How to Use a Popper to Catch a Bass

Poppers are especially effective for bass when the water is calm.

Poppers are 2- to 3-inch wood or hard plastic surface baits with a concave face. All poppers float on the surface of the water, and most have two or three treble hooks and a piece of bucktail on the last hook. When retrieved properly, the concave face makes a popping noise and causes the water to splash, which can coax nearby bass to strike the lure. Although poppers tend to be most effective under low-light conditions, many anglers keep one rigged and cast it regularly during a day of fishing, just in case fish are willing to hit it.

Things You'll Need

• Rod and reel
• 8- to 10-lb. test monofilament line

Instructions

1. Attach a popper to a medium-action rod and reel spooled with 8- to 10-pound test monofilament fishing line. Tie a Palomar knot to the eye of the lure, which is in the middle of the concave face.

2. Cast the popper around the edges of shallow cover, such as boat docks, timber and emergent and submerged vegetation. Vegetated flats also are good spots to fish poppers, as is anywhere you find bass schooling and feeding on the surface. Popper fishing tends to be best during low-light periods of dawn and dusk, or when it is cloudy, raining or windy. Fish poppers work only when the surface of the water is flat.

3. Cast the popper to the fishing area and let the ripples on the water disappear. Retrieve it by sweeping your rod tip, which tightens the line and causes the popper to move forward. The forward motion causes the splash and pop. Reel the slack line in and then sweep your rod tip again. Repeat this retrieve back to the boat or shoreline.

4. Experiment with the retrieve. Some days, bass prefer a popper that is in constant motion. Other times, they hit better if you pop the lure and then let it remain still for a period of time. When you catch one bass, use the same retrieve on subsequent casts until the bass no longer bite. Then experiment again.

5. Watch the popper as it travels across the surface. Sometimes, bass jump out of the water to hit the lure. Other times, they hit it from beneath and slurp it out of the water. Either way, wait two counts before setting the hook with a strong, sideways sweep of the rod. If you set the hook too early, you will miss the fish.

References

• Bassmaster; Four Foolproof Popper Patterns; Mark Hicks; March 2007

Resources

• Animated Knots: The Palomar Knot