Present parking fees are $7 per day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Non-campers are not permitted in the lot after 8 p.m. You can obtain directions and more information on the Web at www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/southeast/scus.htm, or by calling (508) 888-0859.

Another popular area is the tidal flat in Bourne, on the opposite end of the canal on the Cape side.

Take Shore Road in Bourne and turn onto Bell Road into the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' parking lot.

The area to the left of the parking lot is a particularly popular spot for stripers because it holds good numbers of baitfish. The shoreline here offers a sharp contrast to the rock-strewn surf that is typical along much of the canal, and this area offers some limited wading for anglers who'd like to wade-fish.

Also worth trying is the railroad bridge section to the right of the parking lot. The best fishing will typically be on the down-current side of the railroad bridge.

The Corps of Engineers maintains many of the parking areas and access points along the canal, and there are a number of other areas with good access between the Bourne bridge and the Sagamore bridge. Some of these areas appear on a map online at www.nae.usace.army.mil/recreati/ccc/ccchome.htm

For more information, call Canal Bait & Tackle at (508) 833-2996, or try the Cape Cod Canal Visitor Center at (508) 833-9678.

Another upper Cape hotspot is South Cape Beach in Mashpee. The beach is beyond the parking lot at South Cape Beach State Park. The parking fee is $7 per day between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. from Memorial Day through Labor Day.

There's good fishing along the shoreline to the west of the parking lot, down to the jetty at the entrance of Waquoit Bay. Another preferred area is east of the parking lot in front of the New Seabury Golf Course area. The water is a good hike from the parking lot, but it can be worth the effort.

Directions and additional information on South Cape Beach State Park can be found at (508) 457-0495, or www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/southeast/socp.htm

MID-CAPE
Sandy Neck Beach in Barnstable, a barrier beach between Cape Cod Bay and Barnstable Harbor, offers easy access and is popular with anglers on foot as well as those with 4-wheel drive vehicles. Off-road vehicle stickers are required and can be purchased at the parking lot gate. Many anglers prefer to walk the beach to the water east of the parking lot.

Walking the beach at low tide will provide some good insight on bottom structure, giving anglers a good indication of where to fish on the rising tide. This is true of most Cape beaches. Look for channels between sandbars, pockets of seaweed, and feeding gulls.

Approximately six miles east of the parking lot lies Beach Point, at the head of Barnstable Harbor. Some offshore sandbars here are popular with the 4-wheel drive crowd.

To get to Sandy Neck, head east on Route 6A through Sandwich. Shortly before the Barnstable line, turn left onto Sandy Neck Road and follow that to the parking lot at the end. Parking costs $15 per day between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. from Memorial Day through Labor Day.