Fishing topwaters is a great way to trigger those bigger-than-average bites. It appeals to big bass and can be one of the best ways to get a big bag in a tournament during the summer and fall. It's always an option this time of year for Major League Fishing pro Zack Birge, who's found success with walking baits throughout his career.
When fishing topwaters, he keeps things simple with a handful of baits in a few different colors. They allow him to cover water and search for the biggest bass in the area. While his approach is simple, he has a few tricks to trigger more bites on top and landing more of them.
Sticking to the Fishing Basics
When topwater fishing during the summer and fall, Birge generally sticks with just two different walking baits. It's what works for him and something he does every year when the topwater bite is in full swing.
"I really only use two different baits, the Yo-Zuri 3DB Pencil and Pencil Popper, for most situations," he said. "I use the Pencil about 75 percent of the time and it's almost always the 100mm size. Occasionally, I'll go to the bigger 125 size when the fish are eating bigger baitfish like gizzard shad. The Pencil Popper is more when I'm trying to make a bigger commotion and draw fish from deeper water."
Deciding between the two is primarily about the cover in front of him. "The Pencil makes a lot of noise, but the Pencil Popper makes a lot more of a ruckus and even more sound," he said. "I throw the Pencil Popper more offshore, especially when trying to draw fish up from brush and cane piles off the bank. You can still fish it up along the bank, but if I'm running down the bank, I will most likely be throwing the Pencil 100."
For both baits, Birge likes to fish the baits on either an Alpha Angler Zilla or Power Skipping rod, a high-speed reel and 30 or 40-pound Yo-Zuri SuperBraid.
"I'm always using braided line for topwater. I don't use a loop knot or leader; I tie directly to the bait," he said. "I used to use 50-pound, but 40 is so strong that I'll even trust it for fishing thick grass with frogs. It casts much better because it's so thin and that makes a big difference when trying to make those long bomb casts to reach schooling fish. Plus, having the no stretch with braid, you can lean into the fish and hook them and all you have to do is keep them coming to you and you'll land them."
Because he likes braided lines, he will make one slight modification to the topwaters, changing the hooks. "The hooks that come on the baits are extremely sharp right out of the package, but I like to swap them out to account for the braid," he said. "I change them to one bigger size and use a thicker gauge hook so they won't bend out."
What to look for
When fishing topwaters, Birge is either trying to cover water or picking apart shallow cover. Both are great approaches and help him put fish in the boat.
"I like to cover long flats with the 3DB Pencil and cover some ground looking for active fish," he said. "I also like to look for isolated pieces of cover, like trees, bushes, or laydowns. If I come across one, I'll make repeated casts to the same area. Sometimes I'll make seven or eight casts to the same piece of cover and finally aggravate one enough to bite it."
Birge also keeps an eye on the conditions and time of day to give him clues on when to pick up his topwater baits. Early mornings and evenings are givens with topwater fishing, but he says there are more windows throughout the day.
"I'll start the day throwing a topwater, but you can do it all day long," he said. "Generally, the later in the summer and into fall, the bigger the bites you will get. The water is cooling and baitfish start moving and the topwater bite will get stronger and you can fish them all day long."
Anytime Birge sees overcast conditions, even a brief puff of clouds, it will tell him it's time to pick up the topwater. "I'll throw it all day if there's a little cloud cover," he said. "That will make the bite that much better."
Fishing topwaters is one of the greatest parts of the warmer months of the year and all bass anglers have a special place for fishing these baits. Birge is a fan because he knows how much fun they are and because of their ability to catch the biggest fish in an area.
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