A fun evening of river fishing with the Whopper Plopper 75! There's always plenty of exciting topwater action when I tie this lure on, let's see if we can get some smallies to smash it!
NDYakAngler merch: shorturl.at/jwCLR
Lure: River2Sea Whopper Plopper 75 amzn.to/3vw2S0f
Rod: St Croix BassX 6'6" M F amzn.to/3PyQbbS
Reel: Daiwa Zillion SV TW G amzn.to/3F6TCCc
Line: Trilene Sensation 14lb amzn.to/44rDODR
Pliers: Umpqua Rivergrip amzn.to/3ykw4ow
Net: Frabill 3673 amzn.to/39S8es0 (new floating version)
Anchor: Power Pole micro anchor amzn.to/3EHNcbo
Is anyone else deeply comforted by this man and his videos??
Yes; this is the Bob Ross of fishing...
Yes, all 393k of us! Cheers!
yup
Yeah man! I am.
Yes. I'm from Belarus and I watch his video every time.
Hey, Matt. We're right in the middle of a significant spring snowstorm here in Maine, so the chance to watch you fishing the river last summer-with green vegetation around you-was even more enjoyable than usual. I also really appreciate your describing in detail the differences between the original River-to-Sea Whopper Plopper and the many "clones" on the market. Now I know better than to be tempted by the more reasonable prices of the other variants. Hope that REAL spring reaches us both very soon. Best, Chris
That snow storm went through the last few days, no wind and snow now. Just a beautiful blanket
Same here my fellow Mainer! Makes me miss being out on the kayak!
Same thing here in Wisconsin.
So glad the snow stayed north of us here in Massachusetts! Heavy rain but I got to go fishing at least ( even caught a few ) stay safe in the snow , hopefully you’ll be out fishing soon
Ain’t it nice? Buffalo here and we just got another 8”🤬
I started topwater fishing on my local river 5 years ago because of your videos and information. Kayak fishing has changed my life nowadays. I have all my friends hooked and the muskies and smallmouth are plentiful on my stretch. Truly something special I’ve gained from this. Life long memories made with my friends too
That’s great to hear, congrats! It’s hard to beat a day on a river with smallies and muskie roaming around!
Рыбалка на лодке это вообще бомба!
"The worst day of fishing is better than the best day of working."
After all this time, I still can't get over how wholesome these videos are. I enjoy listening to the passion in the voice and watching the content. Thank you for this!
"I still can't get over how wholesome these videos are." 100% agree-videos like this with content like which was *once* considered "normal" [whatever that means today], are becoming more scarce. Sadly, people overall seem less genuine-it's all about the $$$/ads etc vs simply doing what you enjoy doing. The comments sections are a beast all their own regardless of the video topic-from metal detectors to watch/shoe repair [lol], they often reflect the opposite of "wholesome." But what do ya expect from people/nations that want nothing to do with biblical truth because it's an inconvenience to their lifestyles?
The Bob Ross of fishing. Damn near every cast is a work of art. Regardless of the lure he always finds a way to catch fish. Then to listen to his commentary with that calm, cool tone, it relaxes you like you are sitting behind him in a tandem kayak just going for a relaxing ride. All in quintessential NDYakAngler fashion. Never stop doing these videos, you have a forever subscriber here. I will end with a THANK YOU.🙏
Thanks! I’m gonna keep making these videos as long as I can!
I said this to myself the other day! The Bob Ross of fishing! 👍
Hi
Man, that hit gave me an adrenaline rush just watching the video!
I think I was more upset that he was when the fish came off. 😅
Yeah, that was painful to not at least get a good look at that fish, lol
Definitely a critter of the 'toothed' variety.
If you could put it in a pipe, I would smoke it.
Yes! The Bob Ross of fishing videos.
110% correct. 👍🏼
Watching this on Saturday morning while Summer is on the way is the best feeling bro. Keep it up
I can’t wait for some topwater action this summer!
I watched this channel 2years ago before my fiancé left me…. Ima watch it now. This dude has something special, rep the gang bro ❤ Jesus is lord
I was glad to see I am not the only one that casts lures into trees and logs! Nice day, good fish.
You have to….price to pay. They love cover to ambush
Casting onto a log or rock is a good way to pluff a lure right into a lie. Also, with a large leaf, you can float a lure or bait downstream into a tangled spot.
Whopper Plopper coming out of retirement! Love it 😆 Thanks for not editing out the lost fish.. we all experience the rush of a fish getting off the hook right at the boat. Would have loved to see that musky, but good on you for showing the real stuff that happens out there on the river!
I changed to Gamakatsu G-finesse hooks and started to put them in the boat more often. I also attached a ball bearing snap swivel on the front of the lure and it keeps the lure from spinning and twisting your line. Keep the great videos coming!!
Why is NDYakAngler my favorite KZhead video source? He is a good guy and a great fisherman. His discipline in keeping his head focused on the lure is the best. His skill in editing makes the videos smooth and flowing. He shares his lures and techniques freely with his viewers. His stream of consciousness dialog seems to mirror my own thoughts as I travel along with him. He is the perfect fishing companion.
Brother I gotta tell you. Your videos really are a wonderful and inspiring experience. Your settings and locations are not just thriving with worthy fish but theyre loaded with beautiful nature, moving water, dancing water plants and trees and most exciting, the explosive action provided by plump, healthy, energetic fish. It seems your videos inspire me to get up and get out to throw some lines. These "Whopper Ploppers" really do trigger some insane action by a variety of fish. I absolutely plan to add a few to my kit. I have always been a fan of top water fishing. My go to has been the Jitterbug or on the occasion, a home made rig. However, after watching all this explosive action, the Whopper Plopper will absolutely find its way into my box.
The Whopper Plopper is one of my favorite lures for summer fishing! They’re fun and effective for bass, pike, and muskie. I’ll usually go with the 75 size for smallies, the 110 for largemouth and pike, and the 130 if there’s bigger pike or muskie around.
We're getting lots of snow and ice here in upstate NY, so it's a real treat to see a new video from Matt! Thanks for the pick-me-up! I think I'll go sort through my tackle box and start thinning it out (HAH!) for opening day - that's only a couple or three months away! Thanks again, Matt!
Feels like just yesterday I found this channel, and was telling my friends about this little hidden gem of a channel that had maybe 15K subs. The success is well earned, and certainly deserved by Matt
I always loved watching the fish jump out of the water and flipping to try and spit the hook. Something so beautiful about it
Dude that big fish you lossed was a giant.. holy crap!!
Those big ones just make a different sound when they hit top water. I wanted to see it.
Your content inspired me to get a fishing kayak. Thank you for sharing 👍🏼
That’s awesome! My only regret is that I didn’t get one about ten years before I did!
@@ndyakangler Kayaks are not cheap I’ll just say that 😂. But it’s totally worth the investment. Just want to say I’ve been watching the channel for a few years now and I love the content. Keep up the amazing work!
I love the Ploppers. Gona have to grab one of the 75's.
Nothing makes me happier than a new video from Matt using the Whopper Plopper! Easily my favorite lure!
Texas dude here, i just caught my first smallie about 10 days ago and they fight sooo hard! I caught a 1 3/4 lber and it fought wayyy harder than a largie over double its size.
This is one of the top fishing KZhead channels and we all need to subscribe to help keep it going. Smallmouth Bass in clearish moving water is the best.
As I’m watching this it’s still winter up here in northern Canada, and the sound of those summer birds is almost better than watching the great fishing.
Right?! I’m in Alberta and we got tricked. It was 16c just a couple days ago, and now I just got inside from shovelling 😂
Just the wind, water, birds and splashing fish. Matt has said nature is his music. I think that’s what he said. Maybe he just can’t get the rights to ACDC’s Thunderstruck. Idk. Summers coming my northern brothers! Soon you’ll be up to your eyeteeth in skeeters.
@@huskergator9479 hahahah yeah fair enough! I totally forgot about the mozzies 😫. Hopefully I’ll have a better setup in the back of my truck to kept those rascals out!
Purple!? I wish we coulda had some bright sunlight on that oddity. Bravo.
Yeah we were getting low on light and it didn’t show up as well on camera but that fish definitely had a blueish/purple tint to it.
A lot of people have told me the best way to fish a plopper is just a straight retrieval and it’s one of my number 1 go to lures, but I have also found success doing stop and goes like you were in this video. More I think on the straight reel in but that could be just because I fish that way more. I don’t know but I’m gonna give the slow jerks a little more of a try, especially in tiny area where there isn’t much room to feel it of cast it.
It all depends on what kind of mood the fish are in. On rivers I usually know exactly where the fish are hiding so I pop my lure more to keep it close to those structure spots longer. On open water I’ll steady retrieve it more. The more water I cover the more active fish I’ll get my lure in front of.
Some days they stick, and others they don’t! Just part of fishing!! Cheers mate!
That’s gotta be the most explosive topwater strike I’ve ever seen on this channel. Insane. Matt- your mission this season: get back there and bring him to the net!
Smallmouths are so much fun to fish!
I like how you add 1/4-1/2” on every fish even though we can see it on camera like a true fisherman! Was fun watching.
Most of the time when people call me out on that they’re just reading my ruler wrong. The number is around 1/4” past the line it represents, with a little arrow pointing to the line that’s really tough to see on the GoPro footage.
That take on the intro was explosive. Wonderful to watch,even better when it's on your line.great video. Thanks for taking us along.i actually felt your pain when the fish got off.
Hey Sir, Love this video at the end of Winter here. I think I first started watching your videos because the rivers you fish are so similar to the ones here and SMB are so fun. Thanks for sharing
Right in the middle of a big snowstorm. My fishing fever has officially risen to unsafe levels
Thanks for the beautiful summer video during our snowy winter. That odd colored bass looked blue to me. It seems after watching your videos for a number of years that smallies have a variety of markings and coloration. Some have had pronounced stripes, some neat markings on their heads, some have been a golden color and some have been very dark. My dad fished bass in western Wisconsin and he called smallies 'black bass.' A great fish in great videos.
the purpleish smallie was super neat. love finding fish with different colors and patterns!
What a treat on a chilly march day. some summer smallies surface strikes. Those are healthy fish. Thank you
I bought one 1yr ago and I can say it’s my favorite to use and the sound it makes in the water is amazing
It’s hard to beat a day of Whopper Ploppin, so much fun!
Absolutely great content. This was a really nice evening you had! Thanks for sharing.
Best Lure ever made second to the buzz bait! Love your channel! Keep up the good work.
Gotta love smallies!
i just can't get tired watch topwater bites.
You have some great water available. Love watching!
Thanks for the upload from last summer, got me pumped up for the upcoming year.
What more could you ask for in a fishing video Utterly superb Matt Thank you top notch 👍🏼
It's finally spring and a wonderful season for bass fishing.
They just seemed to start getting active here in S. NJ. Been killing it on the “bladed jig”.
We got teased with a couple weeks of really nice spring weather here and the lakes opened up early, then straight back to winter lol
6:20 "You never know" MY MOTTO
Exactly I actually saw the “hole” and thought wow I would drop something there and a second later he did. For sure fish hanging out there during times
Nothing better than Topwater fishing!! A spook, torpedo, and whopper plopper are the main 3 lures I use on the river 👍 great video as always!
I agree 100 percent! 👌
Try the savage gear 8” snake. I catch em big and small on my river. Not as good as super spook jr. But close
@luketw2818 I’ll have to try that. I have the savage gear rat and mouse but may give the snake a try sometime 👍
What a beautiful river! Thanks for taking us along. I'm hoping to put a Florida bass or two in the canoe Saturday morning with the Whopper Plopper. It's a little larger style but, still a plopper.
I can commiserate with you after watching 3 out of the first 4 fish you hung shake the lure. Although I have had wonderful experiences with this lure, this video has reminded me of how many fish I have hung only to have them shake the lure during the fight. Interestingly, most of them have shaken the lure while on a taut line after 10-20 turns of the reel (without jumping) after what I thought was a good hook set. I have learned that waiting a few seconds after the initial attack on the lure (longer than I would wait on a frog) helps with the hook-set, but not always.
When people ask me why I don't like FFS in fishing, I'm just going to show them the first 15 seconds of this video. THAT'S why I love fishing. I'm jumped out of my seat for a second. LOL
Bro gets more action than i do in 1/2 of summer.
After discovering your channel 3 years ago i swear by the whopper plopper. I started using the same one used in this video. Last year, I started using the size 90 loon pattern, caught way more fish and lost a lot less. Last summer I caught 7 musky and a ton of smallies on one plopper and its still going strong. Definitely my go to lure while river fishing
Great video as always! I put a swivel and split ring on my ploppers to avoid line twist.
I might have to try that!
Great vid! Beautiful river! The fish are using the bait as leverage to pop off and throw the hook. Easy fix is to add an extra split ring so the hooks have more freedom and less chance of them throwing the hook due to leverage. 🏆🎣
It’s usually not a problem when they’re hitting a little more aggressively and I get my hooks in them better. I think here early summer they were just kind of nipping and swiping at the lure.
I've said this before, but I cannot get over the quality of smallmouth fishing in your area. I live in California, which should have a longer growth season, but there is nowhere in the state where you can catch smallies of this quality/quantity.
I’ve fished several rivers in MN and had no problem finding a bunch of 3-4lb smallies. They seem to grow thick and healthy up here!
@@ndyakangler That's what's so amazing. All the rivers around here with smallies are choked with 6-10" fish. Even in remote areas where I am positive there is negligible fishing pressure.
Some nice tanks this time! Enjoyed starting my day with your video.
Great video. I’m getting ready to head back to N MN for the summer. This top water action certainly has me stoked for the upcoming season. Fully agree that the Wopper Plopper is a awesome top water lure.
Thanks, Matt, for some awesome heart pounding top water smallie fishing on a beautiful river in July! I can't wait, it's right around the next bend! Take care and be safe!
man, i could (and do) watch these videos all day!
Great show! Great fish can't wait till next show.
I've been watching your videos for a couple years now and I now finally getting a kayak! Your videos make wanna go fishing everyday. Thank you for what you do sir.
Being snowed in right now makes me miss this even more than I already do!
Gotta love when they T- Bone it! Cheers bud.
Just got 4 inches of snow yesterday and woke up to 8° this morning. And another storm coming tomorrow that could give us a foot of snow 😢😢. Need this. Thanks for sharing this with us
Your not alone
Seems like everyone is getting hit with snow! We’re supposed to get 8” here the next couple days.
75 and overcast in upstate South Carolina. I really feel for both of you. My family left northern Ohio 40yrs ago to get away from the white stuff, and we rarely experienced snow depths like that. Hopefully this storm will be the last of winter for you guys. Cheers to sunshine and warm weather.
Man you are the coolest and calm fisherman. I would be so excited that I would have to take a break!
Matt that was an absolute banger. Displays of transparency and lost fish or two then the redemption that follows for our benefit. Punctuated by a solid 16 going airborne and you exclaiming Nice!! You parlay that by paddling to pace the current and running gunslinger off the banks netting a string of 18 plus smallies. Epic journey thanks for taking us along brother. Blessings
I wish I could have seen what that big fish was but I can’t complain about a bunch of 18” smallies hitting topwater!
@@ndyakangler so true my friend. I would always want to know or have seen more of the ones that got away but I savor the landed/boated/netted fish all the more
Thank you for share brother
Man, the fisheries you have up there are freakin world class. Damn!
I absolutely love the Whopper Plopper 75; I used it last fall against Largemouth. It slays! I can't wait to finally go after some Smallies this year. Never been able to fish for Smallies so I'm excited to finally get out there and slay some fish.
I found an old blog on a site called bass resource that says Bass will turn bluish color if they eat food high in fat. It sounds like the fish in that case were pellet fed from a feeder machine. When they adjusted the food their color changed back. On my screen that Bass definitely had strange bluish color.
Just got hammered with 5+" of snow where I am, so this video really got me jonesing to be back out on the water...! 😮 Plan to pick up some Ploppers when Mother Nature is finally done with her hissy fit. Thanks for another awesome video...!!! ❤ Gonna keep living vicariously through you until it warms up...!
I think we’re getting that weather here the next couple days.
Absolutely love it
New drinking game! Take a drink every time he says "Smallee" lol. Love the videos and the calm voice over! One of our favorite fishing channels.
Great show on the wopper popper I have one and use it all the time it's great
Wow ! Awesome day catching !
I just started using whoppers last year and they are so exciting when they are hitting them!
Another one from saved vault all your videos never seen you loose so many. Would of loved to seen that river moster landed. 👍👍🦈
Awesome video!! Love your top water videos. Makes me feel a little better with the amount of fish I don't land
Just ordered a plopped in 75 on your recommendation. Great vid; I always enjoy your posts!
Man brother absolute great consistency
That big hit looked like an esox eruption to me! My experience with both northerns and muskies is this: They move more water than the bass when they fully commit. The last fish... I had to chuckle because I was like, "hit that spot to the right!" Then you did and BAM! Thanks for testing the spot for me!
Perfect way to unwind after digging myself out of a foot of snow *that's still falling in the northeast this morning ☕
We’re supposed to get around 8” of snow here the next couple days. We need it though it’s been a dry mild winter here.
Excellent footage
Heddons 'Dying Flutter' is my ol fave
The wopper plopper is one of my fave all time lures, pike love them, I convinced the sound they make is the key...Certain speeds make the key sound...Your vids are great!!!
Awesome video!!! River fishing is so much fun. Especially when it’s top water.
Got my PB Brook Trout last week, but can't go fishing today because of heavy rains. Nice to see some topwater blow-ups. It gets me pumped!
I love that Topwater HIT especially with a whopper Plopper and a buzz bait
Love the videos ❤keep cranking them big smallies
I live up in Ontario, so far the conditions have not been fishable, atleast I’m able to enjoy the video and live vicariously through you :)
Seriously man, love your videos, great day on the water and big ass smallies!
Love this channel! Haven't seen ya for a spell but glad you're posting!! Have a great weekend!!
I struggle with the 75🤣 I love the 90. I also appreciate the fact that you don’t use electronics on the yak💯
I don’t see any need for electronics on a clear shallow river like this. I can see with my eyes a lot more than the fish finder can.
It’s been a while since I fished but I always liked the rattling chug bug for largemouth bass.
You jinxed your Plopper. Best lure ever. Lol
That’s probably what it was! I talked it up too much at the start!
I went fishing with a whopper popper in the middle of the night. Best experience with a whopper popper ever.
Great fishing there matt keep it up the good fishing and the pike ones 🎣✌️
Thank you !!!
Great stuff as usual. I am always amazed that there is no one fishing this great river besides Matt. Lake bias in MN I guess.
It’s getting more and more traffic every year but it’s still a spot that takes a little effort, no concrete boat launch for the weekend anglers to back their bass boat down so I can usually find a stretch I can have to myself.
you have the fishing days I dream of