Determined to beat the sizzling temperatures we launched our boat at 4:30 a. m. last Saturday morning. Though it was still dark we arrived at our fishing spot at 4:45 and promptly began fishing. A lunker bass engulfed my deep diving crankbait on the second cast and began tearing line off the spool. As I applied more pressure on the bass my line suddenly went limp. As soon as it got light enough to see I found out that he had straightened out my treble hooks!

As the horizon turned light pink I cast out a Popping Scum Frog up onto a patch of scum and it was smashed by a ravenous bass. The resultant explosion shattered the still morning air and my first bass was in the boat shortly thereafter. Minutes later another bass struck the frog and our pattern was determined. Though there was no surface activity whatsoever, the bass that were lying just below the scum were hungry and smashed anything that resembled food. 

It didn’t take long for my partner Justin Giles to get in on the action either. Justin was casting a solid white frog and his first bass of the day weighed in around five pounds. The bigmouth bass swallowed the frog deep into his throat, almost into his gullet. Sometimes the bass simply sucked the frog below the surface, and other times they jumped slam out of the water attacking the helpless lure with a vengeance.

As we continued working our way around the lake before dawn our pattern became even more precise. While bass will usually be found anywhere under the scum or floating grass when the water is cooler, on this day they were positioned right under the outside edge of the scum. You could pitch the lure as far back as you wanted, but the bites would come as the frogs hopped past the scum line.

 

Edge dwellers

 

On one occasion Justin pitched his lure to the edge of the scum and never moved it before it was smacked by another lunker bass. As we continued to entice strikes from the bass in the lukewarm water we only missed a couple and that was because they wrapped us in a brush top.

In the old days it was a pretty good feat to catch one out of every three bass that struck your frog. If you had a 50 percent catch rate you were pretty good, but most folks simply missed most of the strikes that occurred.

Catching bass on floating frogs is a lot like hitting a baseball with a wooden bat. To connect properly and drive the ball long you’ve got to have good timing and hit the ball on the nose, everything has to be in sync. It’s the same thing with frog fishing, you’ve got to have the perfect timing and set the hook just at the right time.

As anybody that has fished one very much knows, if you set the hook the moment the bass strikes, you’ll miss most of them. On the other hand if you wait too long to set the hook they’ll spit the bait out and you’ll miss them. You’ve got to get your timing down pat and your strike ratio will go up.

These days anglers have an advantage that earlier frog fishermen didn’t have and that’s good equipment, sharp hooks, and braided line. In my opinion braided line is the key to catching bass with frogs. I can tell you that with a little patience and practice, your catch ratio will go up exponentially if you are equipped with a stout rod, braided line and a frog with razor sharp hooks!

 

Braid’s good points

 

I grew up fishing monofilament and never liked fishing braid until learning that it did have a couple of good applications, one being for fishing frogs. My braid of preference on this trip was a 20 pound test Stren Super braid. The Stren Super braid has no stretch and that enables anglers to really set the hook quickly and efficiently. Secondly, the braid is tough and the bass can’t wrap you in lily pads or grass and break your line very easy.

If the bass bury up in the grass simply keep the slack out of your line and troll to the fish and you’ll usually be able to free them and put them in the boat. Though I’ve fished all types of braid, Stren is by far the best that I’ve used for frog fishing due to its smooth finish. The line has little resistance and casts much smoother than most braids. While some folks prefer the 65 pound Super braid, and that has its’ place, the 20 pound is my favorite for use in these waters.

Over the course of an hour and a half we caught and released over 20 bass on the frogs before the top water bite slowed. If you think it’s too hot to fish then think again.  If you want to beat the heat and catch a few bass then get on the water before the crack of dawn and fish until the bite slows down. Hit the prime time morning bite and you’ll be able to catch bass all summer!