The explosive strike of a fish on a topwater lure is one of angling’s most exhilarating moments. This guide dives deep into the world of topwater
While countless lures exist, understanding the core topwater lure categories is key to building a versatile arsenal. What is considered a top water lure? Any lure designed to be fished on the water’s surface, creating a disturbance that mimics prey like frogs, injured baitfish, or insects.
Why Topwater Fishing is So Effective
Topwater lures trigger a fish’s predatory instincts in several ways:
- Visual Appeal: Fish looking upwards see the silhouette and movement against the sky.
- Sound & Vibration: Many topwater baits create splash, “pops,” gurgles, or buzzing sounds that fish detect.
- Commotion: They mimic struggling or fleeing prey, signaling an easy meal.
- Territorial Response: Aggressive fish like bass will often strike a topwater lure invading their space, even if not actively feeding.
When is topwater
Essential Topwater Lure Categories
Let’s explore the primary types of topwater lures every angler should know:
1. Poppers
Target Species: Bass (Largemouth & Smallmouth), Pike, Musky, Striped Bass, Peacock Bass.
Examples: Rebel Pop-R, Arbogast Hula Popper, Yo-Zuri 3DB Popper.
What are popper lures good for? Poppers are defined by their cupped mouth or concave faces. When you twitch your rod tip, this mouth catches water, creating a distinct “pop,” splash, and gurgle that imitates a struggling baitfish or feeding activity. What lure makes a popping noise? What bait makes a popping sound? This is the popper!
Does popper color matter? Yes, to an extent. Natural colors (shad, bluegill) work well in clear water. Darker colors (black, blue) offer a better silhouette in low light or murky water. Bright colors (chartreuse, white) can be effective for visibility or reaction strikes. What color popper is the best? What is the best color for topwater? Often white, black, chrome, or natural baitfish patterns are highly effective.
Technique: Cast the popper near cover like lily pads, laydowns, docks, or grass edges. Let the ripples settle. Then, use short, sharp twitches of your rod tip followed by a pause. The length of the pause is crucial; sometimes fish strike during the pause. Vary your retrieve cadence (pop-pop-pause, pop-pause, etc.) until you find what triggers bites.
Best Popper for Bass: Models like the classic Rebel Pop-R or the Heddon Super Spook (though technically a walker, its variants can pop) are staples. The “best” often depends on size and sound profile matching conditions.
2. Walking Baits (Spooks / Sammys)
Target Species: Bass, Striped Bass, Pike, Musky, Redfish.
Examples: Heddon Super Spook / Spook Jr., Strike King KVD Sexy Dawg, Lucky Craft Sammy.
Walking baits, often called “spooks” after the iconic Heddon Super Spook, are cigar-shaped topwater lures designed for a “walk-the-dog” action. This rhythmic side-to-side gliding motion across the surface perfectly mimics a fleeing or disoriented baitfish.
- Technique: Requires a specific rod tip cadence. With some slack in your line, use short, downward twitches of the rod tip while steadily retrieving line with your reel. Each twitch makes the lure dart to one side. Mastering this side-to-side action is key.
- When to Use: Excellent for covering water, especially over flats, points, or schooling fish. They can draw fish up from deeper water.
- Size & Sound: Come in various sizes and with or without internal rattles. Match size to local forage. Rattles can help in choppy or stained water.
3. Prop Baits
Target Species: Bass, Pike, Musky, Peacock Bass.
Examples: Smithwick Devil’s Horse, Bagley Bang-O-Lure Spintail.
Prop baits feature one or more small propellers (metal blades) at the front, rear, or both. When retrieved, these blades spin, creating a unique sputtering sound, splash, and bubble trail.
- Technique: Can be fished with a straight retrieve, short rips, or a rip-and-pause cadence. The props create a lot of commotion, making them effective when fish are aggressive or in choppy water.
- Where to Use: Effective around shallow cover, grass lines, and during the spawn when bass are territorial. The subtle disturbance can be deadly on calm days too.
4. Buzzbaits
Target Species: Bass, Pike, Musky.
Examples: Strike King Tour Grade Buzzbait, Booyah Buzz.
Buzzbaits (or buzz baits) are wire-frame lures with a large, flat or cupped metal blade (or blades) that churns and “buzzes” on the surface during a steady retrieve. They often have a lead head, skirt, and sometimes a trailer hook.
- Technique: Cast out and begin retrieving immediately as the lure hits the water to get the blade spinning on the surface. A steady retrieve is usually best. They create a lot of commotion and vibration.
- When to Use: Excellent for covering water quickly, especially in stained or murky water, around weeds, lily pads, laydowns, and during low-light conditions. The noise helps fish locate them.
- Trailer Hooks: Often recommended for buzzbaits as fish (especially big bass) sometimes slash at them, and a trailer hook increases hook-up ratios.
5. Hollow Body Frogs & Toads
Target Species: Primarily Bass, but also Pike, Snakehead.
Examples: Spro Bronzeye Frog, Strike King KVD Sexy Frog (Hollow Body Frogs); Zoom Horny Toad, Strike King Rage Toad (Soft Plastic Toads).
Hollow body frogs are soft plastic, weedless topwater lures with double hooks that ride up against the body. They excel in the thickest vegetation where other lures can’t go. Soft plastic toads are also weedless but are typically rigged on a single wide-gap hook and retrieved with a gurgling action. This is quintessential frog
- Technique (Hollow Body Frogs): Cast onto lily pads, matted grass, or into thick weeds. Work them by twitching the rod tip to make them “walk” or “pop” (some hollow body frogs have cupped mouths like a popping frog). Let them pause in open pockets within the vegetation.
- Technique (Toads): Rig Texas-style (weedless) and retrieve steadily across the surface. The legs create a buzzing/paddling action.
- Hookset: Crucial for frogs and toads. When a fish engulfs the lure (often an explosive surface strike), give it a brief second to get the bait fully in its mouth, then set the hook hard with an upward sweep of the rod. Braid line is almost essential for frog
fishing due to its strength and lack of stretch, helping to pull fish from heavy cover. - Best Locations: Thick vegetation, lily pads, slop, around docks, and anywhere bass might ambush surface prey.
6. Wake Baits
Target Species: Bass, Pike, Musky, Striped Bass.
Examples: Jackall Gantarel, Strike King KVD Wake Bait.
Wake baits are typically hard-bodied, often jointed lures designed to swim just beneath the surface, creating a noticeable “V” wake and bulge as they move. Some are made of balsa wood for unique buoyancy.
- Technique: A slow, steady retrieve is usually most effective. The lure itself creates the enticing action.
- When to Use: Excellent in calm conditions, over submerged vegetation or structure, and when fish are cruising shallow flats. They can trigger strikes from wary or neutral fish.
- Are crankbaits topwater? Most traditional crankbaits dive. However, some very shallow-running crankbaits or specially designed “wake” crankbaits can be fished like wake baits, bulging the surface. They are a hybrid category.
What Lures Are Good for High Water?
In high water, fish often push into newly flooded shallow cover. Topwater lures that can be worked effectively in these areas, like hollow body frogs, weedless toads, or even buzzbaits retrieved over the cover, can be excellent choices. The commotion helps fish locate the bait in the expanded water volume.
Topwater Lure Selection: Color & Size
Color:
- Clear Water/Sunny: Natural patterns (shad, bluegill, frog), translucent, chrome, white.
- Stained/Murky Water/Overcast/Low Light: Darker silhouettes (black, blue), solid white, chartreuse, or bright patterns for visibility.
- Does popper color matter? What color popper is the best? What is the best color for topwater? As mentioned, match conditions. Black is a great all-around low-light/silhouette color. White or Bone is often a go-to for many anglers.
Size: Match the size of your topwater lure to the prevalent local forage. If big bass are feeding on large gizzard shad, use a larger walking bait or popper. If they’re sipping small insects, a more subtle presentation is needed (though less common for aggressive topwater lures).
Gear for Topwater Fishing
Rod: Typically a 6’6″ to 7’3″ casting rod with Medium to Medium-Heavy power and a Fast action rod tip is preferred for most topwater techniques, allowing for accurate casting and good hook-setting power. Softer tips can help with “walking” baits. For frog
Reel: A baitcasting reel with a moderate to fast gear ratio (e.g., 6.4:1 to 7.5:1) is versatile.
Line:
- Monofilament: Good for topwater lures with treble hooks (like poppers and walking baits) as its stretch can act as a shock absorber and prevent hooks from tearing out. 12-17 lb test is common.
- Braid: Excellent for hollow body frogs, toads, and buzzbaits, especially around heavy cover, due to its zero stretch (for solid hooksets) and strength. 30-65 lb test is typical. A short fluorocarbon leader can be added if fish are line-shy with braid, but often isn’t necessary for aggressive topwater strikes.
What Lures Are Best for Each Fish? What Bait Attracts All Fish?
While some lures are more species-specific, many topwater lures, especially those mimicking general baitfish or frogs, will attract a variety of predatory fish. Poppers, walking baits, and frogs can catch bass, pike, and musky. There’s no single lure that “catches all fish” or “attracts all fish,” but a well-presented topwater lure in the right conditions is highly effective for many gamefish. What is the most popular bait for
Understanding Bass Behavior & Topwater Strikes
What triggers bass to bite? What attracts bass fish the most?
Bass strike for several reasons:
- Hunger: Obvious feeding response.
- Reaction: A sudden, fast-moving lure can trigger an instinctual strike.
- Territoriality/Aggression: Bass will attack intruders in their area, especially during the spawn.
- Curiosity: Sometimes they just want to investigate.
Topwater lures excel at triggering reaction and aggression strikes. The surface commotion often signals vulnerability. What is largemouth bass’s favorite food? What do bass like to eat the most? Crayfish, bluegill, shad, and frogs are common staples in a bass diet. Match your topwater lure (color, action) to these when possible.
What is the #1 best bait for bass? What are the top 5 largemouth bass baits?
This is subjective and depends on conditions, but consistently effective bass baits include:
- Soft Plastic Worms (especially Texas-rigged)
- Jigs (with trailers)
- Crankbaits
- Spinnerbaits
- Topwater Lures (like frogs, poppers, or walking baits)
A Legacy of Surface Excitement
From James Heddon’s first wooden lures to today’s sophisticated designs, topwater
Good Luck and Tight Lines with Your Topwater Adventures!
Mastering topwater
