Creepers/crawlers - used much?

[mainbutter]

Just a question I was thinking about the other day.

When I see people fishing topwaters, it seems that it's almost exclusively WTD/glider topwaters.

Does anyone use (or more specifically, get positive results from) other topwaters, particularly creepers/crawlers? They sure look interesting hanging there at tackle shops, with more hardware attached to them than a carpenter's tool belt.

[Musky_Madness]

Ive had some follows on them but more out of curiosity I think. I had one blow up on one in the dark late fall which was the most amazing yet depressing feeling ever when the line was still limp. I think that is where the problem lies. My dad had a blowup too on pacemaker and never hooked it. I dont know if its a weight issue that when the fish explodes on the lure the lure simply gets thrown or if the fish is exploding on the bubbles and misses the lure altogether. Quite possibly both.

[brad coin]

a hawg wobbler is a great metro lure

creepers are fantastic night lures and sept is primetime

the big problem with creepers is their wingspan, on lakes with milfoil its hard to complete a cast without the baits gathering weeds

one of the big reasons you dont see these used has much is they are slow retrieve baits and most guys dont/cant want to slow down,,how many boats do you pass by with the guy in the front tossing a double 10 and thje other guy ripping a bulldawg

[raiserlures]

I have a single prop top water on about half the time I'm fishing. The other part of the time its bucktails. I use a lot of raiders and have a lot of action on those overcast days and other active feeding times. I do use the creepers mainly up north over cabbage beds in the evening or after dark. There a good bait but you haft to reel them real slow.

[dcraven]

Creepers absolutely work or crawlers, such as the Hawg Wobbler. The Hawg Wobbler may be one of the best big fish surface baits out there. As said earlier, these baits are painfully slow baits and most don't want to fish that slowly. Fish, especially with the Hawg Wobbler, usually roll on the bait and eat it - truly meaning to eat it - which results in a good hooking ratio.

DC

[Musky Buck]

Mr. C on-line, you still taking people out ? I agree, but wouldn't the same fish that's hot on a creeper be hot on another surface bait also ? Maybe maybe not. With all of the guides I've fished with over the years none have even mentioned "creeper" so it's either a really good bait they don't want me to know about or most aren't tossing 1. In my book there's better options than a creeper. In my 23 years these blow up fish my belief is if they really wanted to crush it they would, these are top of the line predators that aren't going to miss it if they want it very often and less than 1% seem to ever come back on the next cast and if so never hot on it. You all may have had different experiences than I though.

[PropsterII]

We've had pretty good success on both. Prefer the AHL Whumper to the Hawg Wobbler but very similar. In our experience the hookup rate is good, probably because we fish them very slow and they usually don't miss it. I had one Leech Lake guy tell me his theory on why they often will get eaten over some of the other topwaters is because a fish can't just lazily follow them - they can't go that slow without wanting to bust something! Often on a creeper they come up and just slurp it in, where with the crawlers they seem to hit it pretty good.

[nater]

I agree that usually I can't slow down that much. I think I also lost confidence in them when I came back to fish at night that followed earlier in the day with nothing to show for it.

Two years ago in September on an inside milfoil edge I watched a nice fish slurp a creeper, but came off.

[ole matty]

Lost a huge fish on creeper last night. The speed doesn't bother me. Angle your cast ahead of the boat instead of straight out of boat. I was going .8-1 mph and creeper was almost never behind me and I wasn't fishing it fast.

[dcraven]

I still take people out but backed off, somewhat, now that I have a ten year-old. I fish w/him more now. Going out this afternoon on Leech. Teaching summer school in the mornings through tomorrow... I probably guide 2X per week on average. Last week I had four walleye or bass trips, though. I've seen fish hit creepie/crawlies after passing on walk the dog or other types of surface baits.

DC

[RK]

Hiya -

I prefer a hawg wobbler type (the American Hardwoods bait someone else mentioned is a great one) to creepers personally, but no question both can be big fish baits at times. You just have to use them judiciously I think, and either fish them on known spots at prime times, or on spots where you think you have a fish located.

To me there are two drawbacks to them. One is you can't cover much water with them. The other is, if you have a fish follow, you usually don't have speed as an option to try triggering them. That having been said, they're among the best hooking topwaters there are. Seems like the bigger the fish, the less commotion there is when they hit them. Sometimes they barely make a ripple.

I have to disagree with Musky Buck, though, on muskies being able to hit what they aim at when they really want to. Have seen too many of them miss too badly multiple times. They're just bad shots. Even with natural forage, they're supposedly only successful about 10% of the time. They also do, without question, 'blow up' on both surface and subsurface lures with no intention of eating them. They will have their mouth completely closed when they do it. I don't know whether it's territorial aggression, curiosity, or just not quite being triggered enough to actually eat, but there's no question in my mind there are times when they "hit" lures without trying to eat them. It's more obvious on topwaters, but they do the same with subsurface lures.

Dan's too busy working on his summertime deep water eelpout trolling technique to guide much. He's working on a book about it, I hear.

Cheers,

Rob Kimm

[dcraven]

I wonder if that would work? That would be neat - fresh eelpout year 'round....

DC

[john skarie]

Topwatwers are interesting. In the right conditions, a fast tail-bait will get every fish in the lake excited.

I do like the crawlers when it's really calm just before dark or in the morning. I think the slow bait is in the strike-zone longer, meaning sometimes fish just don't want to swim very fast or very far to get a bait, and the slow bait allows them to close the distance before the bait gets out of their strike-zone.

I've always been a pick it apart fishermen rather than a run and gun type, so I have no problem working crawlers and creepers. They take confidence though, so that's why most guides won't use them with clients.

Clients more than likely want to cover water and feel like they are getting more chances at more fish.

I've used the Hawg-Wobbler, H2O and various creepers all with good results.

Nothing better than topwater smashes!!

JS

[mainbutter]

Cool responses guys, really neat stuff to read

there's no question in my mind there are times when they "hit" lures without trying to eat them. It's more obvious on topwaters, but they do the same with subsurface lures.

I have to agree. I once had a musky smack a regular bulldawg with its tail about halfway through a retrieve. The 'ski darted right along side of it, kind of jerked its body and.. SMACK! I've always wondered how many of the handful of foul hooked fish of all species do that. Of course, it could still be a hunting technique, stun a fish before you bite it, I've seen it on Animal Planet plenty of times with saltwater species. I know silver salmon like to headbutt stuff.

I like to fish slow and really work an area at times, I really like the look of some of the non-WTD lures in the water. Maybe I need to pick one up

[RK]

Hiya -

I know when I'm bass fishing, where fish are hooked is something I pay a lot of attention to. If they're hooked outside their mouth on the cheek or just barely hooked, to me that's a signal that I don't have it quite right. When they're completely woofing a bait, and you have to stick your finger down into their mouth to unhook them, I know I have them wired.

Same would probably be true with muskies, but the number of contacts you have in a day are so small it's probably impossible to take much from it. As always with muskies, the hardest thing to overcome is the math.

[urban cowboy]

The Creeper and the Hawg Wobbler are my number one and two top water baits. I would highly recommend fishing them at night.

[MUSKY18]

Have loved the Hawg Wobbler for many years. Never really had the urge to throw creepers until I fished on LOTW with Chad Cain. I have seen him catch fish at night and during the daytime with them. Made me believe in them and I have fished them with success as well. Biggest fish I have ever seen in my life came following in on a creeper, couple of different times. Will agree with RK, there isn't a whole lots of options when a fish come following in. Can't really speed the bait up to try and trigger the fish.