The Chesapeake Bay region has long been known as a large estuary with bountiful tidal rivers. The coming of spring in the Bay attracts anglers and their Flounder rigs, and the fall is full of fisherman trying to keep warm while the rockfish bite is hot and heavy. During the winter months the popular fish that every sporting angler wants to see on his or her line is the Tautog.

Tautog (Tautoga onitis) is a species of fish that like to live in and around structure. These fish can be found on many underwater structures in the bay including large rocks, wrecks and debris fields. Tog like the colder water temperatures of the winter months and will have a tendency to be more active during a slack tide. Popular baits for tautog include fresh cracked crab, clams, and small strips of ocean Squid.

A young adult tog will be approximately 13 inches long and maximum adult size for togs is just over 3 feet. These fish are territorial and can live up to 30 years. The largest recorded Tautog was caught in 1987 off Wachapreague and weighed 24 pounds. Tautog also has the unique ability to change color to match their underwater surroundings.
Tog are notorious bait stealers. They have an unusual shaped mouth with large teeth and very large lips. Tog will approach a bait and literally suck it into its mouth. This is why tog can be difficult to catch, they usually will not simply tug on the line and let you know that they are feeding on the other end. Some ways to determine if you get a tog bite include a slackness or stiffening in the line. Sometimes when you do not feel anything, that is when the fish has the bait in its mouth. Sounds tricky? You bet it does. Taug can be on of the most challenging and sporting fish in the Chesapeake Bay.
The fishing line is critical in tog fishing. I highly recommend some sort of superbraid line. Fishing wreck structures is very hard on the fishing line. Tog fishing requires a line with super strength and sensitivity, which is inherent in most superbraids on the market today.

Should you be a newcomer to tog fishing, or a seasoned expert, the best advice I could ever give anyone is simply this. First trip out, hire a good reputable charter captain who is known for guiding for togs. Before you charter the captain, take the time to talk with him and tell him what you would like to do on the trip. A good tog trip would include fishing some of the Captains favorite holes as well as taking the time to do some wreck hunting. Check with the captain to find out if it is OK to save any GPS numbers on new structures found while on the charter. Chances are the captain will let you save some numbers on the charter, however, secret holes you can expect to remain secret.

The Chesapeake Bay Light Tower artificial reef has over 150 sunken structures as well as many debris fields. There are simply many, many structures for tog to hide in. While fishing in the Bay it is always a good idea to keep an eye on the sonar for underwater structures. Many good tog holes have been found while trolling or drifting for other species of fish. One good idea is to plan on wreck hunting trips. This is when you dedicate time to simply hunt for new underwater structures. New un-fished structure will most likely mean a lot of new Tautog catches.

Finding a good charter captain for tautog fishing in the Chesapeake is rather easy. One of the best-known tog captains is captain Chandler Hogg based on the Hampton Waterfront. Captain Chandler has a great charter boat that is set up really nice for wreck fishing. Chandler is also an easy captain to work with, and is glad to answer any questions you may have. Captain Hogg's boat, the Smoking Gun has great fresh bait, good GPS numbers, and an experienced crew who know how to anchor up to a wreck quickly. You can find Chandler on the cover of this issue of Sportsman's Mag. holding up some of the day's catch. For more info on charter captains, just log on to www.jimbaughoutdoors.com and click on "Bookum Danno". This link will take you to our charter captains listing. Captain Hogg can be reached at (757) 876-1590.

Jim Baugh Outdoors featured captain Hogg on board the Smoking Gun for an exciting episode on tog fishing. This show is a part of our 2003 series that will air nationally on the Outdoor Channel starting in April 2003. This show features a lot of techniques for catching tautog and includes rigging tips as well. Look for this special Tog feature on the new JBO 2003 double DVD, and on our streaming web site at jimbaughoutdoors.com. The GPS numbers featured on this show can be found on our "Gimmie those numbers" link also at the Jim Baugh Outdoors web site.

Tog fish for dinner is a tasty treat. The meat is firm and white, some people think they taste similar to Spadefish. Fried up or broiled, either way they are absolutely a delicious eating fish.

When you go Tog fishing, remember the size limit is a minimum of 14 inches, and up to 7 fish per person. Now that could add up to a lot of Togs in the boat. Please keep what you can eat, and release the rest.

Wishing everyone light south West winds,
Jim Baugh.
Jim Baugh Outdoors Television Series
Jim Baugh Tournaments, LLC