Any suggestions for a landing net that would be compact and might be handy for bank fishing ponds? Typically, I wouldn't really consider it, but, some of the ponds have steep banks, like the dam side, and I typically don't even try them because if I get a good one, I don't want to try to pull it up 3-6 feet of embankment and I don't want to have to walk it around 50+ yards to the lower bank. I don't know that such a thing really exists, to be compact but handle that kind of embankment, but, I thought I'd ask.

A folding, telescoping net is going to be your best option. 

https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/h2o-xpress™-ultralight-extendable-kayak-landing-net#repChildCatid=980660

 

A lot of my fishing is on the bank (for bass and trout), or on a rocky jetty (for stripers).

 

I sometimes carry a compact folding net comparable to the one suggested by Bluebasser for bass and trout fishing.

The one I got came with conventional nylon netting.  I used it to land a decent trout caught on a Rapala minnow with multiple hooks, and it took me so long to disentangle the fish, she died and wound up becoming dinner.  I gave up on trying to get the hooks out and just cut the net.  In the end, this experience cost me the fish, the net, and a lot of time and aggravation. 

 

After that experience, I replaced the old style nylon netting with a rubber replacement mesh sized for the net.  Have done well landing fish with multiple-hook lures with this one.

 

Hope you benefit from my experience and consider getting either a rubber net or rubber replacement netting.

 

For saltwater fishing I am also in a tricky situation where it is a long rocky slope down to the fish.  For that I use a very sturdy, very long-handled telescoping net with a fairly open mesh.  It is not easy to handle without a partner, but it can be done, and it is far more rigid than the folding telescoping net, and easy to handle to pick fish up from a long way down.

 

So, while the lighter folding net has clear advantages, my experience is that if you have a long drop to deal with and don't mind carrying it, a long handled, sturdy net is also worth considering.