Togg Fishing?

["uffah!!"]

I know this is a striper net, but, does any of you fisherman fish for Togg?
I never have, and would like to know how, and what type of equipment, and most of all, where to find these fish! I never tasted the togg and was wondering what they tasted like??
Any help will be deeply appreciated!!!!!!!

[outfished]

Taste like chicken. Seriously though I wouldn't mind knowing myself. Never tried catching or eating them.

[BrianS]

Ive tried, but not in very good places.

I think Ive caught one in my entire life.

Hopefully this is pretty educational.

[RIJIMMY]

rocky areas, jetties, crabs or seaworms as bait. They are light hitters so pay attention.
IMHO, second only to fluke, they are the best tasting fish around here.

[fishweewee]

It's best to go tog fishing with someone who's done it, as it is harder to explain on a board than show in person.

Tog inhabit rockpiles, wrecks, and mussel beds.

They dine on crustaceans, mollusks, and worms. Rarely, they will take chunk baits, but this the exception.

Bottom line - you need crabs. Green, whitechin, hermit, and blue crabs work well.

If you're fishing from a boat, a stout 7 foot conventional stick with BRAIDED line hooked up to a dropper loop rig (3/0 or 4/0 octopus hook in middle) tied to a suitable bank sinker (= just enough to hold bottom but no heavier) .

Use a piece of CUT live crab (a 1/4 piece). Pull off claws and legs with your fingers. Retract flap/tail of carapace (the "groin") and pull it off. Cut crab in half down middle (actually, easiest with a pair of shears) and then cut the half in halves.

As soon as you hit bottom with the crab, immediately tighten up any slack you might feel and wait for hits (which shouldn't take long).

Tog bites are very subtle - in my experience you have to hit them hard right after the first tap that you feel.

Tog will steal you blind and you'll lose rigs to the rocks. But they are very fun to catch and tasty fish (they eat crab and the flavor is very crabbish).

When you catch tog - don't skin them like you would a striper - cut a diagonal notch just behind the gills and use pliers to unglove the skin.

-WW

[fishaholic18]

What Wee Wee said.
I use a whole crab, rip off a couple of legs to thread the hook thru and hang on.
I got a spot that produces some big a$$ chinners, it's better later in the season though.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Use the biggest possible crab you can find..
7/0 or 8/0 hooks
Mono line (braid was OK, but didnt outfish mono for me)
Everything else I agree with

[outfished]

Is there a particular time and season for these fish? Thanks for the info guys!

[fishweewee]

If I'm not mistaken togging is a daytime thing, as blackfish do sleep/rest at night.

Otherwise, just follow your state regs. They are coldwater fish and can be caught year-round (boats in winter months) where I live, but pay attention to regs.

Season is usually closed around spawning.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Season in RI opens May 1 I think, 3 fish/person/day, switches to 10fishpd in OCtober... I dont fish them in the spring, I get em in deep water in the fall 90+ ft from a boat... deeper = bigger in the fall, but they are shallow in the spring when they are spawning (the other reason I dont get em in the spring/summer would rather let em reproduce)

Great eating, and great fighting, over all my favorite fish to catch...
Anyone who says blackfish cant tussle has never caught one in the double digit range.. they may not stip yards and yards of line, but in 100ft of water, a 12 or 14lb tog can PULL

[fishweewee]

They are cunning bait thieves, and have been known to drive anglers crazy by bulldogging themselves back into rockpiles when hooked. These are STRONG fish.

[KJLane]

use seaworms in the spring, crabs in the fall. I fish for them in the woods hole area, but pretty much any rocky place will do. The fishing probably won't pick up until after the first week in may though, at least that's been my experience.

[Clammer]

RRH is a Fall Tautog fisherman // its completey different in the spring //

IE/ I very seldom will use crabs /

they can be caught in water less than 8 feet

they fight like a @#$%$%^^ /try light tackle

Chit what do I know -- I forgot ,I,m only a {[CLAMMER}}

[Squibby17]

Tog can be good eating although they are quite boney. I caught a couple last may on the Duxbury bridge in Duxbury Mass.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Clammer got that right... fall only... spring time = basses...
But shallow water works too, just scale back on weight a bit..
What little I;ve dont in the spring; crabs work then too.....

[likwid]

When they're on crabs, they're on em hard, always used both worms and crabs together... it works.
Any good rockpile will hold Tog, esp. around BB.

GL over by dong 9 is prolly good right now.

Fabulous chowder fish.

[RIROCKHOUND]

This is what the late fall is all about....

[outfished]

sweeeet! Gotta try to get me some of that.

[KJLane]

That's an absolute monster Tog!!!

[fishdog13]

that's a medium = 25-30 buck's

[Goose]

IMO,, rods that are graphite are good toggin rods. If I'm toggin from shore I'll go with a more stout rod, but on the boat like sir clammer said...lighter is better. You wanna go with mono from shore, I use 30 braid off the boat. Thats one fish where you got to drive the hook home.

From shore I used to fish two rods, used to. Bloocrab, proved to me holding one rod is more efficent then watching two. I still bring two in case its real slow.

RIRock, wicked nice fish, your right late fall is smokin.

[Vectorfisher]

We used to catch them here in B Bay when I was a kid, I have tried several times to get my son into catching them to no avail a couple of dinks was it, not like what we used to catch, overfished

[Crafty Angler]

Originally Posted by Clammer

I very seldom will use crabs /
they can be caught in water less than 8 feet
they fight like a @#$%$%^^ /try light tackle

Chit what do I know -- I forgot ,I,m only a {[CLAMMER}}

Clammer knows...and he knows the spots I mean, too...heh heh heh

When you think of blackfish you usually think of rods as stiff as a pool cue, heavy line and a lot of rigs lost to the rocks...but go wading and try it on a steelie rod with 8-10 lb test and sandworms and it's something else again. In fact, I bought a 9' 10 wt. blank this winter and I'm going to wrap it up as a slip-float blackfish rod

I owe the technique to Uncle Zeke - he turned me on to it last Spring and it puts a whole new spin on it (no pun intended) - and Bryan is right about a damned good tussle.

I took DZ out to the spot where we'd been hitting them and he was amazed that we were wading and 'sight-fishing' for blackfish - some mornings they were rolling on the surface like trout...big fat, tasty trout...

I seem to keep fewer and fewer bass anymore, but you know, when I see one of those buck-toothed beauties, all I can see is a chowder pot with fins

All I have to do is add vermouth

[Notaro]

Originally Posted by Crafty Angler

Clammer knows...and he knows the spots I mean, too...heh heh heh

When you think of blackfish you usually think of rods as stiff as a pool cue, heavy line and a lot of rigs lost to the rocks...but try it on a steelie rod with 8-10 lb test and sandworms and it's something else again. In fact, I bought a 9' 10 wt. blank this winter and I'm going to wrap it up as a slip-float blackfish rod

I owe the technique to Uncle Zeke - he turned me on to it last Spring and it puts a whole new spin on it (no pun intended) - and Bryan is right about a damned good tussle.

I took DZ out to the spot where we'd been hitting them and he was amazed that we were 'sight-fishing' for blackfish - some mornings they were rolling on the surface like trout...big fat, tasty trout...

I seem to keep fewer and fewer bass anymore, but you know, when I see one of those buck-toothed beauties, all I can see is a chowder pot with fins

All I have to do is add vermouth

Put some more wine to it. I like to get buzzed from eating your chowder. Yours is just a big yummy!

Chuck, remember the rod we saw at SWE tow or three months ago, a 10 ft convench fast action tica rod? Will it do good for blackfish?

[RIROCKHOUND]

Goose...
I know from your PM's a while back your old school on toggin, but I cant get used to graphite for boat blackfishing.. always have and will until the stop making it use a 6'6" 20-40lb Penn Slammer... stiff enough to set the hook, and when you actually set in 100ft of water the tip stays up relativly high.. I lose very few fish to the bottom once the hook is set... it's all about the first 5 cranks of the handles with these beauties...

Fishdog; stoped selling 5+ yrs ago, but yeah thats about right... and I didnt realize 14+ was a medium... the old man has a 17.5,,, shooting for that as a career mark...

[Crafty Angler]

Well, you could use it but for the method we were using for tog you really want a rod more suitable to lighter line -

That Tica would be fine for plugging and eels in the surf for bass, though - and the price was right, too -

[Notaro]

oic, chuck. what rod would you reccomend me to buy for a reasonable price and togging and my abu 7000CL?

[Goose]

RIRock,funny you mention the slammer, before the patriot blank I use for bottem fishin, I used a rewrapped slammer, real good rod. Crafty, I've seen tog rolling on the surface a few times usually at last light, whats up with that.

[Clammer]

Tony // when they are rolling on the top /9 times out of ten its dead tide //// usually its a pair // they are mating /// if you get close to them with your boat ,,thay actually face each other //just like kissing //

for get all this its justa wild guess



awesome nite tonight ///flatass calm & pea soup fog

[basswipe]

Blackie season opens Sun. morning.Gonna be up bright and early and hit THAT spot.