Waterlands

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TautogShoulder season

Cape · Massachusetts

Windmill Point (historical)

42.35°N · 71.05°W · Cape · Boston Harbor

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Best score today · 7 AM · Tautog

80/100Great
Now
4712 PM EDT
Best window
6-11 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.7 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 PM · now

Time12PNOW
Score47Good
Tide2.7 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind7 kn NNWgusts 18 · steady
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water67°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Tautog is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with MassDMF before you keep a fish.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Tautog is best here

Shoulder season for Tautog · 1 more week at shoulder

Tautog season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Tautog · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Tautog in Massachusetts

Spot profile

Windmill Point (historical)

Depth
15-25 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonTautog

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Windmill Point (historical)

Windmill Point (historical) is a cape in Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. Depth in the nearest water is 15-25 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 10 species here; the best right now are little tunny, scup and bluefish. It is peak season now for little tunny, scup, bluefish and striped bass, and shoulder season for tautog and summer flounder. Little tunny peak from September through October. Scup peak from June through September. Bluefish peak from June through July and in September.

Tackle & technique

Tautog
Tautog live in rocks, wrecks, bridge pilings and jetties and rarely stray from cover, usually in 10 to 60 feet inshore and deeper in late fall. Anchor so the bait sits in the structure, fish crab on a short rig or a tog jig, and set hard on the second tap before the fish pulls into the rocks. Clams and worms work better in cold spring water; hard crabs are the standard in fall.
Little tunny
Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
Scup
Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Boston Main Channel

    Channel · 1.5 mi

    68
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 68
    • Black sea bass 65
    • Striped bass 59

    7 kt NNWH 5:16 PM · 9.1 ftL 11:46 PM · 1.7 ft

  • Fort Point Channel

    Channel · 0.4 mi

    67
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 67
    • Black sea bass 64
    • Striped bass 58

    7 kt NNWH 5:16 PM · 9.1 ftL 11:46 PM · 1.7 ft

  • Bird Island Flats

    Flat · 1.6 mi

    63
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 63
    • Black sea bass 60
    • Little tunny 57

    7 kt NNWH 5:16 PM · 9.1 ftL 11:46 PM · 1.7 ft

  • 62
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 62
    • Scup 60
    • Bluefish 58

    7 kt NNWH 5:16 PM · 9.1 ftL 11:46 PM · 1.7 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with MassDMF before you keep a fish.