It’s muggy as all get out. The sun has begun peeking over the canopy of trees to the east of my local fishing hole. The cries of Mourning Doves fill the air as I look over to my good fishing buddy and ask what he’s rigging up. “I think it’d be a good morning to try the ol’ top water setup” he suggested. I replied by agreeing with him, but on the inside I was slightly less knowledgeable than I was letting on.
By this point, I had never really ventured far from live bait, cut bait, and the occasional bread ball (in case I ever ran into a world record bluegill) for both freshwater and saltwater. Artificial baits and lures were somewhat of a foreign concept to me. More than a decade removed, I can’t believe I ever fished without them.
Though one isn’t necessarily the de facto best option, both live and artificial bait have their own situational advantages- any angler worth their salt would be wise to keep some knowledge of how to best use both in their back pocket.
Given the fact that it was the first type of artificial lure I ever used, making it the one I’m most familiar with, I’d like to shine a spotlight on the art of topwater fishing. It’s just one technique out of the many that artificial aficionados use out on the water, and it serves its purpose well.
For freshwater and inshore anglers alike, topwater lures have been a staple of the Florida recreational fishing landscape for decades. 
Excellent for low light conditions (such as right before and after the sun rises and sets), topwater lures are inherently sight focused, for the angler and target species alike. When reeling, a fisherman can see exactly how their action affects the presentation of their lure, and adjust accordingly to how different species may react to the bait. Meanwhile, predatory fish looking up at the surface see a struggling bait fish, or other small creature ripe for a swift sneak attack from below.
Fish who use the sight as their main mode of predation, as well as opportunistic predators are perfect targets for the technique. This is because topwater lures entice predators by making them think they “got the jump” on clueless prey from the dark below.
Snook, Tarpon, and Redfish are great examples of fish who can’t resist a well timed topwater attempt. Striped Bass and Largemouth Bass are also great topwater target species for all you northerners and freshwater junkies out there.
Knowing when to use topwater lures is just part of the battle. How exactly should you rig up for topwater success?
Typically, when inshore or freshwater fishing, I would go with a rod measuring between 6’6” and 7’ long- I’m a little on the taller side, so I myself prefer a 7’ rod. Along with length I tend to gravitate towards medium/ medium heavy power and fast action. This will give you a perfectly balanced setup. The fast action will be just sensitive enough to where you won’t be prone to prematurely ripping your lures from a potential catch’s mouth. With the desired rod power, you’ll have the control necessary to effectively guide your lure to the spot you want during retrieve with ease.
Reel-wise, I’m a big supporter of your typical spinning rod, loaded with 20-40 lb braided line (mono-backed, of course) and a relatively light monofilament leader- about 20 lb test should do the trick. The Mono leader won’t naturally sink, like a fluorocarbon leader, nor will it be rigid and visible to the fish, like a straight up braided line setup. A smooth retrieve is also essential to helping your bait move naturally.
To tie your lure to the leader line, I recommend using a loop knot of your choice. This is a variety of knot that doesn’t cinch right up on the eyelet of the item that it’s securing to the leader line- it gives some room for the lure to move more freely during retrieve. This is perfect for the technique most closely married to topwater baits- “walking the dog”.
Speaking of walking the dog, I should probably go over how to do it for those who haven’t ever done it before. This technique refers to the action that you give your topwater bait during retrieve. Walking the dog helps your bait move like an injured bait fish- by flicking your rod tip a certain way you make the bait appear jerky. Simply cast, keep your rod tip down, and twitch the rod left and right (not vertically). To help reduce the amount of movement needed to twitch the topwater each way, leave a tiny bit of slack right before twitching and let the rod jerk the bait, not the line. The previously mentioned loop knot will work perfectly with the slack to make the bait appear as erratic as possible when you make your movements.
Once you get out to the water, keep your eye out for a couple things that may give may to more bites. Look for changes in depth- polarized glasses help, but the naked eye can still see changes in the blue and green tints at different depths without them. Aim for a little past the distinct color change, and try different directions if you don’t get any bites right away.
Along with changes in depth, look for changes in bottom composition. If there’s an area of sea grass, aim for the edges and try to draw out the predators who wait for bait wandering out in the open. If fishing the mangroves from a boat, try to aim for places where the land naturally points and indents. If there’s structure near your fishing spot, try and walk that dog near the edges of the structure as many times as possible.
With anything, practice makes perfect. That being said, the skill floor is pretty low when learning how to use topwater lures- they’re meant to be pretty intuitive. With no time at all, you’ll be convincing enough to entice fish of all shapes and sizes to nip at your hook.
I don’t remember if we caught anything that day at the lake all those years ago. As far as fishing trips are concerned, that one was pretty run of the mill. One thing’s for sure though; I came away with something even more valuable- an insatiable drive to get better at my craft. In the end, that’s the only thing that really matters when pursuing your passions.