top water smallies

Saw a Linder episode last weekend that they were getting smallies on top water baits. Never tried topwater, is their a time of year this works better. Heading up to Kabetogama again this spring, memorial day week, is that too early for it to be very effective if find a nice pod of smallies?

I’m not sure about Smallies…but with Largemouth if I see Dragonflies flying around it’s warm enough for topwaters to work.

I fish top water well before smallies go on their beds. Here is an April smallie eating a chug bug in 3fow

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I’ll have to give it a try. Doubt I will put much time on the water before that trip so probably be one of my first times to try it this season. Taking a good friend up with this spring who barely gets to fish (never has for walleye), think it would be a blast to find a nice school of smallies and watch them attack surface baits.

I don’t spend as much time as I use to smallie fishing but I would say I have some sort of top water rigged every time I am out June – September.

I’ve definitely had luck fishing smallies with the flyrod in June throwing small poppers. I’ve seen it where the smaller poppers outfished the larger spinning surface plugs. Might be worth having a “downsize” option available.

I had smallies hit topwaters during spring and fall.

Top water work well for us here on Rainy and other Canadian shield lakes ,I have a rod dedicated to top water baits.We throw them all season long,not just up shallow you would be surprised how far a smallie will come up to hit one.I fish them over weed beds anywhere from 2 to 12 fow ,also like throwing them over deeper rock piles on clear sunny days.
BB2

My PB came off of a Pop R on the Holston River in TN

I think in that Lindner Angling Edge show you watched, they were fishing topwaters in far deeper water than what has been discussed in the above posts. In most of that show they were fishing off the deepest break off structure and fishing suspended fish in open water.

Mark

Gave it a try last week, sure was fun watching fish leap into the air when they whacked the bait. Definately not enough use to feel confident in my presentation, but was pretty fun to try out.

SMallies can and will hit top water any time of the open water season. It is wise to always have a pop r or rappala skitter pop rigged on all trips. And yes they will come up 10 ft or more in clear water to smack a top water.

Mwal