Montauk Cod Methods
 

The cod are coming this way so get ready. Last year, it was around the middle of January when the fishing got hot. Here are some tips I put together for codfishing out of Montauk and the Block Island area.

Over the past few years the codfish have been on the rebound. Tight restrictions put on the species in the New England area have started to pay off and the prolific cod is starting to re-appear in numbers.
Some of these fish have been filtering down to areas not far from Block Island RI and Montauk NY.


The codfishing has also improved in N.J. as some of these fish have trickled down and taken up residence on the local and off shore wrecks that exist 20-50 miles off our coast. Some cod have also made an appearence on the farms in the spring and are occasionally caught fishing for blackfish and ling. Hopefully the trend will continue and we will able to continue to target this fine fish.

With that being said, I have had a lot of questions regarding cod and cod fishing in different areas, specifically Montauk.

This post will primarily deal with Party boat techniques in that area with respect to the codfish that have been invading that area in Mid January, February and March.

This is typically not wreck fishing. You are typically drifting over "piles" or "pods" of fish that are actively feeding on herring or mackerel. They have the feed bag on and are getting ready to spawn. These fish are not line shy and will agressively engulf large (7/0-8/0) hooks baited with clams and can be taken on jigs as well.

Sounds easy, right??? It is if you are prepared. You need to be prepared because the "bite" does not last all day long in most cases. Without the proper gear and rigs you may only end up with a few cod, instead of your limit. You may use what you like and these fish can be hooked on almost anything, but to be more efficient and productive I recommend the following.

Rod
I recommend a heavy 8ft 30-60lb cod rod or the like.

Why? This is not light tackle fishing and you are on a Party boat. You will be using 10-20 oz. sinkers.
These fish are generally under 20lbs and most are 5-10lbs. You want to be able to lift these fish into the boat, unhook them and send the rig back down. You need a heaver rod for that and in some cases you will be dealing with double headers.

Reel

I recommend a Penn 4/0 sized reel loaded with 40-50lb mono. line or 65-85lb braid. This reel will match the rod you are using and make life easy for you.

Why? Cranking up two ten pound cod with a twelve ounce sinker from 100-160ft of water with this type of reel makes it that much easier. Why the heavier braid??? In the cold, it is much easier to untangle 85lb braid, take my word for it.

Rigs

Again for the most part, you will be drifting on pods or piles of cod. When drifting or in a currrent, I recommend a two hook rig with swivels attached to the hooks. (see tangle free cod rig to right ) The rig is aproximately 40 inches long and has two 8/0 O'Shaunessy hooks equiped with 8in curlytail grubs in pink, white, chartreuse or blue and white. The hooks are looped onto 6inch droppers and 80lb test mono is used.

Why? The swivels prevent any twisting of the rig while fishing and cod will twist while being brought to the surface. The less time dealing with "fouled" rigs, the more fishing time. The swivels will also allow a natural presentation of the bait and the curly tail grub will provide enticement.

Note...Bring traditional cod rigs as well. Often the boat will anchor when the bite slows and in those cases a rig without all the bells and whistles may work better.

Jigs

When the action slows I have found jigging to be productive. Bring 10-24oz hammered and Viking jigs tied on 80lb leader with a teaser. I have seen much success with a sliver and blue teaser on the bottom hook of the jig as the flash imitates a mackerel or herring.

Leif

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

forgot to tell me when we're going!

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Good post Leif, but I think that since this is a post for beginners mostly you might want to mention the worms that often infest the fillets. I know they were a big surprise to me my first trip up there. I know you can pick em out and that they're not dangerous if cooked, but they are worth being aware of. Also, I always like to get to the boats a good bit early, because the bunks often fill up fast, and when the bite is hot, space is often at a premium. One more thing that got me the first trip up is that I didn't bring a big enough cooler. At 10 fish a person, if you have a couple of guys you will fill a 100 qt cooler up pretty quickly. See you up there.

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

Excellent points John. Very important to say the least. Thanks for sharing those. Hopefully it will be a good run.


Leif

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

1. What is the recommended cooler size if fishing alone? I don't want to lug some huge casket unless I have to.

2. With that 2 hook grub rig, what is at the end of it... sinker, jig or is either one OK?

3. Stupid question, but with the grub rig, does it get sweetened with a clam strip or do you just fish straight plastic? Do you fish it only when drifting or also at anchor?

4. Are these fish always down in the bottom 5' of the water column or are they sometimes at mid-depths?

5. I have an 8' Lami telephone pole that meets your specifications. If I wanted to also bring a lighter rod, how light can I go? Is a 7', 20-40# rated enough stick for the average cod trip? (seems like more than enough for a 10-30# fish but if I knew, I wouldn't be asking)

Thanks.

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Thanks for the tips.. Looking late Jan or early Feb Montauk bound
________
Littlebutterfyfor4

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Do you know if jimmy is running northbound from belmar again this year? If he is, I'll have to jump on a trip or two with you guys.

Ryan

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

Slacker,

1) Bring a cooler big enough to fit 10 cod in it 94 quart

2) At the end of the 2 hook grub rig is a sinker 10-20 oz

3) Not stupid...fish the rig with clams, I use a half a clam on each hook or a whole one if I can. You can fish the rig on the drift or on the anchor. Most of the time you drift over the piles of fish.

4) The fish are mostly on the bottom but can come up following the herring.

5) 8 ft Lami is great. You can use lighter 7ft 20-50 heavy as long as you use 30-40lb mono or 65-80lb braid.

I made the following suggestions because I have found they are the most productive.

You can use almost anything and I have seen guys using all kinds of tackle out there.....BUT in most cases on a somewhat crowed Party Boat, the above recommendations will increase you chances. You will get the fish in quicker, have less tangles and wind up with fish in the cooler.

Thanks for the questions and GOOD LUCK!!

Go get em.

Leif

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Thanks!

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I have done about 12 Cod trips to Montauk over the past several years (including 7 last year alone).

During this time I learned a lot about Cod fishing.

Leif's comments are right on. Here are a couple of additional points:

• If possible bring 2 rods (1 for clam and 1 for jgging). I usually start out with the clam rod but I am ready to switch to jigging at the drop og a hat.
• Bring plenty of plastic grubs, worms and squids. My favorite colors, are pink, white and blue, but I bring other colors as well. There are days when one color out produces all other colors.
• If the bite is on, jigging is a lot more fun. If you are going to jig learn the different techniques (squidding, pounding the bottom and etc). These can be seen on utube.
• Whenever I take one of the Montauk party boats I will bring a beanbag chair. It is a great place to crash on the 3 hour ride out and ride back.
• I am a big believer in bleeding fish. I will bring a 7 gallon bleeding bucket and will fill it with fresh salt water. As soon as I catch a cod I bleed it.
• Most importantly, if you drive to Montauk, on the way back stop at Wok and Roll (in Montauk). For a fair price they will cook up some of your cod and it is fantastic.
  
  Good luck out there
  

Peter

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Lief question. I got one of those tsunami jigging rods 20-50, 1-6 oz but i jig up to 10 oz with it*this is my primary jigging rod* i had bass up to 27lb on it and cod up to 10 lbs, good idea to bring it or should i just go with the 30-80lb jigging rod i have which is what i use for smaller bluefins.

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

You can get them on the 20-50, as you said. I prefer the heavier rod and have used the 30-80 penn torque successfully in Mass. Jigging cod with heavy jigs.
Again, on most of these trips you are drifting on piles or pods of cod with bait on the bottom. The heavy rod comes in handy when flipping a 10 lb cod over the rail with 12 oz of lead. The mates are generally not gaffing these fish. If you can't lift it you are waiting at the rail for the gaff.

I have seen some fisherman do well on jigs at times on these trips. If you jig be sure to bring blue and silver and white teasers and jigs, They immitate the Herring and Macks and really outfish other colors.

Leif

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Thanks dude. And btw was that your christmas card on Norma K i saw the other day? Baccala Bit*hes?

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Christmas Cod


Leif

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Other thing I saw again today is if a cod starts to bite your bait, give it a little slack so that it will take it deep rather than pulling your line tighter which can spook them.

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Great tips, thanks. Going on my first Montauk trip first weekend in Febuary. I cant wait.

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Don't forget the Stingo's and the Sumo Bananas!!!

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

great info! I'll be there next saturday.

thanks,

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Almost time!

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All great tips. Thinking of heading down to Montauk for the first time this year. Thanks guys!

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There is no place like Montauk !!

Cod fishing last winter was awesome.

Clams were the ticket !!!

A few of us will be making weekly Cod express trips to the Mecca :)

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I think I'll be going friday for cod and tog! gotta love pinhookin:D

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:D Right on!

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Just curious, has anyone had any success using circle hooks for cod?? How about Cbass. Gonna give circles a try Saturday if we get out for Cbass. I use them in Florida for most bottom fishing, as well as when clamming for stripers off NJ.

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cant wait for it to start, ive fished in montauk my whole life but never for cod there, only in nj. gonna give it a try this year

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We use a Gamagatsu 7/0 Octopus hook all the time for cod on Stellwagen Bank on our charters and there is no reason they won't work down south. Good tips here by very experienced fisherman. Good Luck.

Dave

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Looks like things are improving in Montauk.

Leif

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Just sayin ;)

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just wondering how long it takes the boats from montauk ot hit the grounds, on average? thanks

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2 hours depending...

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Reel

I recommend a Penn 4/0 sized reel loaded with 40-50lb mono. line or 65-85lb braid. This reel will match the rod you are using and make life easy for you.

I agree with everything you said except the reel. the fact is that the penn 4/0 or the like is totally outdated a dinosaur if you will. there are so many reels out there that have better drags,better gear ratio and are way lighter and in turn fishermen friendly. why not rec. reels like canyon,avets, shimanos and diawa among others all of which are half the weight of the 4/0 type reels. but still can do the job.

just my .02

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

The penn 4/0 is an example. I like them because they work well, are not expensive and last for years. They make easy work of a cod double header as well.

The 4/0 weighs 28 or 30 oz depending on which one you have.

There are many reels that will work. This is a suggestion. Use what works for you and what you feel comfortable with.

Thanks for your input.

Leif

Re: Montauk Cod Methods
 

i like that 4/0 too.it can take allot and they never quit.

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i use a 3/0 for cod and would rather have than any other high tech reel out there today. with all the new and fancy parts they have, there is so much that can go wrong. a busted reel 20 miles offshore is not exactly the best thing.

keep it simple, less parts = less that can go wrong

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I can't speak for everyone but in all the years and all the trips I have been on I have only had one reel break on me ever. POS calcutta biggest piece of garbage I ever bought.

other then that I have never blown up a reel. IMHO if you maintain your tackle it will not fail you.

all I know is that I will put a Trinidad 14 or canyon HS15 up against any reel on the market. anything from porgies to medium Tunas.

3/0s and 4/0s may last a long time but it also takes way longer to get your line in they weigh much more then newer reels and have less drag for when you hook a monster all that equals NO THANKS lol.

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Had mine for almost 30 years and still strong. Your are right BD, they never quit.

Leif