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
