- Catching fish on topwater baits is my absolute favorite way to do it. If anyone tells you that they don’t enjoy a topwater bite, they are lying! From a personal stand point, I catch more fish on walking style baits than any of the others.
How to fish it:
Walking style baits, or you may hear them referred to as a dog walkers, are a type of bait that is designed to float on the surface and be retrieved with a “dog walking” style action, darting side to side. This action can be a little tricky to get used to and is done by twitching the rod tip on a semi-slack line. If your line is too tight when you twitch the rod, the bait will just be pulled straight back to you instead of darting to the side. If you have too much slack in the line, the bait will do nothing with a rod twitch. Finding that middle ground is key. Below are some of my favorite topwater walking style baits:
- Bait#1
- Bait#2
- Bait#3
- Bait#4
When to use it:
The best time to use these baits is after the spawn into the summer and even the fall. This is when the bass are more actively chasing schools of baits. These baits best imitate injured baitfish on top of the water. If you ever see bass busting the top of the water after balls of bait fish, throw a walking bait. In the hotter months, it is best used during early mornings and late evenings. This is when the fish are more aggressive and active. It also does a great job triggering bites on suspended fish that are not actively feeding. This is my favorite thing about these lures. They are able to do this by not just quickly moving past a fish but staying close to it, just twitching back and forward over top of it’s head until it just can’t take it anymore. Keep good hooks on your bait and you will catch fish on just reaction strikes.
Gear to use:
What I am about to say is very important when it comes to using walking baits. Do not use fluorocarbon line. Fluorocarbon sinks, and since these are floating baits designed to be used on top of the water, it can just kill the action of the lures. You will want to use either braided line or monofilament. I personally prefer monofilament, as I fish a lot of clear water. I use clear monofilament, and I just think it is less visible to the fish and has some stretch which can help get some better hook-ups. It is best to use baitcaster gear for this technique. I like a fast reel and a rod with some flex to it. If your rod is too stiff, you can end up ripping the treble hooks out of the fishes mouth on hooksets. I like anywhere from a 6’10” to 7’2″ medium to medium heavy rod depending on the size of bait I am using. Here are some suggestions of gear to use for this technique:
- Rods
- Rod1
- Rod2
- Rod3
- Reels
- Reel1
- Reel2
- Reel3
- Line
- Line1
- Line2
Advantages of this technique:
The advantage of using walking baits is that they do a great job of imitating injured baitfish and they can trigger reaction bites on fish not actively feeding. Learning the walking action and can be tough to get used to but once you get it figured out, you can have a lot of fun with this technique.
