Fall tog season opens strong as albies and stripers push through

What's biting

What's next

Expect tautog to stay the main story this week. Tartan II, per The Fisherman — Connecticut, expects the tog action to match the fantastic scup and sea bass bottom fishing they have had week in and week out, so crab-baited rigs around structure should keep producing. Black sea bass are in the mix with plenty of keepers, and Black Hawk noted porgies with sea bass on recent trips, though strong tides and wind sometimes forced boats to move around.

False albacore are the wildcard. J&B Tackle mentioned albies making their way back into the Sound, and bonito in good numbers from Milestone Point to the mouth of the Thames River, though they are fast and sporadic. An ounce-and-a-half epoxy jig has worked best on those bonito. Striped bass are part of the picture too: The Fisherman (Northeast) described a feast-or-famine season for inshore stripers across southern New England, with a lot of the feasting happening in daylight and rough-water days producing big blitzes.

Plan around the low tide near 7:56 PM local at station 8465705, and favor dawn and dusk for bass. Check state regs before keeping tog or sea bass, since limits and sizes change through the season.

Context

Mid-October is typically the heart of the fall transition in Long Island Sound. Cooling water pushes baitfish out of the estuaries, stripers and albies follow, and tautog move onto structure as temperatures drop through the 60s. A water temperature in the low 60s is right on schedule for that shift. Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) described the same pattern next door, with bass feeding hard on bait, hardtails around and tog chewing after the weekend's rough weather.