Early fall is prime time for bass fishing buzz toads in the lily pads. Frogs migrate to these mud-bottomed areas (pad fields) to hibernate, and bass intercept them during this migration. Wired2Fish’s McKeon “Keys” Roberts explains why he prefers buzz toads over hollow body frogs during this early fall transition and the gear required to fish them effectively.
TACKLE USED:
- Old Town Predator PDL Kayak
- Culprit Incredi-Frog, Bullfrog Color
- Mustad Grip-Pin Soft Plastic Hook
- 13 Fishing Omen Black 3 Casting Rod, 7’1″ Hvy
- 13 Fishing Concept A2 Casting Reel, 8.3:1
- Sufix 832 Braided Line, 40lb
- Buzz toads sink. This allows you to let the bait go subsurface, a powerful trigger for bass accustomed to feeding on real frogs that dive in all directions to evade predation.
- Easier to penetrate. A single hook penetrates easier than a dual hook. You can “feed” a soft buzz boat to the bass a bit longer and set the hook much like when fishing Texas rig.
- More disturbance. Like a buzzbait, a toad makes more surface commotion than a hollow body frog – this can trigger aggressive reaction strikes and lead to more fish catches.
- Fish faster. You can cover water quicker using a toad, which is especially important when searching for bass when fishing lakes with pad fields.
