A Progression, a Theory and a Lesson

In summer, I generally assume the fish will be in an aggressive feeding mood at daybreak. Consequently, I almost always start off my day throwing a topwater lure, usually a junior version. In recent years, I specifically throw a Super Spook Jr. more often than not.

If and when the blowups don't come or quit coming, I'll normally make a switch straight over to soft plastics, sometimes suspending them under corks. I've found that such a quick progression (by that I mean ignoring suspending or slow-sinking twitchbaits) works best for me when the mercury is close to the top of the column.

Lately, in the crystal clear, frequently calm waters I'm often fishing in Baffin Bay and the Laguna Madre, this progression has been regularly effective. The numbers of small trout caught has been high, of course; that's part of the deal in summer fishing with artificial lures. The percentage of keepers has been decent on most days, and we're catching solid numbers of trout between twenty three and twenty nine inches too.

In thinking about this daily plan of action and the results the plan has been garnering, I've come to some important conclusions and generated some theories related to my preference for small plugs this time of year.

Though I'm aware of the big lure/big fish theory (meaning in my world that a big trout is more likely to be attracted to a big plug) and I believe in it to some extent, I've been able to reliably prove to myself that small topwaters work better than larger ones this time of year. On numerous occasions, frustrated by a ready gang of dinks tackling my Jr. Spook, I've tied on a larger lure like a Skitterwalk, X Rap, Super Spook or She Dog and found that the fish will entirely ignore it.

Upon switching back to the smaller plug, the blowups begin again, strongly suggesting to me that the fish just weren't interested in the larger offering. Some will no doubt conclude that the reason for this has to do with the fact that I was throwing at only small fish on these occasions. But in many of these cases, I've eventually caught large trout among the swarming dinks.

What I often do when confronted with a white-hot bite on tiny trout is move around over short distances, trying to find areas less crowded with the colorful and aggressive juveniles. When I find a nearby area that's holding fewer of the marauding dinks, I sometimes find bigger fish. My theory is that the schools of super small fish like to keep a cushion of distance between them and any mature females in the area; it's a matter of self-preservation, given the cannibalistic habits of the species.

A number of times lately, I've watched big trout attempting to eat smaller ones while I was preparing to handle them; in one case, a fish I estimated at no more than twenty three inches actually tried to take a bite out of a marginal keeper! Incidentally, this indicates something else to me--that trout (I'd go so far as to say most, or even all, fish) have no understanding of the concept of size. If that's true, it undermines the big lure/big fish theory, which is based on the idea that large fish consciously seek out large prey.

I've read that raising trout in captivity can be tricky, partly because they like to eat each other; specifically, fish of nearly identical size will try to do so. They become stuck to each other mouth-over-tail in a deadly daisy chain. If the fish could understand size as we do, this wouldn't happen. I know I would never attempt to eat a 230 pound pizza!

Obviously, even in summer, a big trout will make a meal out of a large mullet or keeper trout, and catching them on bulky plugs is sometimes possible. More of the time, though, the bite on the larger lures is excruciatingly slow.

All of this leads me to the following conclusion and/or theory. Trout are easiest to catch on lures which resemble the prey they've been recently eating. In summer, when numerous small forage species like glass minnows, shad, piggy perch and finger mullet are swimming around with the trout, smaller plugs match the menu most closely.

Conversely, in winter, when trout are surrounded mostly by mature mullet and other trout, bigger plugs better imitate what's for dinner. Additionally, chilled water slows down a cold-blooded creature's metabolism, so fish in winter eat less frequently. But when they are eating, they tend to do so with a ravenous and reckless attitude. In winter, on full-sized topwaters, I've caught lots of large trout with the tails of other trout or horse mullet protruding from their gullets.

In summer, though, a non-stop snacking mode seems to be prevalent in the trout, and they eat more frequently. On many days in the searing heat, I'm able to maintain a steady bite throughout the fishing day. This happens in other seasons too, but not as commonly as in summer for me.

Much of the time, this all-day bite is experienced through the exclusive use of my Jr. Spook. I know many experts claim that topwaters are more of a specialty offering than a staple when trout fishing. I tend to disagree, especially in hot weather, though I admit that stubbornly refusing to take one off can be a sign of tunnel vision.

What I've come to realize is that presentation style rivals lure choice in importance when it comes to making fish strike. Many times in summer, for instance, a predictably variable wind blows throughout the day. On most days, dawn arrives accompanied by a light to moderate west or southwest wind. Then, in mid-morning, dead calm slowly casts a smooth blanket over the bay. Later, a moderate east or southeast breeze ushers in the heat of the day and roughs up the water's surface.

Those who fail to adjust their presentation with the changing winds might wrongly conclude that the fish don't want topwaters and switch to other offerings. Consistently, in the gentle breezes associated with daybreak, a generic, steady dog-walking movement pattern will generate plenty of strikes, but when the wind calms, slowing things to a crawl, barely nudging the head of the lure from side to side, often entices more strikes. When the breeze kicks up again, a fast, raspy, erratic retrieve usually keeps the fish interested enough to open their mouths and take a bite.

Three distinctly different presentation styles might therefore be needed within a span of a few short hours. It's easy to misunderstand how effective topwaters can be in summer when using large plugs and making monotonously repetitive presentations. People who use full-sized plugs and work those plugs steadily without adjusting speed and rhythm aren't likely to catch as many trout this time of year as those who use junior plugs more creatively to keep their presentations in sync with the conditions.

The bottom line for me is this--the best way to catch a big trout on a lure in the summer is to maintain contact with the schools of dinks and work the fringes of the schools. One of the most fun and effective ways to catch the fish is with a small floating plug, especially if that plug is used skillfully.

Some trophy seekers look at little topwaters and think they won't attract the attention of big trout. To them, I suggest perusing the pictures documenting all the giant specks that have been caught over the last decade on Corkys, which are virtually identical in size to the junior versions of most topwaters. As my old friend Jay Wright reminded me after he caught an eleven-pound trout on a fly in Florida, "Remember, even elephants eat peanuts!"