Rhody Toggin’: Building A Bite - The Fisherman

Rhody Toggin’: Building A Bite

tog
Rhode Island might be the best place in the world to catch tautog.

A little patience and a little chum will go a long way when building a bite for tog.

In the last several years tautog fishing has exploded in popularity. Fishing fanatics from all over converge on Rhode Island in the fall with the hope of hooking into togzilla. The craze for catching tautog, also known as “tog” or blackfish has grown tremendously in the Northeast. Not only do they produce a sturdy, tasty fillet but they are an incredibly hard fighting-fish, making them super fun to catch.

A member of the wrasse family, tautog have what some people describe as “goat like” teeth which help them crush crustaceans and mollusks with ease. To novice anglers, tautog can sometimes be challenging to catch because they are notorious bait stealers which can make it difficult to time the proper hookset. Understanding how tautog feed, where they hang out and building a bite will  increase your chances of landing your new personal best.

Finding the right spot is crucial in locating that monster tautog you’re looking for. Tog are bottom dwellers and spend most of their time tucked into the rocks. Irregular rocky bottoms, mussel beds, boulders and wrecks are prime tog real estate. Anchoring with precision will increase your chances of getting into a good bite. Half the battle of catching tautog is positioning your boat on structure, so your anchoring skills will be put to the test. Getting on the right piece of structure is crucial. These fish often hold tight to structure making it important to anchor up right on top of them and putting your rigged bait right in front of their face. This is where building a bite comes into play.

author
Not long after completing this article, the author landed her personal best togzilla.

A Little Patience

You’ve anchored on a good section of bottom where tautog likely hang out or you have caught them before. The conditions are favorable for this spot, yet the bite is slow. This situation happens frequently when fishing for tog. When I know I am in a good spot with a fishable current I will chum the water with crushed crabs and give the spot a solid 20 minutes before moving on. We all know about chum but don’t often think about chumming for tautog. Sending down crushed crabs and legs will draw the attention of any passive bystanders and incite a feeding frenzy below the surface.

Often when you first get to a spot small tautog and cunners (also known as bergals which are cousins of tautog), will storm your bait while the bigger fish watch from the sidelines. These smaller fish can be a nuisance, however even they are helping you build your bite. Fish are curious creatures and when other fish are feeding, they can’t help but swim over to see what’s going on. It’s the proverbial pecking order, small fish are first on the bait, but then are pushed out by the larger fish. Sometimes you just need a little patience. This is not always the case; we’ve all been to spots where we immediately started catching keeper tautog—but that’s more of an exception.

Fish are hard to figure out but it’s a good rule of thumb to try a little chum and wait it out before completely dismissing the spot. I’ve been rewarded more times than I can count using the “build a bite” technique.

building-a-bite
Building a bite means being prepared, chum the water and get those baits down as quickly as possible.

Current Plays A Role

Like most types of fishing, tide, and current play a big role in whether you’ll hook into togzilla. From my experience with running charters for the past 12 years, I’ve noticed that fish don’t care about the direction of the tide. You can catch on the incoming and outgoing tides; the deciding factor is the speed of the current. To understand current looking at the moon phase will tell you a lot. Also keep in mind that shallow water spots will have less current than deeper spots.

On a full or new moon, the tides produce strong current because there’s a lot more water being pushed in and draining out. Although I’ve noticed larger tautog will feed in strong currents, the problem is that it’s hard to keep your bait on the bottom to feel bites. Even when using heavy weights, it can be challenging if the current is ripping, nor is it as fun. In contrast, a quarter moon gives you a longer window to fish efficiently because the tides are smaller, meaning not as much water is moving in and out and therefore the current will not be as strong. This will allow lighter jigs and sinkers to hold bottom, giving you a better shot of feeling the bites and catching fish.

Unlike striped bass, tautog are not a migratory species meaning tog will not travel far from home. When the water gets too cold, they will move into deeper water to find their preferred temperature of 50 to 68 degrees. The most popular time to target tautog is during the months of September through November when the water temperatures are ideal for these crab crushing bullies. During September and October, you can find tog in shallow waters under 25 feet feeding on green crabs, Asian crabs, mussels, and clams. I like taking advantage of these months when the water is still warm enough to catch big tautog in the shallows, where there is plenty of food to keep them there. Nothing quite like catching a double-digit in less than 20 feet of water. Once the water gets colder, usually starting in November, I will fish deeper around 30 to 50 feet to find that ideal temperature.

building-a-bite
Precision anchoring is key to getting the most out of those prime pieces of tog bottom.

Bait & Set

Green crabs, “white leggers” and Asian crabs are popular tautog bait. When using Asian crabs, I rig them whole because they are the perfect “bite size” baits and usually use them on a jig. When fishing green crabs, I will either crack the shell to expose the meat or cut the crabs in half. This will also release their scent into the water which will bring in more fish. White leggers are often cut into pieces and used offshore or fishing deep wrecks. Some people will even use hermit crabs or shrimp to catch tautog. When the bite is on it really doesn’t matter what you put down, they will eat it.

Although you may swing and miss many times before actually connecting with a keeper tog, it can be very rewarding when you hook up. I think that’s why so many people turn into tog addicts; you’re constantly searching for those hard fighting double-digits to crush your crab. Whether you’re looking to hook into your first ever tautog or notch a new personal best, learning how they feed, the environments they like and the concept of building a bite will help you become a more successful tautog fisherman. A little luck won’t hurt either.

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