When a Greater Boston bait shop begins stocking green crabs, it’s pretty obvious that the tog bite is not restricted to Buzzards Bay. Striper fishing during the month of October is generally a game of chance, as yesterday’s success is often tomorrow’s skunk.
South Shore and South Coast
There’s just something awesome going on in the Bay State regarding tautog, with the epicenter being the South Coast. In this era of dwindling fisheries on so many fronts, it’s great to see that those crab-crunchers are in fine shape. With bag limits increased to 5 fish per day, the fileting prowess of Little Sister Charters‘ Captain Jason Colby is surely to be pushed to the test. Shallow, deep, rocks, wrecks – it doesn’t seem to matter; so long as the Little Sister deploys its Minn Kota Spot-Lock trolling motor, the results are the same – a full cooler. With limits a quick-and-easy foregone conclusion, the goal for the foreseeable future will be contenders for the Massachusetts Saltwater Fishing Derby – a feat the crew has accomplished innumerable times.
The spring spawning run notwithstanding, tog come into the shallows now. It’s almost never too early en route to drop a jig/crab or crab/bait rig onto irregular bottom. In fact, a kayak friend of mine has been killing tog in water shallower than 10’! Bridge and wharf pilings now are worth a look, as are areas around upwellings and exposed ledge not far from the launch. Should you find an isolated patch of hard bottom in the middle of a nondescript area, the better. If you’re making the jaunt from up north and concerned about grabbing enough crabs, drop by Fishing FINatics in Everett where they are keeping them in stock to meet demand.
Pete’s report from Belsan Bait and Tackle in Scituate will be absent this week since he’s spending the week on Martha’s Vineyard chasing stripers and perhaps tiny tuna. This is a yearly tradition whereupon the guy whose mission is to help others catch fish finally gets a chance to catch a few on his own. However, as is the case with the rest of the state, anglers can expect reliable striped fishing for the duration of the month in rivers/estuaries and embayments while open water will be more of a case of happenstance.
Greater Boston
If you get a whiff of crab as you enter Fishing FINatics in Everett, your senses are not deceiving you – green crabs are indeed in stock! For a reason unbeknownst to many, tog this time of year come in close, and patrons of Pete Santini are catching them off numerous wharves, floats, piers, and bridges throughout Boston. A few to consider, according to Pete, are the areas bordering public parks by the Seaport area, Charlestown, East Boston, and Chelsea. You don’t need to be fancy to fish for tautog; a simple top and bottom rig will suffice, with the major requirement being a stout stick with 40-pound line and 4/0 hooks about perfect.
For those ready to give up on open water striper fishing, perhaps another look is needed. Deer Island went off recently with frenzied fishers chasing roving bands of birds and bass pummeling bait on the surface. Most everything anglers threw at them worked, with topwaters especially productive. Interestingly, this was on the heels of a solid nighttime bite for anglers working metal lips among the rips in that vicinity. The mouths of herring run rivers remain solid bets as stripers feast on the fry. Tuna fishing remains terrific throughout Stellwagen Bank, with the NE Corner especially hot, with live squid the key.
With freshwater fishing increasingly becoming the focus, recently stocked trout in Horn Pond are getting a lot of attention, as are largemouth bass in Spy Pond. The latter also holds pike and tiger muskie for those looking for something with a more substantial bite.
Lisa, from Fore River Fishing Tackle in Quincy, said that mackerel have moved in as close as Hewitts Cove, with opportunistic anglers live lining them to catch stripers. The same scene has been taking place off Nut Island. Baby bonito continue to hit Sabiki Rigs off area piers. Blitzes have been taking place along the Weymouth Back River thanks to the steady stream of herring fry swimming downstream. Cod continue to be caught among irregular bottom from Boston Light out to the B Buoy. Those looking for smelt are finding them off the panoply of piers which line the Hull through Hingham area as well as off Marina Bay and Summer Street.
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North Shore
Tomo, from Tomo’s Tackle, said that he has had a productive week tossing mackerel chunks in among the whitewash up against the rocky shorelines of the North Shore. Mackerel remain numerous but sadly are under fire from trawlers reportedly as far south as New Jersey! Thankfully, some have found relative sanctuary in close to the Beverly Pier and Salem Willows Pier, with anglers taking advantage of it. Pogy schools which were in tight to structure in the harbors of Marblehead, Salem and farther north have moved on out and are occasionally encountered by the few boats which are not dry-docked. Some have done well live-lining among those errant schools for stripers.
While not done yet, TJ, from Three Lantern Marine, said that the inshore Gloucester Harbor bass bite is waning. Pogies have largely vanished, and with the inevitability of the time of year that weeks-long fishery is on the ropes. A few boaters have lucked into pods of bait moving out and found striped bass with them. A few keeper cod can be found outside of Magnolia as well as beyond the Salvages and Halibut Point.
While as far north as you can get in Massachusetts, Surfland Bait and Tackle in Newbury occasionally has promising news from even further north! In this case, Martha informed me that Maine anglers are calling and asking about eels. It only stands to reason that those Downeast bass have to move along the Bay State coast as they depart northern New England. Meanwhile, the river has been holding stripers upstream as far up as Cashman Park. Casters are catching stripers off the Parker River Wildlife Refuge under low light conditions. A few kayakers are buying up eels and doing well in the flats and the sound.
Massachusetts Fishing Forecast
While the Bay State bass biomass may be shrinking, tautog are more than stepping in to fill the void. If the South Coast could be considered front row seating, surely the South Shore through Boston area is at least orchestra. What might be best of all is that tog are now terrorizing crabs – as well as anglers with wimpy equipment – close in. The South Shore, with its smattering of boulders and ledge off Minot and the Glades, should hold tog. Off Plymouth, Manomet Point and Maryann Rocks are worth a shot. The Eel River as well as the South and North Rivers are among the more consistent spots for stripers right now. World’s End, the Weymouth Back, the Neponset as well as the Charles and Mystic Rivers are all promising Greater Boston spots. While not an everyday occurrence, legendary harbor haunts such as Deer Island are going off enough to keep surf anglers from stashing their gear. The parks/wharves throughout the inner harbor are holding tog with shops carrying crabs in response to demand. Cape Ann crags are holding striped bass, with mackerel the key to catching them up.