I've fiddled on and off with catching tautog on the fly over the years, sometimes with stronger focus, sometimes with very little. There was a time I really had my sights on catching a fly world record tog, but I've come to realize I just don't fish for them enough to aim so high. I've got to figure out how to catch any tautog consistently at all on the fly, regardless of size. This fall I really wanted to get out and target them a bunch, but I only went once. On that one trip though I do think I figured something out.
It was a slow day, bait guys weren't getting much with green crabs. I went out to the end of the jetty and dropped down a very small, pale crab pattern. Almost immediately I was on. A small but powerful wrasse had darted out and grabbed the crab on the fall. It wasn't the biggest tautog I've ever caught, but any tog on the fly is a nice tog.
As a proof of concept, a much larger tog stole the fly from me just a short time later. Annoyingly I didn't have any more little crabs. I'm realizing something I should have a lot sooner: smaller is better for tautog. They eat in an un-ideal way for getting hookups on artificial flies, nipping at and trying to break bits off their prey. Sometimes they are in the mood to chomp down a whole large meal, but when they aren't and I want to get the on flies, I should definitely just be using really small crabs. It makes sense. I like using small Asian shore crabs for tog when I do bait fish for them because I find I get far more and better hookups. The fish eat the hole crab at once rather than bites of it. I'm thinking, down the road, that tiny Merkins and small Flexo Crabs are going to end up being my mainstays. Hopefully I actually target these finicky little buggers a whole bunch next year rather than just once! Perhaps that's my New Year's Resolution: fish for tautog more.
Until next time,
Edited by Cheyenne Terrien
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