Topwater time!

[AJFISH13]

Want to catch plenty of bass and pickeral and be off the water before the unknowing crowds hit? Well, listen up. Summer means one thing, TOPWATER TIME. Watching bass smash and pickeral slash at a topwater lure at 5:30 in the morning will defintely wake you up! Here's how to do it.

Time: First light to a couple hours after.
Target: Bass and pickeral(can target either one or get a mixture of both in most waters).
Technique:Topwater
Area: Shallow water: near the bank, around cover, and anywhere you see bait(shad,herring,bluegills) being attacked.
Tackle: Anywhere from light spinning gear to baitcasting tackle spooled with either 8-10 lb. test mono or 15-30 lb. braid.
Lures: Heddon Torpedos, poppers, jitterbugs, spook type lures,buzzbaits and frogs.

OK, now you got the gear down, here is how to work it.

For Heddons and poppers, I prefer light spinning gear. They work ANYWHERE the cover doesn't mandate weedless lures in my experience. Twitch and pause is the general retrieve for poppers(some days they like long pauses and fewer twitches and some days they like short pauses and numerous twitches). Heddons and other propbaits can be worked in the same manner but can also be reeled straight in or a mixture of both twitches and a straight retrieve in. A sometimes deadly retrieve is to retrieve the torpedo in and twitch while retrieving. This will spray a lot of water and causes some very exciting strikes.

Jitterbugs and Spooks are 2 specialty lures meaning there is a fairly set way to fish them. Depending on size, spinning or baitcasting gear will work best. Jitterbugs work best in open water for me and must be retrieved at a slow to medium speed to work properly. Spooks must be retrieved with a downward twitching motion that makes the lure work from side to side. Both can be paused too though.

Buzzbaits are best in any water that you can make long casts without getting hung up on surface obstructions and with spinning or baitcasting gear depending on lure size. Keep your rod tip high and fish with a straight retrieve speeding up and slowing down in a way you find produces strikes.

Finally frogs work best in nasty, thick cover. Work them through the cover and let rest in the pockets of open water. This is usually where strikes occur. Beefy spinning gear or baitcasting gear with 15-30 lb. braid works best to horse the fish out of the cover.

Some other observations:

During the first hour, bass are usually the only attackers. As the sun rises, pickeral will mix in, especially in weedy waters. Trust me, once you see a big chainside smashing a topwater, you probaly will like pickeral a lot more. You can target them with topwaters also if you know where there are. They generally like a faster retrieve.

Don't set the hook UNTIL YOU FEEL THE FISH. If you get a blowup and feel nothing, keep on working the lure. Both bass and pickeral will often hit again 1/2 second later, especially in dirty water. And if you see a wake, DONT STOP YOUR LURE. Keep on retrieving, generally changing your retrieve little. Typically, they will either stop following or they will strike it visiciously.

If you want smallies on topwater, use smaller, duller, more subtle lures. You will often get more jumps out of a smallmouth when you hook them on topwater.

Finally, you can do the same thing at dusk. Work the same pattern into darkness. Although I generally do better at dawn, dusk can pay off well too. Some guys fish at night and do very well, although the peak feeding periods are almost always dawn and dusk.

To everyone who reads this, thank you. I hope it helped you. I know it's extremely long, but it's full of info. Although topwater fishing is defintely my favorite way to fish, I am by no means an expert. So feel free to add your opinions, tips, and techniques. Again, thank you.

[Hook I]

Great Post ! It sure is my fav. also. What I might add is this
www.mirrolure.com/knot.html

This is a easy knot which will make your top water work TRUE.

I use this knot down to # 4 lb no problems. Hope this helps

[joiseystud]

@ajfish13 - great post. thanks.

[AJFISH13]

Your welcome Joiseystud.

[PeteyHD]

Great post! Just started getting into freshwater fishing lately and this should help me up north.

Thanks AJ

[AJFISH13]

Petey, glad it helped. I really don't fish that much in the northern half of the state, but in Merrill Creek Resevoir I have used topwaters along the shoreline and caught bass(both largemouth and smallmouth) and panfish. Poppers work best and trust me, once you catch a smallmouth on topwater,you'll be doing a lot more freshwater fishing .