“I want to catch some of those tautog!”

Tautog, or black fish, are great fighters and wonderful to eat. They are not
the easiest fish in the sea to catch, but once you get the knack for hooking these
bait-stealing critters, you can be hooked on tautog fishing for life.

The most important thing to know about tautog fishing is where to go and what
baits to use. Tautog feed on barnacles, mussels, and little crabs that are hanging
on pilings, rocks, or other underwater debris. You will rarely find a tautog swimming
around on open bottom. They like deep, swift moving water near structure.

Either the Indian River or Ocean City Inlet are places to find the tautog.
Tautog feed on the mussels growing on the rocks and underwater ledges. You will
also catch these fish near the cement pilings of the Rt. 50 Bridge, certain areas
of the Oceanic Pier (go to the end of the pier and fish on the left hand side or
cast towards the cement wall), the bulkhead along 2nd through 4th Streets, and ends
of certain streets such as 5th Street and 6th Street. A few tautog are taken from
the 9th Street Pier. Even Shantytown Pier sees some tautog sometimes.

The area called “Stinky Beach” has its share of tautog, though it is a little
hard to fish. To get to “Stinky Beach,” go west across the Rt. 50 Bridge,
make a left at Delmarva Sports Center, and then make the next immediate left.
You must park on the side of the road and walk down to the rocks. This is
where the Old Railroad Bridge used to be and there are some deep holes amongst
the old underwater pilings. Rocks are to the left where you can also tautog fish.
Be very careful in the area. It is not a place to take small children.

“What do you use for bait?”

Live or frozen sand fleas, also called “sand crabs” or “mole crabs” make
good tautog bait. These can be bought or dug on the beach when the tide
is low. These are the little crabs that the kids dig on the beach during
the summer. They are found right where the drop-off occurs on the beach.
If you go to the ocean’s edge at low tide, dig with your hands right where
you see the drop-off where all the little shells and rocks are, and you can
catch yourself some bait. You can actually see the little crabs digging into
the sand when the tide starts to come in. Watch where they are digging in,
and scoop with your hands in this area. You can buy sand flea rakes or you
can make one out of a wooden or metal handle and half a minnow trap.

If you are looking for a good beach to find the sand fleas, look for
lower spots in the sand and places where there is a quick drop-off.
Assateague Island and the Delaware Seashore State Park offer more
natural beaches than Ocean City and they probably hold more sand
fleas. They do not keep long, so use them up or freeze them. They
will live 3 or 4 days in a Styrofoam container in the refrigerator.
Hook the sand flea through the apron and out the outer shell. Let
the point of the hook protrude from the outer shell about an eighth
of an inch. Do not let the barb go through the shell. Keep the barb
inside the body of the sand flea.

Green crabs are sold in tackle stores in this area. They also make good
tautog bait as well. These baits are very hardy and will live a long
time in salt water. Simply keep them in a flow troll overboard or in a
minnow trap with the ends closed in and hung overboard. (Don’t let the
holding trap sit on the bottom. Raise it off the bottom an inch or two.)
If you keep them in the refrigerator, keep them in a Styrofoam or plastic
container with a wet newspaper or paper towel over them. Treat them just
like blue crabs. If the crabs remain damp and cool they will be fine. If
they dry out or get too hot, they will die.

“How do I hook a green crab?”

Use a green crab like you would a peeler crab. (Stab the crab at the point
of the apron on the underside to kill it.) Pull off the shell, and cut in
half or four sections. Insert the hook right into the leg socket. I personally
like to cut the legs off the crabs so the tautog can’t pull on them and yank
the bait off the hook. The best tool with dealing with green crabs is a pair
of kitchen shears. These shears, which can be picked up inexpensively at tackle
stores, dollar stores, or grocery stores will slice right through the crabs and
easily cut off the legs. Jam the hook right into the leg socket and leave the barb
and point inside the socket of the leg joint for the best results. Or, you can
insert the hook into one leg socket and bring it out the next leg socket.
Don’t cut up your crabs so small there are no leg sockets. You need these
to hold on your bait!

Some anglers actually find green crabs or relatives of the green crabs
under rocks around Stinky Beach, 9th Street, or by the Coast Guard Station
near the Oceanic Pier. They go at low tide and turn over the rocks and
pick up the crabs. Be sure that if you use “store bought” green crabs
to dispose of them if you do not use them all. They are not natural to
our environment and DNR officials worry that they may start populating and
compete with our blue crab population.

“What else can you use for bait?”

You can use sectioned pieces of any kind of crab such as speckled crab
or blue crabs. Anglers can use fresh or frozen peel crabs, sea clam,
mussels, oysters, shrimp, hard clams, or bloodworms. Tautog rarely
are caught on squid, minnows, or shiners. They like any kind of crab,
clam or worm.

“What kind of rig do I use? How do I fish for them?”

Simple is best. Use a stout rod with a strong reel filled with
25 to 40 pound test. Use an abrasion resistant line such as Ande,
Stren, Berkley Big Game, or Quattro. Pull your line through your
guides and make a double surgeon’s end loop at the end of your line.
Insert a 1 ½ to 3-ounce sinker. (Use bank, flat, cushion or torpedo
shaped sinkers.) Go up a couple inches on your line and make another
big loop in your line (about 3 inches long) and insert a loose sharp,
short-shanked hook. To make the loop you can use a dropper loop or a
double over-hand knot. For the hook, most local anglers use the Mustad
#92553BL Octopus styled #1/0 or #2/0 hook.

The technique is not that hard. You just have to experiment and
try flipping out your rig at different distances from the shore.
When the tide is strong you need to stay closer to the shore. When
the tide slacks, you can cast out there a little further. You want
the sinker to hold where you toss it. If it rolls in with the current
you will find yourself snagging more often.

Cast out just beyond the rocks or bulkhead and feel the sinker hit the
bottom. If nothing happens ease it in a little. If you feel your sinker
fall into a deeper hole, let it sit there for a time and see if you get
a bite. The tautog hang in the deeper holes so you need to get a feel
for the sinker falling into deeper holes and cast back there if you get
a bite. You will notice that during an incoming tide your rig will stay
out where you toss it, but during the outgoing tide, it will tend to come
back towards the rocks or bulkhead. This means you need to throw your
rig out a little further during the outgoing tide so you won’t get hung
up as much. Note: Snags are worse during the outgoing tide period.
If you get frustrated, try just fishing the incoming, slack tide, and
only the beginning of the outgoing tide.

Tautog actually take the bait into their mouths, crush it, and then
spit out the shells. You will often times hook the tautog when they
spit the shells out. This is why a smaller hook actually works well.
Keep your line tight and your rod tip up. When you feel the tautog bite,
slowly move the rod tip towards the water. Point your rod tip towards
the bite. Never let slack get in your line. Then, pull up your rod tip,
setting the hook. The tautog will either be there, or be gone.

That’s fishing! Good luck!