This morning we all kept our jackets on while loading the planes. 47 degrees. In some cases the guests could see their breath in the pre-dawn light. (Late night card games may be the cause, but I haven’t checked that out for sure.) SO anyway …fall seems to be on the way. And cooler temps are a good time to try a little top water action. I know what you’ve heard…Top water lures are for dusk and dawn. Well, I have a saying, “ The only reason anglers are not successful with top water lures in the daytime, is because they DON’T fish with top water lures in the daytime!”. So get ‘em out., tie ‘em on and get ready to hook up.
Stick Body Baits
Even deep diving crank-baits can be cast and allowed to lay “on the top” until the ripples are gone and thus serve as a top water lure. With a little flick of the wrist, they make a splash and stay on top to wait for the strike. Around weeds and lilies this can be deadly. Or with a crank or two on a Rapala Husky Jerk or Smithwick Rattlin Rogue, for example…they’ll take a short dive and suspend. The point here is simple: it doesn’t have to say Top Water on the box to be used as a top water bait
Actual Top Water Lures
Designed to stay on top, these work great. I’m talking about the Zara Spook (the bigger the better), the Jitterbug, and the Pop-R. For best results, use a fast constant retrieve followed by a stop and go movement. ‘Walking the dog’ with a Z-spook at little Lake XP produced 75 trikes between 2-4pm one bright sunny day in July… Case closed!
Buzz Baits
With propellers spinning, that ‘mile a minute’ trail through the weeds or in-between lily-pads will tempt even the sleepiest of pikes to come after it. If you position the boat so that your presentation is parallel to the weed bed or grassy area, all the better. Run them as fast as you can, pike can reach scale speeds of 80mph! When you see these big fish crease the water in pursuit, hang on.
Try these top water fishing tips and ideas for a good time and for good results. And don’t listen to those ‘doubting Thomas’s’ who only look at these baits in their tackle box, and never put them on their line. Top water fishing works…even in the sunshine.
Happy Fishing,
Alan
