How to Catch Australian Bass on Frogs

By Mitchell Taylor

Anyone who has chased these fish before know how incredible the takes can be. Fishing top water for bass is even more incredible with the sheer aggression they posses when attacking a lure off the surface and the perfect lure for this is the Bait Junkie Kikker Curly. Skipping a frog into some snags and twitching it out and then witnessing a massive explosion at your frog will really get your heart going.

Bass are typically a summer species with winter having closures for the spawning period. As the temperature heats up, so does the fishing. The best time to go for a trek into some tight bass country is usually after some rain when the creeks are flowing. This will ensure there is enough water flowing for the bass to migrate up into even tighter waters and off course frog activity usually increases with rain therefore the Kikker Curly becomes the best candidate for a nice, tasty meal. Do not discount isolated pools that connect to a creek via small waterfalls as the bass are not to be underestimated on their waterfall climbing abilities.

The setup I like to use for skipping frogs is typically a shorter rod that gives me the ability to cast in tight structure and skip under snags. Rods such as the 23 TD Black Pinster 64LFS or the 23 TD Hyper 661LFS are perfect for this type of fishing. Matched with a 2000/2500 sized reel and 8-10lb braid. I have found J-Braid Expedition to be a great braid for getting an accurate smooth cast. As for leader, you cannot beat the J-Thread X-link Fluorocarbon. This stuff isn’t just great for tying knots due to its much softer feel, but its got great abrasion resistance.

I like to rig up the Kikker Curly with a weedless 1/0 worm hook. This way you can hammer into heavy structures and snags and be confident you can retrieve it out with minimal resistance. You want to make sure the hook is tightly snug in the seem that is purposely made for the hooks. If it poking out the slightest bit, then there’s a chance you will snag up. As for colour selection, if you have seen any of my other blogs, I am not to fussed on colour selection, but always have favourites purely on looks such as Mud Brown & Mou.

When casting you want to ensure you are covering as much water as possible when retrieving. So cast in the direction of certain structures such as over hanging rocks, lily pads, tree branches, weeds, etc. Bonus points for getting it in the dark and risky spots such as tight cover under rocks or trees. Once casting into your tight structure of choice, I like to skip it back towards me with several pauses and will vary the length of the pauses. Some days the bass will hit the lure almost instantly and other days they will be feeding a lot slower, so a big, long pause will get the bite.

These fish will take you to amazing places will never cease to shock you with their hard-hitting aggression.