1. Get to this website, http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/recreati/ccc/recreation/recreation.htm It will give you all the info you need to know about tides, access, rules, etc.
2. Hotspots- The east end of the Canal is the place to be in the summertime. The Sandwich side has less guys and less fish in my opinion but can be hot at times. The Scusset side has more fishermen and more fish. There is a fee to park at Scusset; the other side is free.
3. Best tide- Definitely the high dropping. If you look at the tide charts from the website above, you will notice times of the high tide in Sandwich. The water in the Canal starts moving to the west (best movement) an hour before the high tide. The best tide to fish is from the high tide to 2-3 hours down. Water has to be really moving for it to be good. Also, those moon tides with a single or double asterisk are far better tides because they offer more water movement.
4. Best times- If you have the right tides, by far the best times are daybreak and dusk. After dark can also be good. Overcast days are better than sunny days, but if the bait is around high noon can produce.
5. Best lures- Jigs on the bottom, pencil poppers on the surface, skinny plastic swimmers in a mackerel color. Hottest lure this year has been a Daiwa Salt Pro Minnow. You can't even find them online as guys as buying them out.
6. Equipment- Most fishermen go big in here because a long cast is beneficial as fish will break a lot of time way out. Standard equipment for most fishermen is a rod in the 9-12 foot range, braided line (30-40 lb.) and big spinning reels. You will see guys along here who can cast a pencil popper out 300-400 feet.
I admit to not being an expert on canal fishing, but the info above will certainly be helpful to beginners. Good luck if you try.
