It's Finally Popper Season!

April 25, 2023

Morning water temps have reached 71°F so it's finally time to cast topwater.  It's about time.  Fishing sinking lines can be such a slog.  Now that the warm weather has arrived Luc has been killing it and he finally gave me the call up to the Bigs.  I was at his house by 5:30am.  After launching from the Main Lake we headed toward to the East side.  With popper season among us I wanted to test a few concept flies.  I would start with a variation of my Rattletail tied on a Ahrex swimbait hook to make it weedless.  I used to tie all my bass flies with a mono weed guard but ever since my buddy Webb pooh-poohed it, as it hinders hook ups, I never tied with one again.  Not until I met Luc who encourages the use of one at his lake.  The thing is since I've developed the memory of tying without them I always forget to add one until I'm just about to finish the fly.  Basically when its too late to add it.  I figured if I use a hook that is already weedless I wouldn't have to remember the mono.

 

It wouldn't be long, maybe a handful of casts until the fly proved its worth.  I was the first to hook up with Luc following suit soon afterwards.  He'd continue throughout the day getting several more and several misses.  Not until later on in the day would I be able to get another fish.  Luc seemed to have the magic touch this day; he could do no wrong.  He even accidentally caught a fish on his popper while "trolling" to the next spot.  This happened when he simple gave up on a spot quit fishing an kept his fly in the water and while we moved around a dock he had a fish explode on it.  Not sure why I didn't do as well as him but I was testing several new flies.  That could have been it or perhaps it was the fact that he was fishing 15lb while I was fishing 20lb.  Although I've never felt these fish were particularly leader shy but who knows.  Some days you're on some days you're not.