Top water bass fishing

[Greensleeves]

Re: Top water bass fishing

I have done very well on various types of top water lures, and a good rule of thumb I was taught was to wait till the rings disappear or wait a few seconds before you start your retrieve. I can't tell you how many bass I caught with it sitting there or just when I start the retrieve, just my two cents. Good luck!


Bryan

 

[mommicked]

Re: Top water bass fishing

I caught a 6 lb.er last night on a large size Live Target floating frog, third cast w the new bait! It is very realistic looking in and out of the water and the body slid up the line away from the hook during the fight, making removeing it from deep in the bass's mouth pretty easy, just a heavy double hook in there. I will be getting more of these baits. I got the leopard frog pattern and it looks exactly like one.

 

[Jessi'shusband]

Re: Top water bass fishing

Something that I learned slowly over several years is that when fishing with the popper or another walking bait. Keep your rod tip pointed down, and twitch the end of the rod toward your boat on semi-slack line. This allows the bait to walk side to side instead of directly back to you. Vary the retrieve, pop pop pop stop, pop stop, whatever you think depending on aggresiveness of the fish. If you hold the rod tip up and twitch it, the bait will act like it is trying to jump out of the water, and come straight back to the boat. I have had a lot of success on the "dog" baits and I always have one tied on. Look for changes in structure if you are fishing shallow, like a pocket in the grass or a stump, anything out of the ordinary.

P.S. I usually have a more success on the "dog" baits like the spooks in rocky areas or standing timber, in grassy areas I like a frog or buzzbait. Good luck!

 

[Jlawsen]

Re: Top water bass fishing

Right now it's more about what the fish are doing rather than what you're doing. The spawn seems to be on and the males are protecting the nests. Normally, when the sun comes out and warms the shallow shoreline water, the fish will move out where it's more comfortable. This time of year they don't move at all. They'd rather cook than leave those eggs unprotected. A sinko, brush hog, etc, laid up on the bank and slid in is really productive right now. That will last for a couple of weeks and then the eggs will hatch and those starved fish will begin to move around. That's when the poppers and top water stuff will start to work again.

 

[Denning12591]

Re: Top water bass fishing

How hard should you pop a Popper? And how fast?

 

[Jlawsen]

Re: Top water bass fishing

How hard should you pop a Popper? And how fast?

Have you ever seen a fish work a fly hatch... Just like that if you can. Pop it with a short deliberate jerk, slide it over with the tip then pop it again. Use mono for top water since it has boyancy. FC will give you a better feel for the pop but it also sinks so the popper won't break the water as naturally and the vibrations will be less distinct to the fish.

 

[mommicked]

Re: Top water bass fishing

Mix it up or experiment w differnt lures, speeds, rod movement etc. The fish will show you what they like from day to day, hour to hour. generally I fish topwater softer/slower on calm, glassy water because you can sometimes spook shallow fish w too much popping/ movement. With some ripples or more on top, you might want to fish more agressivelly. It's a great learning tool to to fish were you can see the fish in the water and see how they respond to your presentation. I watched and learned lots about fish responses from elevated banks I fished in my boatless years and it's very exciteing to watch a nice fish blow up on your bait. I think it's a good idea to wait until you feel the fish on the line before you set the hook or you will loose some when topwater fishing. Sometimes the fish will explode on the bait, other times they suck in the lure w barely a ripple or sound and you don't know it's got your bait until you feel it or cannot see you lure on top anymore, time to reel and yank if your bait just silently vanishes!!

 

[Jessi'shusband]

Re: Top water bass fishing

That also depends on what the fish want. Some days I like to really make a big splash with it and be really aggressive. Other times I like to just let it sit in the "zone" and barely move it. Try a few different ways and let the fish tell you what they want.

 

[bouttime007]

Re: Top water bass fishing

How hard should you pop a Popper? And how fast?

You will want to pop it so you hear a noticable BLOOP sound, that will also call in any nearby fish to take a peek. Sometimes the fish want it more subtle though, so light twitches added to the cadence would be ideal.

You may want to try a small shallow diving square lip crank too. The bomber square A/daiwa peanut/bandit footloose can be twitched and made to look like a dying baitfish.

 

[SierraMark]

Re: Top water bass fishing

On more than one occasion I have had a bite as soon as the lure hit the water so be ready for it.

I usually use topwaters when the water is calm and I use them around lilly pads and where the weeds are near the top of the water...later in summer.

-Mark

 

[horndog]

Re: Top water bass fishing

I love top water bait! buzz baits and frogs work great in weeds as they do not get caught.

Some tricks I have learned over the years:

Buzzbait,start out with a slow retrieve and just let it break the surface, if nothing is hitting it, speed it up
Look for water temps in the 70s to start throwing top water

Zara spooks, hoola poppers, etc.

Throw parallel to the wed beds and shallow drop offs, make the retrieve inconsistent.

I have learned, that top water bait is more annoying to a fish then trying to eat it, kind of like a mosquito to your ear.