Frog Fishing 2024

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

I have been fishing the algae matts at my local creek. I only hooked onto one fish and landed it. All if the others either missed the frog when I was dragging it across the matts, or I missed the hookset. 3/4 of the time it was just the fish completely missing the bait, the other few times I just missed the fish. Is there something I'm doing wrong? I went like 1/25 on hookups today.

Kevin22 reply :

First, what type of frog are you fishing?

I'll tell you how I do it. When the fish takes it I let him have it for 2-3 seconds while reeling down on him, when I feel him on the end I drive the hooks home.

9 times out of 10 they will grab the frog short and take it under, then suck it in once they turn their heads under the weeds.

If the fish just arent taking the frog all the way, even after you are waiting, then you need to switch lures. Maybe a smaller frog, a different profile frog, a different color frog.. something is wrong. Or maybe your fish are just too small for the frog.

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

I'm using yum buzzfrogs. And I will try letting them have it a little more next time.

Kevin22 reply :

With buzz frogs I watch my line. After the fish hits I let him run about a foot and then nail him on semi-slack line. A 7:*:1 reel is necessary because once you set the hook on semi-slack line you have about a half a second to get tight on him before he hits the surface and spits it. I get much better hooksets with semi-slack than with tight line on buzzers.

Another thing, make sure you have the correct hook. It has to have enough gap and be rigged so the hook will pop out and get him with little effort. A lot of my hook-ups on buzzfrogs are not in the corner of the mouth. Most are in the top, throat, or bottom. This comes from popping the hook fully though the frog and then lightly skin hooking it. That fish will take the frog in all sorts of ways and it is important to be able to hook him however the frog is positioned in his mouth.

200racing reply :

yeah it think you they are telling you they are there and feeding but not totally into what your throwing.i would either have a weightless soft plastic ready for a follow up or throw a hollow body frog i work slower and could let sit.

haydenf96 reply :

Wait to set the hook. I wait until I see the line moving or feel the fish. It takes practice!

Topwaterspook reply :

If I may chime in, the frog I rely on the most in heavy summer mats is a Seizmic Toad. There are two colors that float. One is white the other is "southern toad". There are two sizes. The body of water I'm fishing dictates which I use. I prefer a round bend, offset shank hook. I personally just have a better hook-up ratio with this type hook. The great thing about a "floating" frog is the ability to let it sit motionless. Where I fish, this can be a great triggering tactic. Good luck with the frog fishing. For sheer fun, it's one of the best ways to fish.

AK-Jax86 reply :

1 for 25 isn't a good ratio lol

I usually wait a few seconds before I attempt to set the hook, more often than not it works on some cases the bass will spit the frog out before you can set hook if you wait too long

BassinLou reply :

Frog fishing is awesome. You have to tell your mind not the pull the trigger when instinctively its what you want to do when the fish blows up on the frog. You have to see and feel what's going after the brief commotion is over. Sometimes its obvious, the frog is completely gone and you see the line swimming away. SET THE HOOK when you see that. Other times the hit may be so ferocious that they knock the frog out of the water. Wait until the frog lands and watch what happens. The fish may come back to finish what it started. Some of the other explanations listed above are helpful. They may be small bass hitting at it. One thing that I have learned, that I will share with you is, when you set the hook, feel the weight of the fish and maintain constant tension. Take your time and do not be in such a rush to horse the fish up and in. I have had plenty of heart breakers by being over confident thinking the fish was hooked well and I over worked it and lost.

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

Thanks a lot guys! I know it was a bad day of fishing but it was still fun. I cought a 3+ lber. My next set up will be for this technique. I wasnt using the right gear and I knew it, but I didn't have another option. I did have the frog hooked up right though. Thanks again.

B@ssCrzy reply :

On 6/27/2013 at 4:10 AM, MichiganFishing1997 said:
I have been fishing the algae matts at my local creek. I only hooked onto one fish and landed it. All if the others either missed the frog when I was dragging it across the matts, or I missed the hookset. 3/4 of the time it was just the fish completely missing the bait, the other few times I just missed the fish. Is there something I'm doing wrong? I went like 1/25 on hookups today.

The one question I would ask as well is what type of gear are you using? If you are trying to set the hook with mono and a ML rod then you are going to miss a lot of fish. You need braid or something that is low stretch and I like a MH rod for my frog fishing. When I switched to braid I found myself catching a lot more fish on my hookups. You are still going to miss some, but you will not miss as many. Those big hooks on a frog need a rod that can help drive the hooks home hard.

Derriick reply :

If the fish are missing the bait a lot of times it means they are small. If they are getting it and your missing the hookset then make sure you are giving them time to take it under. Reel down, feel the weight of the fish then set the hook hard. I rarely miss fish on my trophy series scumfrogs doing this. Don't sweat the small bass who knock it around and don't take it.

KYBassin' reply :

I use an old Strike King frog with a trailer hook, rarely miss a fish. And even with the trailer hook I have very little issue with getting snagged. But it is important to give the fish a count or two before setting the hook.

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

Good to know. Thanks.

Mike L reply :

On 6/27/2013 at 6:54 AM, BassinLou said:
Frog fishing is awesome. You have to tell your mind not the pull the trigger when instinctively its what you want to do when the fish blows up on the frog. You have to see and feel what's going after the brief commotion is over. Sometimes its obvious, the frog is completely gone and you see the line swimming away. SET THE HOOK when you see that. Other times the hit may be so ferocious that they knock the frog out of the water. Wait until the frog lands and watch what happens. The fish may come back to finish what it started. Some of the other explanations listed above are helpful. They may be small bass hitting at it. One thing that I have learned, that I will share with you is, when you set the hook, feel the weight of the fish and maintain constant tension. Take your time and do not be in such a rush to horse the fish up and in. I have had plenty of heart breakers by being over confident thinking the fish was hooked well and I over worked it and lost.

This..

Also, I'm not familiar with the buzz frog you're useing, but if the fish are agressive and really start to hammer a frog I change from whatever I'm useing...Spro, Strike King, to a Scum Frog. They have the sofest body on the market.

Also I find them easier to walk in place because they don't have the long seperated legs.

Mike

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

I have been setting the hook on more fish, but still no where near as many as i should be. I have been using pad crashers, yesterday me, my dad, and GF all lost fish on this frog, is it me or the lure? I have missed enough fish and tried enough things to think at this point it may not be me.

MarkH024 reply :

What gear are you using to throw frogs with? ie: Rod, reel, line?

Kevin22 reply :

There is not a hollow body frog on the market that will not get a good hook-up percentage if you do your part. Just about every single lure on the market is put in front of a professional fishermen for testing before going to retail. If the testers did not get good hook-ups with the frog it would have never made it to market.

The obvious exception from this are the chinese knock-off lures.

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

Yeah, i thought it was still me lol. I have a 7'6 MH Abu Garcia Veritas with and Abu Garcia Pro Max 7.1:1 and its spooled with #50 PP. Maybe im not setting the hook hard enough.

MarkH024 reply :

On 7/9/2013 at 4:48 AM, MichiganFishing1997 said:
Maybe im not setting the hook hard enough.

Your gear is ideal for frog fishing. You're probably setting the hook too soon, or too late. Once you get the timing thing down it's second nature and you will see a massive increase on your hook ups and landing. The only thing I can say that might help is try bending your hooks up slightly off the frogs back. I personally don't do this, but it does help for some. keep at it, you'll figure it out. Good luck

If you're fishing pike infested waters...the snakey ones are terrible at taking frogs in. So there is a chance that a lot of your misses are actual pike and not bass.

Edited July 9, 2013 by MarkH024

Kevin22 reply :

How are you setting the hook?

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

just a small upward motion. Nothing hard, probably not hard enough.

And thanks Mark for the help, il keep working at it!

MarkH024 reply :

I have a video in the reports section under punchin and froggin. You can see some of my hooksets on frogs. You can check frog turds videos too. He's another froggin magician.

lmoore reply :

If the fish are missing a buzzfrog, try switching to a hollowbody. I bend the hooks out just slightly. They often come slightly pointed down to keep them weedless, I bend them to level or just slightly above. Also, if they strike and miss the frog, keep it moving. If they knock it out of the water without grabbing it, I like to just twitch it in place to mimic injured prey. Good luck!

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

That's what I have been doing. Its just the hookset that's been getting me. Trust me, I get plenty of chances to set the hook. I think I need to let them have it for a second or too then set the hook much harder. I will try tomorrow and get back to you guys. Thanks for the help.

Bassfishing375 reply :

If you are missing fish on the frog then there may be a few things wrong. One you may set the hook to early, wait until you feel the fish or until you see your line moving. Two you may be setting the hook hard enough, when I'm fishing a frog and i get a blow up I put the end of the rod under my arm pit to get more leverage. Three you may be fishing the frog to fast, just because you have a fast reel doesn't mean you have to fish it fast. Four the bass may just miss the frog this happens, and the best thing to do is to NOT reel in the frog right away then fire it back out there. But to keep fishing it and there are times where the bass will hit it again. Good luck and if all else fails put a frog trailer hook on and that may fix your problem.

Kevin22 reply :

Alright, when you see that fish take the frog, FREEZE. Look at your line, is it moving or sitting still? If it is moving then reel down to it and stop, when you feel the fish pull then cross his eyes. If the line is not moving, slowly reel down on the fish until you feel him and then cross his eyes. Do not set the hook on slack line.

Bankbeater reply :

Sounds like you're doing the same thing that I did when I started fishing frogs. When I would get a hit I would set the hook to fast and pull the bait away from the bass. Try fishing the bait more. I started catching more bass after I got use to seeing them hit the bait, and learned to hold off on the hook set.

RoachDad reply :

On 6/27/2013 at 8:54 PM, B@ssCrzy said:

I just wanted to say: "that is one awesome avatar!"

B@ssCrzy reply :

On 7/10/2013 at 1:01 AM, RoachDad said:
I just wanted to say: "that is one awesome avatar!"

Haha!!! Thanks!!! That is my fishing buddy holding my new PB that I caught couple of weeks ago.

Thatbasstardbrent reply :

Don't use a buzzfrog, use a popping frog. Hop it three times then let it sit for like 10 seconds. Also make sure to splash it in openings where the mats seperate.

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

Well guys, after reading all your advice, watching videos, and working an few things out, my hook up ratios have improved 10 fold. I cought about ten bass within an hour and a half with my frog. A few issues i fixed: Tightened drag more, Picked up slack line faster, SET HOOK HARDER. I can now confidently fish my frogs, thanks a lot guys! Heres one i caught today.

loodkop reply :

Glad its working for you. Frog = Fun.

BuckMaxx reply :

You guys just talking about it gets my blood pumping. I LOVE frog fishing! The stopping it in a spot of open water...the wake behind your frog... The smash the RIP! yeahhh baby!

I use a Fenwick MHX musky rod and 50 braid. I agree you have to let them have it but when you hook em you better be crankin!

BassinLou reply :

Awesome job michiganfishing1997! WTG!! You will be giving out tips soon enough.

bigbill reply :

Frog scent @ www.bogbaits.com. I purchased it with some frogs.

I have the quick on the draw, topgun style problem with my topwater lures sometimes too. I need to learn to wait till I see the line move to set the hook. It's my fault being way too quick on the trigger setting the hook. I have learned to pause after they miss it so they can do a 180 degree turn to strike it again. It's fun to watch.

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

On 7/11/2013 at 1:42 AM, BassinLou said:
Awesome job michiganfishing1997! WTG!! You will be giving out tips soon enough.

Thanks!

MarkH024 reply :

Way to go man. Glad to see you figured it out. ENJOY!

MichiganFishing1997 reply :

Will do thanks! The next step is jigs..

---=Martin=--- reply :

i've used many frogs and realized that there is only one true way to frog salvation: booyah pod crasher JUNIOR! smaller frog with smaller hooks, but still catches big ones. oh, and one other thing, braided line and drag set as hard as you can clamp it down. give them few seconds then make that fish see twice with your hook set. ever since i started doing the things mentioned, i stopped loosing fish on frogs, both bass and snakeheads!

FrogFreak reply :

I like to wear a full face shield so when I yank the frog out of the bass's mouth, I don't get clobbered in the face. Seriously, it doesn't matter how many years you've been fishing, it still happens to us all. I just had to explain to my doc why I had bruising on my rib cage.....he looked at me funny when I told him it was from a frog.

BassinLou reply :

Wow!! Frogfreak. You don't mess around on those hooksets.

Kevin22 reply :

Any time I am fishing topwater I have sunglasses on. Even if it is late evening and I can barely see the water. I've had too many close calls where the bait flies out of a fish and right at my face, catch a treble hook in the eye and your day (or life) is never going to be the same.

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