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Went fishing this morning a little farther north than usual, but still stayed SOTE. I caught lots of fish, but none of them were over 20 inches. The tally for the day was 3 reds, 1 snook, 4 damn small trout, 1 flounder, 1 mangrove snapper and 1 needle fish. Fun, but still somehow less than fulfilling. One of my missions today was to use the top-water more. Have never had good results with that. I am doing something wrong here. I had some amazing blow up without any hook up. I had a follow that looked like a torpedo coming and still after the hit there was no joy. any help would be appreciated.

Sounds like a nice day out on the water. I need to start throwing some of the top water lures that I have in my tackle bag more.

I recently started using the Mirrordine and I have caught a couple of nice trout with it and I am leaving that lure tied on for when I go fishing again.

What's your retrieval look like? Fast then slow?

DirksFishin wrote:What's your retrieval look like? Fast then slow?

Tried both and slower seems to work better. I also throw in a little pause. I have rhythm to my retrieve that walks it about 7 times then a little pause.

I usually start off fast then slow down with a momentary pause so if anything is interested it will have a chance. But sometimes I've seen to to where if you stop moving all together when they're striking at it they will loose interest. So I'm constantly changing my motion. I love using top water it has to be one of the funnesþ ways to catch a fish. Especially since they strike it so violently. I sometimes have found that if you add a little bit of drag motion to your popping that this will sometimes work too. I hope this helps.

Dirks posted just about exactly what I was going to post. For top water you have to figure out what they want on that day or even that hour. I switch up my retrieve often with top water. In deeper water more violent action with small twitches after seems to work best. A loud pop or gurgle seems to make them look up then a small walk the dog twitch works best for me. But, on top water I have had them hit on all types of retrieves. Once I did a long cast and got distracted. Didn't move the lure any and after 20-30 seconds I feel my rod bending over. But I will say if your moving your lure and they start hitting don't stop moving. If they hit it on a pause just barely move it and pause again.

Also you know you are going to get 4-5 hits for every hook up on top water so for me its just a numbers game. I make as many casts per hour as I can to increase my hookups. Last weekend went out with 7 guys. I caught 16 fish (11 trout) and the next guy caught 4 fish. For top water I just keep it moving.

Seems to me most of the time when you have short strikes on any lure, you have something that is not quite right. Change the color, change the retrieve, change the size of the bait. When I have follows but no strikes on a spook, ill switch to a chug bug and slow things down.
If you are getting lots of blowups and follows and no hook ups, switch the back hook out to a heavier one, so the rear sits deeper in the water. This is easier on a popping lure than a walking one, as sometimes the action is affected.
Another option in that situation is go to a subsurface lure like a subwalk, fluke, 17mr etc.... a lot of times fish (esp reds) get real shy at the surface and short strike. Make it easier on them and get under the surface....

Ymmv.



~Dave

Creatures of Habit, Tallahassee Florida

I find that I have much fewer misses in the morning (first 2 hrs of daylight) than the rest of the day. Where I fish there are a lot of sea birds that would just love some trout. I have wondered if this makes them more nervous after the morning is over or if it is simply the sunlight in their eyes.

I had some amazing blow up without any hook up. I had a follow that looked like a torpedo coming and still after the hit there was no joy. any help would be appreciated.

Try letting the bait sit still for a while after the blow up as if it was stunned then twitch and start moving it away in short jerks. Think like the predator " ok I knocked the hell outta that guy..time for an easy meal" Sometimes works for me.

There are many factors that could be causing the short strikes, some controllable some not. I have experienced fewer short strikes in the winter when the water is colder. Lately trout especially have been hitting when the lure is not or hardly moving at all. Went out at the last minute Saturday morning, on water at 7:00am. Throwing the reliable stand-by, bone spook jr., quite a few short strikes. About 9:00am put on chrome skitterwalk and caught three trout on six cast, 16", 18" and 20". All hit on slow walk, fish followed lure, stopped the lure, lite twitch and boom.

If you have no success, change things up......

Good luck, I love top water.

Thanks everyone for the great input. It gives me lots to try next time out.

You didn't mention what kind of topwater your using. I prefer a spook and like to change out the back hook for one a little larger and stronger....BUT....sometimes there are just days like that where you get hits and blowups, but no hookups

On the day that I started this tread I was using a Mirrodine. However, I have been also throwing a bone colored Spook Jr. I also changed the hook on the spook.

Since the subject is topwater lures, I have a question. When and where is the right time time use? When you get a hit on a topwater it's a rush, for me anyway, just gets the adenalibne pumping. It almost doesn't matter what's hitting it, it's still a yeehaw moment (again, for me anyway). I always hear they're no good to use after the sun comes up, in deep(er) water and a host of other "do not use" times. Yet, I often read (here and elsewhere) where so-and-so was using a topwater and not only were they successful but the only thing they didn't hook into was Moby Dick (yes, I know, an exaggeration.lol). So, when is the right time, besides when I'm on the water, to use a topwater and how deep a water should I be using it in? I'm usually on the flats but there's sometimes I'm in '7 - 10 ft of water.

I have no problem throwing a topwater all day long.
Fresh or salt.

There are 'better times' and those are low light periods... dawn and dusk, night, cloud cover.....

The only time I have no confidence in a topwater is when there are whitecaps. And I've caught fish on them then too.......

All you have to do is BELIEVE. You will catch fish on the baits you are confident in.


~Dave

Creatures of Habit, Tallahassee Florida

Well I have only been fishing for trout and related species for 3 1/2 months now but here is what I have found.

I use top water 75% of the time or better. I use a popper that is black and silver (mullet look) and I tend to fish in deeper water. Most of the Biscayne Bay fishing I do is in the North end and the water I am in is 3-10' with the majority in the 5-6' range. I use the popper rather violently then twitch light but continuously pause then pop it again. When I say violently picture the strike of a 5+ lb jack type of violent. This seems to draw their attention up then the light twitching (I believe) makes them think of an injured fish that is an easy take. One day I was fishing (one of my first days out) and I was bringing in a 1-2 lb jack. When the jack was under my boat there were 2 large trout trying to get at my lure in the jacks mouth. This made me decide to use the popper this way. And I have noticed if I catch a jack or see them busting nearby the trout bite picks up.

This all being said if I find I get a few miss strikes on the surface I cast at the spot 2-3 times max. then I switch out to my Mirodine and at least 1/2 the time I hook up with the trout that missed the surface lure. Just my 2cents from someone rather new to this.

And my very best day so far was 20 trout all on top water and it was a white cap day so like was said above you can hit them at anytime but be confident and it will produce.