Artificial Lure here with your Martha’s Vineyard fishing report for November 17, 2025.

Right now, we’ve got a crisp fall morning on Island waters. The Vineyard is showing its late-season face—air is cool, the days are shorter, and the atmosphere is calm after last week’s brush with strong winds. According to CapeTides.com, you’re working with a **low tide at 6:16 AM**, rising to **high at 11:33 AM**, then falling back to the next low at 6:49 PM—plan your sessions around those moving waters. **Sunrise hits at 6:42 AM and sunset tucks in early at 4:15 PM**, so you’ll want to get your lines wet bright and early for best action.

The water’s cooled into the low 50s—just the right environment for Martha’s Vineyard’s hardy November homebodies. The big blitzes of false albacore and bonito are mostly a memory now, and while the Vineyard Gazette and MV Times both reported a banner October for those hardtails, things have settled. Still, plenty of **striped bass** are hugging the rips and rocks, especially as tides swing. Schoolies predominate with the occasional slot-fish in the mix, and a couple lucky sharpies have tricked larger linesiders right at first light.

Reports from the locals say **tautog (“blackfish”) action is peaking**, especially near rocky bottom—East and West Chop piers, plus off Lobsterville and the breakwaters at Vineyard Haven. Sink some green crabs, let that rig sit tight, and you’ll be rewarded with bulldog runs from tog up to six pounds. With the Derby wrapped in October, folks are running lighter lines and picking up solid **keeper black sea bass and scup** as bycatch.

If you’re casting lures, you want to keep it natural and slow. Top local choices:

- **Soft plastics** like Lunker City Sluggos or smaller Hogy paddletails in olive or white for the bass.
- **Diamond jigs and bucktail jigs** are classic for both stripers and sea bass, especially on the deeper drops and slow retrieves.
- Anglers in the know are drifting green crab baits for tautog and doing well.
- For a fly rodder: A sparse, olive-and-white Clouser or deceiver is still your best bet, especially on the outgoing tide and at creek mouths.

Hotspots? Two stand out for mid-November:

- **Menemsha jetty:** Always holds fish deep into the fall, with bait still in the area. Good access for both tog and last-chance stripers.
- **Eastville Beach into Vineyard Haven Harbor:** At dawn or dusk, you’ve got a legit shot at some holdover bass pushing bait, plus the off-chance of a late blue hanging around.

Despite the crowds of summer long gone, the diehards know there’s peace and plenty of fish still on offer—just slower, steadier, and with more elbow room. Take a moment to soak in the sunrise over Chappy, and remember, the bite in November is all about timing, quiet patience, and working those small windows with the right tide.

That’s all for this Vineyard update. Thanks for tuning in! Make sure to subscribe and never miss what’s biting next. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI