July 29, 2016 — As of Monday, recreational anglers will get a chance to reacquaint themselves with the much-coveted Gulf of Maine cod when federal fishing restrictions for the species are lifted until the end of September.
But don’t expect a windfall. The bag limit for the iconic species, whose stock NOAA Fisheries maintains is in freefall, will be one cod per fisherman per day.
Still, for recreational fishermen, party boats and larger charter operations, it just might work out that the opportunity to catch one cod a day is enough to lure bigger crowds aboard the boats. Tom Orrell, owner of Gloucester-based Yankee Fleet, certainly hopes that’s the case.
“Our numbers were a little light in July and we’ve been wondering if maybe if some of our recreational fishermen made a conscious decision to wait until they had a chance to land cod,” Orrell said. “So, we’re kind of holding our breath to see what happens.”
Up to this point in the season, Orrell said, his customers have been hauling big numbers of haddock and cusk from around the waters off Cape Ann and farther out. But there is no discounting the allure of the cod.