How to Use Surface Poppers

Fishing with surface poppers can be a thrilling experience since you often see the fish chase – and take – your lure. While surface poppers allow you to interact more with the fish than trolling, to optimize your experience, there are a few things to know about how to use surface poppers. 

A surface popper is a type of surface lure that skips across the water to attract fish. The unique thing about surface poppers is that they have a cupped face at the front that is designed to push out a surge of water on its retrieval. The sound and splash that results is supposed to mimic the movements of prey on the surface in order to attract fish.

When popper fishing, you’ll want to know the best popper fishing techniques to attract the species you’re after. 

Surface Popping Technique

There’s nothing quite like the sudden, exciting rush of a fish rising to the surface and exploding onto your lure. To master how to use surface poppers, follow these steps:

1. Select the right lure. Since surface poppers come in a variety of sizes and colors, learn the best popper for the species you want to catch, like the best popper lure for bass.
2. Know how to rig a popper lure so that it will float near the surface.
3. Cast your popper out to the target area and let it settle briefly.
4. Take in small amounts of line slowly, making small movements as you retrieve it. The cupped face “pops” along the surface will imitate the action of prey, such as small insects, small frogs or even a small injured fish.
5. To increase your chances of landing your catch as you learn how to use surface poppers, resist the urge to set the hook immediately when the fish strikes – let it take the popper under the water first – then set your hook firmly.

Mastering how to fish with this method will make for an adventure-filled day on the water!