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Love or hate invasive snakeheads, their popularity as a recreational target only continues to grow. Throughout their range on the East Coast, snakehead fishing tournaments are well attended, more lure companies are making snake-specific baits, and more people are figuring out that “dragons” make for an outstanding fish fry. Want to join the hunt? If you’re ready to hit the swamps, bogs, creeks, and backwaters this season, here are the best snakehead lures that you absolutely must have in your arsenal.
How I Picked the Best Snakehead Lures
Given the opportunity to fish for largemouth bass or snakeheads, I’ll chase dragons every time. I’ve been fishing for snakeheads up and down the East Coast for years with some of the best anglers in the game. What follows is a collection of lures that work in a variety of conditions. Think of this as a snakehead starter kit.
Read Next: How to Catch Snakeheads
Hollow-Body Frog
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I don’t care what anybody says, if you’re targeting snakeheads in prime season—meaning when the air and water are warm—there is no better or more versatile lure than a hollow-body frog. So, what’s the best one? As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t matter. There are hundreds of frogs on the market. Some have rubber skirt tails, some have shiny spinner blades for legs, while others have anatomically correct kicking legs. I’ve used frogs made by Japanese companies that will set you back nearly $20 and budget frogs I nabbed for $3 from an overstock outlet store. Snakeheads have pounced on all of them. Here’s why.
It’s my opinion that a snakehead in hunting mode that’s cruising around close to the surface looking to make a kill isn’t too picky. There are exceptions to that, of course, especially in areas where snakeheads see a lot of frogs. But by and large, the fish is going to simply react to the sound and movement. I personally think black frogs catch more snakeheads, but at the same time I’ve caught loads on neon pink, yellow, white, chartreuse, and every color in the rainbow. So, don’t overthink your frog choice.
What really makes frogs the best, however, is that they’re one of only a few lures that can perform in the sloppy, mucky, weed-choked, pad-filled areas snakeheads prefer. And finally, on a personal note, what attracts me to snakeheads is their vicious surface strikes. While you can certainly catch them sub-surface, I don’t get the same rush when I stick them this way.
Finesse-Style Soft Plastics
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One of my all-time favorite sub-surface lures for snakeheads is a 5 1/4-inch Zoom Super Fluke in white or chartreuse. Any color will work, but I gravitate to light tones because they’re easier for me to track during the retrieve—and if the white Fluke suddenly disappears in dark water, I know to swing away. I usually have a second rod pre-rigged with a Fluke whenever I’m snakeheading in case I see an inactive fish laid up on the bottom or if a fish tracks a frog on the surface but doesn’t commit. In that scenario, a quick flick and twitch of the Fluke often makes the rebound. But these styles of bait have other benefits.
Like hollow-body frogs, a finesse-style soft-plastic will run cleanly and snag-free through vegetation and over wood. You also don’t need to maintain constant motion to bring them to life. A Fluke will sink slowly on the pause, and shimmy with the slightest twitch of the rod tip, allowing you to keep it in a snakehead’s face longer than other lures. Just make sure you rig it on a heavy-gauge wipe gap hook that won’t bend when you set.
Chatterbait
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Get it From Tackle Warehouse
Chatterbaits are comprised of a weighted jig with a rubber skirt tail that waves, wags, and wiggles during the retrieve. At the nose of the lure is a hexagonal blade which deflects water while you reel, causing the bait to shimmy and quiver while putting out loads of flash and vibration. Like hollow-body frogs and finesse plastics, the Chatter Bait has become a trusted staple among snakeheaders because it can run through some nasty cover and doesn’t get hung up in hard structure easily.
I know several snakehead junkies who claim chatterbaits will rack up numbers of fish faster than frogs during the summer, which may be true, but again, they rob you of that killer surface smash. Still, I’ve saved many trips with a chatterbait. During cold fronts or when the water is off-color, these lures can be the only thing that makes the play. And when a snakehead hits one, it hits hard.
Read Next: How to Fish a Chatterbait
Buzzbait
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The sound of a buzzbait’s propellor slicing through the surface is very powerful. As it spins, it also creates a bubble trail that fish can follow to the skirted jig riding just below that loud, fast-spinning blade. Though buzzbaits can struggle a bit in extra-thick vegetation, they kill along weed and pad edges that hungry snakes patrol. The hits are huge, which kind of presents a problem.
The one drawback of buzzbaits is that many you’ll find on shop shelves aren’t strong enough for snakeheads. Their mouths are much harder than those of largemouth bass, so it’s not uncommon for them to bend or break upon the hookset. Even if you survive that part, a spinning, jumping snakehead can twist a buzzbait like a paperclip. A great option is the In-line Octane Buzz from High Octane Custom Lures. It’s built specifically for snakeheads and features a heavy-gauge hook and thick wire commonly found in muskie lures.
Honorable Mentions
- Spooks. Though tough to use in vegetation, Spook-style surface-walking baits are killers in open water scenarios.
- In-Line Spinners. If the area you’re fishing is clean enough for treble hooks, a large in-line spinner can put a hurt on snakeheads.
- Spinnerbaits. While largely outshined by chatterbaits these days, classic spinnerbaits cut through grass nicely and get a snakehead’s attention fast.
- Swimbaits. Lures like the Storm Shad or Keitech Swing Impact are great options for early and late in the season when the vegetation isn’t in full bloom.
Final Thoughts on the Best Snakehead Lures
Snakehead fishing at its very best is a topwater game, at least in my opinion. It’s hard to beat the excitement that comes with that violent slashing strike on a frog or buzzbait. But I’ll always have subsurface lures along for my snakehead missions, too. Because, to be fair, all snakehead bites are thrilling.
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