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Staying on top of the hot bass
action as temperatures chill in fall
action as temperatures chill in fall
Kevin VanDam, a multi-year Bassmaster Classic champion, lands a
largemouth bass he caught on a topwater popper.
largemouth bass he caught on a topwater popper.
Years ago, bass anglers used surface baits because few alternatives
existed, but despite abundant choices today, many anglers still love tossing
topwaters because nothing else pumps the adrenaline like a bucketmouth
blasting something on the surface.
“Topwater baits are a fun way to fish,” said Dean Rojas, a bass pro from
Arizona. “We can see the fish and tell how big they are. Topwaters and
buzzbaits are my key lures to find patterns and search for fish. When a fish
blows up on a topwater bait and misses, I throw right back in there. If it
doesn’t hit the topwater again, I follow up with a smaller bait or a type of
shad bait.”
God designed bass to hunt in shallow water and smash prey on the
surface. Black and green camouflage hides them in weedy cover. Their
mouths face skyward, unlike bottom feeders with downward pointing
mouths. With eyes on top of their heads, they see better when looking up.
They can more easily spot prey silhouetted against the sky than they can
detect creatures crawling around on a dark or weedy bottom.
While people probably throw more topwaters in the spring when bass
move shallow to spawn, the fall and early winter can produce outstanding
action on top. Cooling air creates more comfortable water temperatures
until winter arrives. In addition, bass find more food in the shallows.
Minnows and shad hug shorelines, borrow into weed patches or hide
among fallen trees or rocks. Crawfish crawl along the bottom. Worms wash
into lakes after a rain. Bream make beds in sandy shallows.
As winter approaches, bass gorge themselves on shad and other
baitfish. Often, they herd shad into balls and rip at them from all sides.
Predators chase shad toward the surface to cut off their escape. In even
the deepest channels, topwaters might still work as bass clobber baitfish on
the surface.
Walking baits, such as Zara Spooks, Top Dogs, Frenzy Walkers, Spit’n
Images and similar lures, work like dynamite on schooling fish. Anglers can
work them fast and cover considerable tracts of water as the baits zigzag
from side to side with a “walking” motion. Create this continuous motion by
making short, but brisk, flicks of a wrist to simulate sick or wounded baitfish
struggling on the surface.
“Topwater baits are some of the oldest baits around, but they are still
very effective,” said Sam Swett, a bass pro from Covington, La. “Some of
the oldest baits are Lucky 13s, Hula Poppers and Jitterbugs, but they still
work today. When the wind starts chopping the water, it’s hard to work a
walking bait properly so I throw poppers like Rebel Pop-Rs, Rebel Chug-Rs
and Creek Chub Knuckleheads. They make a little more noise and give
fish good sounds to home in on.”
Poppers or chuggers displace water with concave nose surfaces. When
jerked, they pop, chug or gurgle with considerable commotion. Poppers
require slow, deliberate movement. Pop them once and then stop, letting
baits remain motionless until the ripples fade. Then, repeat the maneuver.
Somewhat resembling stunned frogs or other creatures thrashing on the
surface, poppers or chuggers work well on choppy days or in murky water.
Since they produce significant noise, they work exceptionally well at night.
Prop baits also work well at night, on choppy days or in murky water. Prop
baits come equipped with nose or rear propellers, sometimes both, that
thrash the surface as anglers retrieve the baits.
“In the fall, I like to throw prop baits around grass and wood,” Rojas
said. “Fish don’t see a lot of them. Around grass, I rip it and then let it sit in
pockets. I only move it six to eight inches so it stays in the strike zone
longer. I’ve had success when I’ve just steadily reeled prop baits so they
make a ‘vee’ in the water. It’s almost like a buzzbait. At other times, I rip it
and pause until I figure out what the fish want.”
More recently, anglers began throwing soft plastic frogs, lizards, worms
and other creatures. Some float, but others sink slowly. Not really topwater
baits, these lures still slither over the surface and provoke awesome strikes,
especially in matted grass or other thick cover. Anglers can work these like
many other topwater baits.
Among the oldest and simplest bass lures ever invented, topwater baits
remain on the market after more than a century because they still work and
still pump the adrenaline in dedicated bass anglers.
existed, but despite abundant choices today, many anglers still love tossing
topwaters because nothing else pumps the adrenaline like a bucketmouth
blasting something on the surface.
“Topwater baits are a fun way to fish,” said Dean Rojas, a bass pro from
Arizona. “We can see the fish and tell how big they are. Topwaters and
buzzbaits are my key lures to find patterns and search for fish. When a fish
blows up on a topwater bait and misses, I throw right back in there. If it
doesn’t hit the topwater again, I follow up with a smaller bait or a type of
shad bait.”
God designed bass to hunt in shallow water and smash prey on the
surface. Black and green camouflage hides them in weedy cover. Their
mouths face skyward, unlike bottom feeders with downward pointing
mouths. With eyes on top of their heads, they see better when looking up.
They can more easily spot prey silhouetted against the sky than they can
detect creatures crawling around on a dark or weedy bottom.
While people probably throw more topwaters in the spring when bass
move shallow to spawn, the fall and early winter can produce outstanding
action on top. Cooling air creates more comfortable water temperatures
until winter arrives. In addition, bass find more food in the shallows.
Minnows and shad hug shorelines, borrow into weed patches or hide
among fallen trees or rocks. Crawfish crawl along the bottom. Worms wash
into lakes after a rain. Bream make beds in sandy shallows.
As winter approaches, bass gorge themselves on shad and other
baitfish. Often, they herd shad into balls and rip at them from all sides.
Predators chase shad toward the surface to cut off their escape. In even
the deepest channels, topwaters might still work as bass clobber baitfish on
the surface.
Walking baits, such as Zara Spooks, Top Dogs, Frenzy Walkers, Spit’n
Images and similar lures, work like dynamite on schooling fish. Anglers can
work them fast and cover considerable tracts of water as the baits zigzag
from side to side with a “walking” motion. Create this continuous motion by
making short, but brisk, flicks of a wrist to simulate sick or wounded baitfish
struggling on the surface.
“Topwater baits are some of the oldest baits around, but they are still
very effective,” said Sam Swett, a bass pro from Covington, La. “Some of
the oldest baits are Lucky 13s, Hula Poppers and Jitterbugs, but they still
work today. When the wind starts chopping the water, it’s hard to work a
walking bait properly so I throw poppers like Rebel Pop-Rs, Rebel Chug-Rs
and Creek Chub Knuckleheads. They make a little more noise and give
fish good sounds to home in on.”
Poppers or chuggers displace water with concave nose surfaces. When
jerked, they pop, chug or gurgle with considerable commotion. Poppers
require slow, deliberate movement. Pop them once and then stop, letting
baits remain motionless until the ripples fade. Then, repeat the maneuver.
Somewhat resembling stunned frogs or other creatures thrashing on the
surface, poppers or chuggers work well on choppy days or in murky water.
Since they produce significant noise, they work exceptionally well at night.
Prop baits also work well at night, on choppy days or in murky water. Prop
baits come equipped with nose or rear propellers, sometimes both, that
thrash the surface as anglers retrieve the baits.
“In the fall, I like to throw prop baits around grass and wood,” Rojas
said. “Fish don’t see a lot of them. Around grass, I rip it and then let it sit in
pockets. I only move it six to eight inches so it stays in the strike zone
longer. I’ve had success when I’ve just steadily reeled prop baits so they
make a ‘vee’ in the water. It’s almost like a buzzbait. At other times, I rip it
and pause until I figure out what the fish want.”
More recently, anglers began throwing soft plastic frogs, lizards, worms
and other creatures. Some float, but others sink slowly. Not really topwater
baits, these lures still slither over the surface and provoke awesome strikes,
especially in matted grass or other thick cover. Anglers can work these like
many other topwater baits.
Among the oldest and simplest bass lures ever invented, topwater baits
remain on the market after more than a century because they still work and
still pump the adrenaline in dedicated bass anglers.
