DocNsanE

I'm hoping to visit the property tomorrow evening. Will try to bring a spinning rod along and throw a wacky rig or something for a couple of minutes... just to see... I have no clue how much it would cost to stock a pond, but the pond is bordered by 2 other properties that I can tell... maybe I could get together with the other owners and work out a deal.

Hi! There's another pretty big thread on bank fishing already started that you might want to browse. But to answer your specific questions, it would help to know what kind of water you are fishing; depth, clarity, cover etc... Do you have access to a lot of the bank or are you stuck in a specific location?

Yeah as Choporoz said, the idea of closing the bail by hand is to limit loops forming on your spool. A great habit to develop is when you finish your cast, bring your line up to the roller and close the bail manually. It can potentially save you some issues with your line getting tangled on your spool over time.

If you only have one rod, I would personally go with braid mainline with a fluorocarbon leader

This post has some interesting info on patterns presented in an interesting way. http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/144620-cosmic-clock/?hl=calendar

That's a good point, I have no clue how deep it is. The pond definitely does freeze in the winter, as per this picture.

Thanks everyone for your time in answering my questions! Sounds like the odds of water being stagnant are fairly low based on the picture, also sounds like the odds of it having game fish is at least moderate to good. I'll book a visit with my realtor and we'll see what it looks like in person.

Thanks! It looks like a good habitat for bass at first glance, but it's incredibly difficult to tell. Maybe when I go visit with my real estate agent I'll throw a Ned Rig into the pond and see what happens It's encouraging to know that natural ponds can have fish in them, and from the sound of it, it's even probable. This is counter intuitive to me.

Would you have to stock the fish yourself? Can fish be found naturally in a pond? Or since there's no way in or out, that just wouldn't happen?

Hi, I'm looking for properties on a lake, or a river, or a pond so that I can fish right from my back/front yard. One of the places I spotted has a pond on it. Here's a picture of the pond: I have no experience with ponds and I am having a hard time understanding how ponds can sustain fish if ponds are still, stagnant water. In your experience, how likely is it that this pond has any fish in it? If there's no current, how does the water remain oxygenated? Is that entirely dependent on any aquatic vegetation? Wouldn't a stagnant pond like this be a heavenly breeding ground for mosquitoes and other annoying insects? I appreciate any information or opinions you may have. I quite like this place but I am not interested in buying a property if I can't fish on it, especially if the only thing it's good for is breeding those little biting scoundrels. Cheers!

Sounds like you are only using one crank bait? If so, it's time to switch things up. What kind of water are you fishing? Is it shallow, deep, muddy, clear, rocky, weedy, etc?

Yeah I feel for ya buddy, that's rough. I think we're pretty spoiled around here. I can fish a bay about 3 minutes away. I can get onto a big river in about 5 minutes. I can hit up a couple of lakes and good sized rivers within 30 minutes . And I've willing to drive an hour, there are dozens and dozen (hundreds?) of lakes! Of course a lot of these aren't actually readily accessible but I still have plenty of spots to choose from within a 30 minute radius. Look at all that blue! https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.5055117,-75.60966,11z Currently shopping for a House on a body of a water so that I can just step outside and cast from my dock whenever I get an itch. Unfortunately, the bass season is only starting in June here So you've still got me beat on that. However, Northern Pike is starting on May 15th so I've already booked my fishing partner for May 16th and so far the forecast is looking perfect.

I guess that makes sense... and since I don't do much offshore structure fishing, it would explain why my list matches up. Only offshore fishing I tend to do is weed lines and I'll use a lot of the same lures for that.

First order I ever made to basspro when I first got into fishing, I order three Minus 1s.... and I don't think I've ever fished them. Do you fish them in really shallow water? Or more over submerged vegetation? Or more like a square bill into laydowns? I need to tie one on this year.

Is there a reason this list would be different from what you would use on a lake? I haven`t really fished any ponds but most of these lists sound like what are my preferred lures on a lake.

Are we talking about Mann's Jelly Worm?

Welcome to the forums! Would help if you gave us an idea of the waters you are fishing.

As I said earlier, my Octopus hook gets hung up in weeds all the time, but for me it's actually helped. If you're moving your rod tip slowly, when you feel it snag, you can just release some tension and let it flutter back and you're fine.

I think it's a 2/0, probably bigger than it needs to be but I haven't had any issues with it, and I feel comfortable fishing with a medium heavy in vegetation and giving it a good hookset.

I'd rather contribute to the current discussion than argue whether it's been said before or not (which is almost certainly has). If the mods don't like it, they can lock it. I have had a lot of success with senko style baits (I typically throw Yum Dingers). Just like J Franco, I find skipping the bait when in shallow water makes a huge difference. I've also fished it effectively on a weightless wacky rig in about 10' of water with submerged vegetation. I have an excellent hook up ratio using an octopus hook. Often it will just land on top of the vegetation, and when it falls into the vegetation I will slowly lift the tip of my rod and let it fall again (I know this is very basic but leads to my next point...). Often when lifting the bait, I will hang in some grass, just shake it a couple of times and let it fall back on a slack line and this entices a huge number of strikes. Once again I know I'm not offering anything new here... but I love senkos too

Ah and here I was getting all hyped up because Hootie liked my contribution to his thread! I guess he still does even if it doesn't mean he necessarily agreed with my opinion

Another good tool to help understand the bottom composition is a heavy c-rig with a tungsten weight. A great tool to mentally map the bottom if you don't have a fish finder.

Came here to provide the first two tips, and T9 even added two others I hadn't thought of which are really good as well. In particular I think skipping the bait can often make a big difference.

good enough for me

I also opted for a LH retrieve even though I am right-handed. First of all, I am used to spinning reels so turning the handle with my left hand is already a natural motion. Secondly, I feel like using my dominant hand to control the rod gives me more control over my presentation (probably just a factor of confidence and experience) Finally, I'd rather not have to change hands every single cast. While it doesn't happen that often, I'd hate to get hit just as the lure hits the water and I am in the process of changing hands. To me this is all just a matter of preference, I don't think there is a wrong or a right way, just a question of what's comfortable and I am sure with some practice I could make the switch to rand hand retrieves fairly easily.