If I’m walking the bank of a pond or creek from late spring through fall, looking for whatever will bite, my starting lure is usually a Rebel Crickhopper. This little floating/diving insect-shaped crankbait is ideal for a multi-species, bank-walking approach.
A Crickhopper excels for the shoreline approach in part because it imitates forage that is normally found near the shore and that appeals to fish holding in shallow water. Because it floats, it’s easy to keep out of underwater snags and to control the positioning to fish near cover. It’s also small enough to appeal to many different fish species.
Fishing a Crickhopper
The Crickhopper is technically a shallow crankbait, and many anglers enjoy great success just casting and reeling. I fish it primarily as a topwater lure, though, because that presentation, in my mind, best matches the behavior of a displaced terrestrial insect.
After casting, I always let the bait rest a few seconds, at least. Fish hear the landing splash and cone to investigate, and often strike before I move the bait an inch. If none bite, or they peck at it but don’t quite commit (common with this lure), I begin working it on top, usually with small twitches of the rod tip.
Little twitches make the bait dance erratically on top, and it looks strikingly like a grasshopper that has found itself errantly on a pond’s surface and is trying desperately to find dry ground. I pause occasionally to match a bug trying to get oriented. Big strikes commonly come right after a pause.
Sometimes, instead of twitching the lure to make it dance, I’ll reel very slowly with the rod tip kept high. This makes a Crickhopper “wake,” wobbling along right at the surface.
I mix up actions and cadences and even throw in some slow cranking to see what the fish prefer any given day.
Crickhopper Models
- Original Crickhopper – 1 1/2 inches and weighs 3/32 ounce
- Bighopper – Same shape and action as original but slightly larger at 1 3/4 inches and 1/8 ounce
- Crickhopper Popper – Size and profile of Bighopper bit with a cupped popping face.
Fishing on Foot 