Leaping for the toads
YANTIS -- The Stanley Ribbit frog landed a bit off target, but it didn't seem to matter. A bass bulged the surface at the edge of a nearby grass mat and left a wake in its path as it raced towards the gurgling, churning plastic toad.
I braced for an explosive strike that never came. For some reason the bass veered right just shy of the speeding lure. The surface boiled, then melted into a gentle ripple as a light southeasterly breeze swept across Lake Fork.
The rejection was more than I could take. I quickly retrieved the lure, then lofted another cast just beyond the sweet spot and put the frog in motion. That's when all hell broke loose in the shallows.
The violent explosion erupted more than a foot from the lure. A bass that looked to be all of 24-inches long went airborne parallel to the surface. With jaws agape, the big fish zeroed in on the frog and pounced on it head first.
The ensuing battle didn't last long. The fish buried up in a patch of hydrilla so thick that it was unable to tear free against the steady pressure of the stiff fishing rod and heavy braided line.
I used a landing net to scoop up the huge ball of grass and quickly peeled back the weeds to get to the fish. It was a big one, indeed. The bass registered 8 pounds, 2 ounces on a digital scale.
Wild tales like that are the norm on lakes across Texas when it comes time for Kermit to start punching the clock. Plastic frogs are prone to bring out the bully in bass like no other bait can. The fish rarely hold anything back when they go after a frog. In fact, the strike can at times be so violent that it can be heard from 100 yards away on a windless afternoon.
Longview bass pro Jim Tutt has witnessed the brutal assault hundreds of times, but the game never seems to get old no matter how often he plays it. Of all the ways there are to catch bass, Tutt was fast to point out that frog fishing is his most favorite of all.
"I love it," Tutt said as we eased across a grassy flat at the upper end of Lake O' the Pines. "When the frog bite is on -- I mean really on -- there is nothing else like it. At times it can almost be like self defense out there."
No argument, here. Like Tutt, I have become somewhat addicted to frog fishing. Lonny Stanley is the dealer who got me hooked.
Stanley, a veteran lure maker from Huntington, sent me a plastic tackle box in the mail a few years ago. The box was neatly packed with about three dozen soft plastic Ribbit Frogs in assorted colors, a supply of "specialty" frog hooks and a detailed note explaining what to do with them.
I don't remember Stanley's instructions by word, but summarizing is easy: Rig the frog on a heavy action rod with braided line. Put your game face on. Find slop. Launch a long cast. Reel the bait fast enough to buzz the frog across the surface. Hold on tight. And by all means, keep your cool when the explosion comes.
I took the frogs to nearby Lake Nacogdoches on a sunny June afternoon and followed Stanley's directions to the letter. In three hours, I caught 10 bass up to 6 pounds and tangled with a half-dozen others that were thick enough to wear saddles.
Not surprisingly, I have been a frog fishing addict ever since.
Anatomy of a frog
There is much more to achieving success with a frog than following a few pointers. For starters, anglers should know the different styles of baits.
Some plastic frogs have hollow bodies that float when idle. Others have solid, soft plastic bodies.
Most solid-body frogs will sink if not retrieved at a steady pace.
Members of the hollow-body family usually come prerigged with a double frog hook, which tucks neatly against either side of the hind quarters to reduce snagging on moss and brush. The bait's hollow design allows the body to compress when engulfed by a bass, thus exposing the hooks and improving the chances of hooking the fish.
These frogs are usually equipped with silicone or living rubber legs that pulsate when the bait goes in motion. They also have a weight in the hindquarters to improve castability and balance and to help the bait achieve a "nose-up" stance as it traverses across lily pads, hydrilla and other muck. Some models have cupped noses, small tail spinners or other appendages to further enhance the action.
Anglers use a combination of rod and wrist action to make the hollow frog dance side to side or back and forth. A stop-and-go retrieve also can be productive, especially when throwing a popper-style frog with a cupped nose.
Solid body frogs are different. These baits are made with two legs and feet that sputter and churn as the bait is retrieved across the surface, thus the title "buzz frog." The amount of thump displaced by the legs and feet can vary immensely from one frog to the next. As a rule, buzz frogs with boot-shaped feet create more surface commotion than those with flat feet.
Baits with booties make a more aggressive sound that seems to work best when there is some wind to put come chop on the surface, whereas frogs with flat feet create a more subtle pitter pat sound that can be the ticket under calmer conditions.
The buzz frog does not come with a prerigged hook, but getting one ready only takes a few seconds using any number of specialty hooks designed with the lure in mind.
There are a number of good frog hooks on the market. The best ones have a wide gap (4/0-6/0) to provide plenty of bite to pierce the thick meat of the frog. They also have some sort of keeper system to help hold the head of the bait against the hook eye and reduce slippage. Two of my favorites are the Stanley Wedge V Lock and the Mister Blitz Toad Toter.
Hollow or solid?
That's a loaded question if ever there was one. On one day the bass may prefer a certain style of frog or speed of retrieval. The best answer is to try both and let the bass help you decide.
Places to use them
Just call the frog bait Mr. Versatility. Kermit will catch bass anywhere they live, in deep water or shallow.
The frog can be potent when tossed around boat docks, piers, laydown logs and brush. But it really tends to shine when worked in relation to lily pads, hydrilla, duck weed, water hyacinth and other thick muck where bass often seek out shelter and forage from late spring through fall.
Never mind if the slop looks too thick to penetrate. Rigged properly, the frog bait can traverse just about anything without getting stuck.
Banking those blowups
When frogs go mobile across the surface of the water, the temptation is often more than a bass with an attitude can stand. I've seen head-hunting largemouths wake the surface from as far as 20 feet away to chase down a frog, but most of the explosive strikes come seemingly from no where, usually when you least expect it.
Many anglers have trouble coping with the shock of sudden, violent strikes. The natural inclination is to jerk the second the bite occurs. This often results in missed opportunities, because the fish doesn't have time eat the bait.
Discipline is essential to be consistently successful with a frog. The idea is to wait until you feel the pressure of the fish at the end of the line before setting the hook.
Tutt says he overcomes the urge to jerk prematurely by positioning his rod so that he can't set the hook without giving the fish an extra second or two to fully engulf the lure.
"I always make a point to keep the butt of the rod buried in my belly and the rod tip pointed upwards to the 11 o'clock position when I am retrieving a buzz frog," Tutt said. "It is impossible to set the hook with the rod in that position. By the time I drop my rod tip and reel up the slack, the fish has plenty of time to eat the bait. I noticed a big increase in the number of hook-ups once I started doing that."
Be ready for bear
Hooking a bass on a frog is one thing. Putting it in the boat is another. Most strikes occur in close proximity to heavy cover, and bass seem to know how to use the muck to their advantage.
Many of the leading rod manufacturers are building specialty rods with frogs in mind. Among the key attributes to look for in a frog rod are backbone for powerful hooksets and pulling fish out of heavy cover, a tip with some flex to aid in long-range casting and fairly lightweight construction that allows for all day fishing without wearing you down.
As for line, anglers must think heavier than normal. Most frog experts use 65-pound test braid.
Cost of frog fishing
Hollow body frogs are packaged individually and are somewhat more expensive than soft plastics, which usually come with 4-6 baits to a package.
Hollow bodies cost anywhere from $5 to $16 apiece, depending on the manufacturer. Soft plastics usually cost between $3-$6 per package.
• Matt Williams' e-mail address is mattwilliams@netdot.com.
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