Good morning everyone. It is 11:30 here in southern NJ and I'm putting a plan together for today and it got me wondering what all of you out there would do with the conditions here. The water temp is between 45-50 degrees and rising but to be just a little more specific it's approximately 47 right now. Today's high is going to be around 57 and we have a moderate wind out of the WSW with gusts up to 35 MPH. Today is going to be mostly sunny with a few scattered clouds mixed in. I'm fishing a pond that tops out at about 4- 4 1/2 feet deep and is mostly clear with a very, very light stain at times but that is not really a factor right now because of all the clear water we've had this season. Last night we got a steady rain for a few hours that added an inch or two to the overall water level and raised the temp by a degree or two. So with those conditions what would you guys use? Oh one last bit of information, the primary cover in this pond is grass. I think that about covers all the important information needed to make a plan. Thanks in advance!

suspending jerkbait, a jig near and wood or rocks, square bill crankbait deflected off of cover, or a slow rolled spinnerbait.

 

Have you caught fish at this pond before ? Max depth of 4 1/2 feet..  Are there other ponds that are open ?

4.5' max depth? Whoah, after this winter I would check if there are any fish left in that pond.

If it just rained, I would work the area where water run off is entering the pond. Ponds in my area are drainage ponds and usually have a pipe where water runs in. I find that it seems that every fish in the pond will be hanging out near that pipe to see what new food will be coming in. If you have that situation, it doesn't matter what you throw, feeding fish will be there to eat. 

I guess I should have said this is the open but it didn't occur to me to do so. Yes I fish this pond every year and yes there are many fish in there, actually there is a surprisingly high diversity of fish in there. I've caught bass obviously, northerns, yellow perch, crappie, blue gills, carp, and I even hooked a small catfish. The cat I think someone threw in there as a joke. This year alone I've caught three bass a 26 inch pike and two decent crappie. I started this thread just to see what everyone else would do if faced with the conditions I have here today. Thanks again, hopefully the added information helps to clear things up.

slow and big suspended , Rage lobster ( i love the white color) but a lot will say blues,  greens match the food supply. , -- double colorado all black spinner slow slow --- 26" pike tells me there is good food,  give them something of substance so they want to eat it.

throw something thats different than they normally see,  make them investigate it.  white rage craw weightless let it drop , bounce it around,    find the structure ,  dropoff ? water flowing in?    is it spring fed?  is there a dam or beaver hut anywhere?