Fall Topwater Fishing
Summertime is well known as an excellent time for topwater action in the bass fishing world, but autumn might be even better. As the weather starts to cool at night and the baitfish begin to move, fishing a topwater bait in the fall can be some of the year's best action.
It's a time of year when the feeding frenzy on the surface can last all day, and that's why it's one of the preferred ways for Bassmaster Elite Series pros Stetson Blaylock and Bill Lowen to fish as summer wanes and turns into fall.
Each approach the season with similar thoughts on what they look for, but have learned a few tricks along the way to get more action out of their topwaters to get more bites. They each shared some insight and topwater secrets for fall bass fishing.
What to Look For
As bass feed more heavily in the cooler water temperatures, the most significant factor is finding that food source, whatever that may be in your home waters. No matter what bait you use or how you work it, fishing in less-than-ideal places will surely hamper your success.
"The biggest thing in the fall is simple: find the bait," said Lowen. "It's the most important thing, and when I'm looking, whether it's in a creek or whatever, I won't even start fishing until I find baitfish. This can be done with your electronics, but using your eyes and looking for fish activity has been crucial for years and is still one of the best ways to look for baitfish."
Blaylock agrees and prefers to work backwards, starting in a fishery's main lake or river sections and working his way in. "There are always several different stages of fish moving with the baitfish, and it's not always going to be going to the very back of creeks; it could be small pockets on the main lake, or even out in open water, but the baitfish are the key," he said.
As the season moves along, he works with the changing environment. "As the water cools, those fish will start to move more with the shad, but if you're just starting in the early fall to locate fish, I'll always start much closer to the lake," Blaylock said. "It's often still pretty hot during the fall months during the days, and it takes some cooler temperatures at night to get those fish moving and drive those shad to the back of the creeks."
Breaking Down the Baits
Topwater baits come in many versions, each with a time and place, according to Lowen and Blaylock. Their favorites, though, are unsurprisingly standard walking baits that allow them to cover water while searching for feeding bass.
"As the fish start school in the fall, it's a perfect scenario for a walking topwater bait like a Team Ark Outlaw Topwater Walking Bait," Lowen said. "That's a perfect style of bait to work when the fish are schooling or sitting on points because you can cast these baits so far."
Blaylock often uses the Heddon Super Spook but will sometimes downsize to the Heddon Spook Boyo. "I use the original size as a search bait as I'm going down the bank or fishing shallow along a point when I'm trying to get those bigger active fish to bite," he said. "The smaller bait is much smaller, but it works well when the fish are schooling and eating smaller baitfish. Matching the size of the shad is a big part of fishing the right topwater bait this time of year because shad size varies so much, and you don't want to be throwing a giant topwater at them when the shad are an inch or two long."
Blaylock likes to employ a small snap with topwater walking baits, allowing him to change baits or colors quickly.
"That allows you to change sizes right away and it's also great at the end of the day because you can take that bait off the snap and hook it to your rod and put the lure back in your box and the bait won't get tangled up with other rods in your rod locker or truck," he said.
As for colors, Blaylock keeps it simple. "Bone is hard to beat, especially if you have some off colored water, and it has such a good drawing power," he said. "My other choices are transparent shad colors when the water's clear, but anything that looks like a baitfish will work great when you're around them."
Lowen's other two must-haves are a popper and a signature series, Bill's Turbo Buzzbait from Lure Parts Online, which he builds himself with the buzzbait arm kit.
"I use the Team Ark Topwater Popper a lot this time of year when I'm fishing targets like grass clumps, laydowns, stumps, and things like that," he shared. "I like to add a split ring to help the bait walk better from side to side. Even though you can fish it with a standard popping retrieve, I like to walk it in place to give it a different look. I'll also fish the buzzbait in those same places, but I can fish it faster."
Blaylock also likes a topwater popper such as the Booyah Boss Pop Popper. "You want to make sure you have options with your topwater, and a popper is great for targeting stumps on little flat transitions before the shallow water," he said. "As the fall sets in, a popper is great in those creeks on the last little steeper bank before it flattens out. Those transitions in depth, even subtle changes, can be the key."
Topwater Gear
Fishing with a topwater is relatively straightforward when you find the right areas. Still, the right gear can significantly impact your casting distance, efficiency, and chance of landing more of what bites. For many reasons, Blaylock and Lowen have settled on braided line as their favorite topwater line type.
"I like 30 lb Seaguar TactX braid for all of my topwaters, it's a very user-friendly braid if that makes sense," said Lowen. "The reason it's user-friendly is you don't get wind knots or any trouble, and it casts a mile. It has everything you want in a topwater line: strength, no stretch, and excellent casting distance."
Lowen sometimes uses a one-foot short leader of a heavy fluorocarbon, like 20 or 25 lb Seaguar Tatsu, before connecting his bait with a knot. "I do that with really clear water, and for me, it's more of a confidence thing," he said. "A short amount of fluorocarbon won't negatively impact your bait's performance."
Blaylock agrees on braid as the way to go, but prefers an 8-strand braid like Seaguar Smackdown in Stealth Gray, also in the 30 lb test size.
"Braid is easier to use with topwaters, casts much further than other lines, in my opinion," he said. "That's important when you see one blow up way out away from you, and the fact that it has no stretch means you can get a great hookset no matter how far away you are. What I like about Smackdown is its thin diameter and smooth coating, which allows you to cast much more easily."
Fall is the time for topwater fishing and can lead to some of the best action of the whole fishing season. As the water cools and the bass get a little hungrier, pick up your favorite topwater and get in on the action.
Seaguar TactX Camo Braid is available from 10 to 80 lb tests in 150- and 300-yard spools.
Seaguar Smackdown braid is available in high-visibility Flash Green and low-visibility Stealth Gray. It is available in 150- and 300-yard spools in sizes ranging from 10 to 65 lb tests.
Seaguar Tatsu Fluorocarbon mainline is available in 200- and 1,000-yard spools from 4 to 25 lb tests.