Stan Fagerstrom
07-15-2004, 12:02 PM
“Small Ponds Sometimes Mean Big Bass”
Part One
By Stan Fagerstrom
I stopped well back from the shore of the pond we were approaching.
"Hold it right here, Bill," I told my companion. "From now on we crawl on our hands and knees. The fish in this little pond are really spooky. We won't so much as get a hit if we don't sneak up on 'em"
I'm not sure my friend believed what I told him that morning many years ago. He did later in the day. I showed him where to cast his surface lure while we were still hidden in the tall grass along the edge of the pond. A 4-pounder smashed into the floating plug on the third twitch. It was
one of a half dozen dandy fish we caught before the trip was over.
I've had the good fortune over the past 50 years to fish across much of the United States. Now and then I've been surprised by the excellent fishing in some out of the way small pond. Sometimes they were ponds that didn't look like they were big enough to hold a 6-inch perch, let alone a
10-pound bass. Often they were on private property. Darn near all regions of the United States have their share of this kind of water.
http://www.ifish.net/sfflemingslake.jpg
Sometimes small lakes or ponds hold dandy bass and panfish. The lake in this photo is less than 100 acres. It's loaded with bass and bluegill.
I know, for example, about a little lake in northern California where a friend of mine used to fish years ago. He lived in the shadow of majestic Mount Shasta, but it wasn’t that area's sizeable Lake Shastina or Lake Siskiyou he liked to fish most. That distinction belonged to a small lake in the same region that was on private property. My friend was one of the few who had access to that small body of water. If I told you how many fish he took out of it---and put back in again---you wouldn't believe me.
If there's one thing I've learned over the years it's this: It isn't the size of the body of water that's important, it's how much pressure it gets. One time my nephew and I stumbled onto a small lake on the Long Beach peninsula in Washington State. This is the slender finger of land that's off to the north of where the Columbia River dumps into the Pacific Ocean. This was a long time ago. In those days most fishermen who got that close to salt water weren't interested in ponds that might hold panfish or bass. They were all fired up about salmon or sturgeon.
That was just fine with my nephew and me. The two of us wound up catching 28 bass in just a couple of hours on that little lake and we could only fish from one limited stretch of the shoreline.
I’ve had similar experiences in other areas.
http://www.ifish.net/sfgregpondbass.jpg
The small lake in the background produces lots of dandy bass like the one this angler took from it. The lake is on private property. Few anglers get to fish it and those that do practice catch-and-release. That's why the lake remains as good as it is year after year.
I've often had good luck fishing small ponds with smaller lures. That hasn’t been true all of the time, but it’s a good way to start. Don’t rule out using larger lures. Sometimes they work as well or even better. It’s never wise to make up your mind just what bass will do in advance. I learned long ago I don't know any more about bass than I do about blondes---and that ain’t much. Both change their minds often enough to drive you bonkers.
I keep a small backpack tackle box for much of my pond bass fishing. It holds plenty of lures and it’s especially handy when I have to do a good bit of walking. Sometimes, especially if it’s a brief evening trip, I use one of those little boxes you can attach to your belt. It holds a variety of small baits and I'm usually able to find out what it is the fish will take. I always make certain I have lures that can be fished on top, in the mid-depths and along the bottom.
What are some of those baits? If I had to stick to just one lure for small pond fishing, I'd look long and hard at little jigs tipped with a miniature plastic worm. There are a variety of these kinds of lures available. More often than not I’ll likely start with a 2-inch curly tailed worm with a 1/16th-ounce leadhead. The main reason I take this route is that those fine little lures provide a fine way to find out what a small lake or pond holds. Bass will smack such a set up and so will crappie and bluegill.
Smaller spinnerbaits are another good bet. The same is true of in-spinners and there is a wide variety for you to choose from. The Mack’s Lure Promise Keeper is an example. These fine little lures come with either single or treble hooks. If you use one with a single hook, don’t hesitate to attach a small piece of pork rind to trail along behind. I’ve also whacked pond bass big time on occasions using a small spinner tipped with a 2-inch curly tailed grub. If you're going to limit yourself to three colors with either the small spinnerbaits or the in-line variety get black, white and chartreuse.
Again---I’m not saying that small lures are always the best bet for small pond bass. If you’ve read my columns over the years you know one of my pet theories where bass are concerned is that the word “always” should be eliminated from your piscatorial vocabulary. That’s because a bass doesn’t “always” do anything. What works here might not work there, etc. etc.
In the next issue of this column we’ll take a closer look at the potential offered by small lakes and ponds that are often overlooked by fishermen everywhere.
-To Be Continued-
Part One
By Stan Fagerstrom
I stopped well back from the shore of the pond we were approaching.
"Hold it right here, Bill," I told my companion. "From now on we crawl on our hands and knees. The fish in this little pond are really spooky. We won't so much as get a hit if we don't sneak up on 'em"
I'm not sure my friend believed what I told him that morning many years ago. He did later in the day. I showed him where to cast his surface lure while we were still hidden in the tall grass along the edge of the pond. A 4-pounder smashed into the floating plug on the third twitch. It was
one of a half dozen dandy fish we caught before the trip was over.
I've had the good fortune over the past 50 years to fish across much of the United States. Now and then I've been surprised by the excellent fishing in some out of the way small pond. Sometimes they were ponds that didn't look like they were big enough to hold a 6-inch perch, let alone a
10-pound bass. Often they were on private property. Darn near all regions of the United States have their share of this kind of water.
http://www.ifish.net/sfflemingslake.jpg
Sometimes small lakes or ponds hold dandy bass and panfish. The lake in this photo is less than 100 acres. It's loaded with bass and bluegill.
I know, for example, about a little lake in northern California where a friend of mine used to fish years ago. He lived in the shadow of majestic Mount Shasta, but it wasn’t that area's sizeable Lake Shastina or Lake Siskiyou he liked to fish most. That distinction belonged to a small lake in the same region that was on private property. My friend was one of the few who had access to that small body of water. If I told you how many fish he took out of it---and put back in again---you wouldn't believe me.
If there's one thing I've learned over the years it's this: It isn't the size of the body of water that's important, it's how much pressure it gets. One time my nephew and I stumbled onto a small lake on the Long Beach peninsula in Washington State. This is the slender finger of land that's off to the north of where the Columbia River dumps into the Pacific Ocean. This was a long time ago. In those days most fishermen who got that close to salt water weren't interested in ponds that might hold panfish or bass. They were all fired up about salmon or sturgeon.
That was just fine with my nephew and me. The two of us wound up catching 28 bass in just a couple of hours on that little lake and we could only fish from one limited stretch of the shoreline.
I’ve had similar experiences in other areas.
http://www.ifish.net/sfgregpondbass.jpg
The small lake in the background produces lots of dandy bass like the one this angler took from it. The lake is on private property. Few anglers get to fish it and those that do practice catch-and-release. That's why the lake remains as good as it is year after year.
I've often had good luck fishing small ponds with smaller lures. That hasn’t been true all of the time, but it’s a good way to start. Don’t rule out using larger lures. Sometimes they work as well or even better. It’s never wise to make up your mind just what bass will do in advance. I learned long ago I don't know any more about bass than I do about blondes---and that ain’t much. Both change their minds often enough to drive you bonkers.
I keep a small backpack tackle box for much of my pond bass fishing. It holds plenty of lures and it’s especially handy when I have to do a good bit of walking. Sometimes, especially if it’s a brief evening trip, I use one of those little boxes you can attach to your belt. It holds a variety of small baits and I'm usually able to find out what it is the fish will take. I always make certain I have lures that can be fished on top, in the mid-depths and along the bottom.
What are some of those baits? If I had to stick to just one lure for small pond fishing, I'd look long and hard at little jigs tipped with a miniature plastic worm. There are a variety of these kinds of lures available. More often than not I’ll likely start with a 2-inch curly tailed worm with a 1/16th-ounce leadhead. The main reason I take this route is that those fine little lures provide a fine way to find out what a small lake or pond holds. Bass will smack such a set up and so will crappie and bluegill.
Smaller spinnerbaits are another good bet. The same is true of in-spinners and there is a wide variety for you to choose from. The Mack’s Lure Promise Keeper is an example. These fine little lures come with either single or treble hooks. If you use one with a single hook, don’t hesitate to attach a small piece of pork rind to trail along behind. I’ve also whacked pond bass big time on occasions using a small spinner tipped with a 2-inch curly tailed grub. If you're going to limit yourself to three colors with either the small spinnerbaits or the in-line variety get black, white and chartreuse.
Again---I’m not saying that small lures are always the best bet for small pond bass. If you’ve read my columns over the years you know one of my pet theories where bass are concerned is that the word “always” should be eliminated from your piscatorial vocabulary. That’s because a bass doesn’t “always” do anything. What works here might not work there, etc. etc.
In the next issue of this column we’ll take a closer look at the potential offered by small lakes and ponds that are often overlooked by fishermen everywhere.
-To Be Continued-