Im horrible at frog fishing. 2024

YoTone reply :

The title says it all.

Ive spent a nice chunk of money on frogs this year with out catching anything.

the last two outings ive had either a bass or a snake head take swipes on them.

by the time i reacted to it there was nothing there but me standing around wondering what i could of done better.

ive heard to let it take the frog under before setting the hook but the last few times all they were was swipes and i guess didnt commit to it?

and another question about retrievals on non popping frogs, do yall always walk the dog with frogs, a high sticking jerky retrieve or what?

Master Bait'r reply :

Search "finesse frogging". Start hooking up with smaller baits and go up in size from there once you've assembled a large enough picture of where/when/how etc.. That's what I would do anyways. It's hard to figure out any plausible answers without any hard data though y'know? Once you have *something* to go on I find things get easier and you relax a little more too.

thebillsman reply :

We can't be too far from each other, and with that said I haven't had any luck with frogs around our area. The only time I have been relatively successful fishing top water is in the early morning. Just keep plugging away, if your set on making frogs work keep trying new areas and find fish that like them.

You can bend the hooks out a little to try and get a better hook set. I usually trim the legs a little bit and I always make sure it isn't filled up with water. Fish it over thick cover, pads and grass. Oh, and make sure there's fish where you're casting!

YoTone reply :

On 7/26/2016 at 9:29 PM, thebillsman said:

We can't be too far from each other, and with that said I haven't had any luck with frogs around our area. The only time I have been relatively successful fishing top water is in the early morning. Just keep plugging away, if your set on making frogs work keep trying new areas and find fish that like them.

You can bend the hooks out a little to try and get a better hook set. I usually trim the legs a little bit and I always make sure it isn't filled up with water. Fish it over thick cover, pads and grass. Oh, and make sure there's fish where you're casting!

thanks bills, where do you fish?

and i know theres fish where i had those last two chances. i had a nice snake head destroy my plopper on Saturday morning.

thebillsman reply :

On 7/26/2016 at 9:39 PM, YoTone said:

thanks bills, where do you fish?

and i know theres fish where i had those last two chances. i had a nice snake head destroy my plopper on Saturday morning.

ugh, snake heads.

I'm in Central Bucks but I'm anywhere from Penn Warner, to the River, to Green Lane Reservoir. There a bunch of good watering holes out this way.

YoTone reply :

ugh? dude they are ferocious fighters. people will hate on them but for me they have changed the ball game here.

Hog Basser reply :

For me, most of the time frogs only work when introduced in the right cover. I need weeds or lily pads around to get a hit. They only occasionally work without some type of thick plant cover. Pretty much an early morning bait for me, unless it is overcast.

Red Bear reply :

as for when to set the hook, i never wait to set the hook on frogs. some recommend counting to 3 or something like that. but i figure once the lure is gone under water to set the hook immediately because by the time i count to 3 ive missed my chance and the bait has been spit. as soon as your frog dissappears underwater set the hook. though there is no guarantee he has the hooks in his mouth when it goes under, its got some part of the frog in its mouth for sure though...

YoTone reply :

Thanks, what type of retrieve works the best for yall?

walking the dog? or high sticking it? with long pauses?

Hog Basser reply :

I mix up my retrieve. A lot of times I just pop it and wait, sometimes I walk the dog, I just like to make sure I making a little racket to get their attention then wait for the hit. Make sure you have a heavy rod, I've made the mistake of tying a frog on a little bit lighter rod and couldn't set the hook properly.

Master Bait'r reply :

On 7/26/2016 at 11:21 PM, YoTone said:

Thanks, what type of retrieve works the best for yall?

walking the dog? or high sticking it? with long pauses?

It really depends day to day. When I'm covering water I usually like to do a fast wiggly walk so they don't get a great look at it. If I've seen something to make me think there's a higher likelihood of a fish being there, I may try to do 1-2 quick twitches and kill it on the spot, let it sit for 10 or more seconds sometimes and then do another twitch or two, especially if it's a really realistic or smaller frog.

GORDO reply :

aim for the holes in the pads/weeds, cast over them, work the frog slow to the holes, then pause ones it gets into the holes. Wait several seconds, give it a little twitch, work it to the edge of the hole and pause again for several seconds. Another tip, cast the frog to the bank and work it off the bank into the water. You will be surprised how many bass will destroy it right off the bank.

Jon G reply :

If you are new to fishing frogs and are having hookup issues try this to get your confidence up

YoTone reply :

had another big time miss on the frog just now. but it was my fault because i saw a snake head looking at it ready to pounce and i got all stupid and decided to take my phone out and try to video tape it. as soon as i got the phone in my hand i heard that pop noise and she engulfed it but i wasnt ready and she let go. felt like the biggest loser on earth for a little bit untill i ditched the frog for a pit boss on a shakey head and got her.

but i wont give up on the frog.

BassinLou reply :

This time of year, if your looking to be successful frogging cover and shade are going to be your key areas. Depending where you are fishing. Cover may consist of hydrilla, pads, wood, grass, or overhangs. Look for the the type of cover where most people would think twice casting into and your biggun will be seeking refuge in there!! As far the missed hits, identify if they are indeed bass. Other species like big bream will hit the frogs skirts, fooling you its bass. When a bass takes a frog, you will know. Your frog will be nowhere to be seen. When then happens set the hook hard. Good luck!!

The Young Gun reply :

Keep the rod tip up, let the fish tell you what they want. And don't be afraid to fish it around docks or even in open water!

Jonathan Evans reply :

If you are using a floating frog you can do what I did and bend the hooks out a bit. I had the same issue as you when the bass hitting it and letting go. i have not landed one on a frog yet but after I bent the hooks out I had my first hook up on a frog before he shook the hook.

YoTone reply :

i went out at dusk and tried again and again i missed on a strike. i even saw it go under but still no hook up and my rod tip was up.

still had a fun time whipping the frog with reckless abandon.

scaleface reply :

Change . If you cant get them to hit frogs dont force it . You will eventually get on a frog bite , in the mean time use something different .

flyfisher reply :

If you want to learn the proper hookset timing on a frog, go fishing at night. You won't be able to see the hit so you are almost forced to wait till you feel the weight of the fish.

As far as the right times go, I pretty much always have a frog of some sort tied on once the water warms up. I fish them all day and in open water, heavy cover etc....they can be fantastic baits when you think outside the box, as far as their application, a little bit too.

Red Bear reply :

On 7/27/2016 at 9:39 AM, YoTone said:

i went out at dusk and tried again and again i missed on a strike. i even saw it go under but still no hook up and my rod tip was up.

still had a fun time whipping the frog with reckless abandon.

you really got to drive the hook home on frogs

primetime reply :

Missing Fish is not always the angler's fault. Sometimes it is the way Fish are smacking it, or the way they take it down, I would use a toad or smaller frog but this tip helped me get better.

Think of a Hollow body as a regular Soft bait like say a Fluke. If you are working a Fluke on top and a Bass Grabs it, you rarely worry about the fish spitting it out right? If you do not pull, Bass that really want the frog and take it under, they will take it like any soft bait and hold it.

I have played Jokes on people and clipped the hook points off and had it done to me. You realize that they hold frogs like any soft bait. They only feel the hooks when you slam them. Single hook on a soft toad helped me get better but you need to really set hard and sometimes the legs get in the way. Stick with frogs that have less "Junk" in the back, I trim legs super short since they can cover the hooks.

Frog fishing is complicated. I have days where I think I am Dean Rojas, and then days when I just can't convert, but good advise about with smaller frogs. Or try going white to black or vise versa, and always have one with a chart belly to mimic a bluegill.

soflabasser reply :

A big part of being successful at frog fishing is knowing when to set the hook and how hard you set it.Set the hook when you see the frog completely disappear underwater and do a firm hookset. Do not do a exaggerated hookset, it is not needed.

YoTone reply :

only took me 6 different types of frogs over the course of 3 months to catch one.

but thanks for the help everyone

J Francho reply :

Man, this was one bait I was horrible with at first. Congrats on your success!

primetime reply :

Good hook set on a fish that size. Booyah makes a great frog regardless of money. I enjoy fishing a Frog even when I am missing strikes, you never know when the next strike comes and it could be the desired "Silent Boil".

YoTone reply :

On 7/30/2016 at 7:24 AM, primetime said:

Good hook set on a fish that size. Booyah makes a great frog regardless of money. I enjoy fishing a Frog even when I am missing strikes, you never know when the next strike comes and it could be the desired "Silent Boil".

you know a few days ago i had like 6 missed strikes on frogs and didnt land anything but the whole time i had a real blast. its such an exciting way to fish.

the reel ess reply :

On 7/26/2016 at 9:29 PM, thebillsman said:

The only time I have been relatively successful fishing top water is in the early morning. Just keep plugging away, if your set on making frogs work keep trying new areas and find fish that like them.

You can bend the hooks out a little to try and get a better hook set. I usually trim the legs a little bit and I always make sure it isn't filled up with water. Fish it over thick cover, pads and grass. Oh, and make sure there's fish where you're casting!

This is all good advice. Yeah, the two times during daylight you can reasonable expect a topwater bite are morning and evening. I'm no expert, but I do fish topwaters a lot. Of course, there are times that will make a liar out of me.

I find the best places to get bites on frogs are shallower, smaller bodies of water and places with a lot of cover. Some have said they get bites in open water on them and I'm sure they do, but I don't. I get bites in ponds with dark water, lilies and flooded timber where the water is probably no more than 8 ft deep except at the dam. If I come to a place with a lot of large lilies, I'm sure to put a frog on.

When I get a bite, I don't yank. I reel down to it quickly, feel the fish and set it HARD. They will usually hol it a couple seconds and I don't take that long. I have a rod specifically for frogs in junk. I use 50# braid on it. Sometimes the fish don't bite the bait but rather slap at it. If you can see it, it wasn't a bite. Let it rest a few seconds and resume the retrieve slowly.

If you get a bite that misses, you can toss a Senko type bait over and often catch that fish. I guess the fish thinks it stunned its prey. I almost always have a Trick Worm tied on in shallower ponds.

I see others have mentioned bending out the hooks, which I do before I even tie frogs on. Also, hold the frog nose down so the skirts hang to each side and trim those skirts about even with the frog eyes. Some trim them even more. I usually trim to the eyes and stop there. This makes a smaller target for the fish to bite.

YoTone reply :

wow the advice given by obviously some serious frog anglers here is mucho appreciated.

i kinda of want to go back out and try those tips out now.

Coonedawg reply :

Try these next time on your frog. I've been using them for about 3 months and have been hooking up 9 out of 10 blowups. These also really help out the Livetarget Bluegills baits.

Jonathan Evans reply :

On 7/30/2016 at 2:32 AM, YoTone said:

only took me 6 different types of frogs over the course of 3 months to catch one.

but thanks for the help everyone

NICE!!!

Bluebasser86 reply :

On 7/30/2016 at 2:32 AM, YoTone said:

only took me 6 different types of frogs over the course of 3 months to catch one.

but thanks for the help everyone

Congrats!

Now, take that snap swivel off and throw it. Doesn't matter where, just somewhere you can't find it and have the urge to use it again. Then retie your frog straight to your braid and prepare to be amazed how much better your frog moves and catches.

the reel ess reply :

On 7/30/2016 at 2:53 PM, Bluebasser86 said:

Congrats!

Now, take that snap swivel off and throw it. Doesn't matter where, just somewhere you can't find it and have the urge to use it again. Then retie your frog straight to your braid and prepare to be amazed how much better your frog moves and catches.

I'd like to add to this that if you tie a loop knot to the frog you'll get it to walk easier. I usually don't though because I can walk the frog and that knot is hard for me to tie without leaving a big loop.

YoTone reply :

well i went out this morning and tossed the frog around and got too confident in my casting abilities and got hung up on a tree branch and lost my pad crasher. i had a black spro frog so i worked with it for a bit and got this dink

7751

Im horrible at frog fishing. 2024

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