin of the year off the Cape.
- OctoberPeakThe fall feed; tog season and the last albies. Stripers stage on Block Island and the Rhode Island beaches; green crabs for tog on the breakwaters and Buzzards Bay rocks; albies until a storm ends it.
- NovemberLeaving
- DecemberNot here
Where to fish Atlantic bluefin tuna near Point Judith, Newport, Block Island
Rhode Island's rocky south coast and salt ponds, Narragansett Bay, Block Island, Buzzards Bay and the Elizabeth Islands, Vineyard and Nantucket Sounds with their shoals and rips, the Cape Cod Canal, Cape Cod Bay's sand flats, and the Monomoy rips and outer Cape beaches; offshore Coxes Ledge and the southern New England canyons (Block, Atlantis, Veatch).
Fish Scouter charts 350 wreck, 4 artificial reef spots in the Southern New England map area — the kinds Atlantic bluefin tuna hold on.
What to use for Atlantic bluefin tuna
- Menhaden (pogies)Nose-hooked on a circle hook and free-lined or slow-trolled; cut in chunks for the bottom.
- SquidStrips on a bottom rig for snapper, grunts and porgies; whole on a deep-drop rig.
- HerringCut-plug for salmon: head off at an angle, guts out, two hooks in tandem so it spins slow behind a flasher or a banana weight. Whole and live on a circle hook for stripers where the herring run.
- Sand eelsFree-lined or on a light jig head for stripers, fluke and bluefish; strips teased on a fluke rig.
- Leader40–60 lb fluorocarbon
- Hook4/0–8/0
- Braid50–100 lb
Feeds in 50–76°F water, best at 58–70°F.
Questions anglers ask
When is the best time to catch Atlantic bluefin tuna in Rhode Island and Cape Cod?
Peak season is July–October. Atlantic bluefin tuna are in Rhode Island and Cape Cod June–November. July: Giants in Cape Cod Bay and east of Chatham; school fish off Block Island. The trophy (73"+) category often closes early — check NOAA HMS.
Where do Atlantic bluefin tuna hold in Rhode Island and Cape Cod?
Look on ledge / hard bottom, wreck, artificial reef — around Point Judith, Newport, Block Island, Westport, Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard.
What is the best bait for Atlantic bluefin tuna in Rhode Island and Cape Cod?
Live bait: menhaden (pogies), squid, herring, sand eels. Menhaden (pogies): Nose-hooked on a circle hook and free-lined or slow-trolled; cut in chunks for the bottom. Tackle: leader 40–60 lb fluorocarbon, hook 4/0–8/0, braid 50–100 lb.
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All about Atlantic bluefin tuna · Southern New England, the whole year