I recently gained bank access to a small 5 acre pond. The first few trips occurred during fairly mild weather and I was excited to find the pond had a decent supply of quality fish. I caught 6 to 8 fish in just a few hours across several visits, most fish caught nearer to the bank.

 

Then earlier this week the weather turned cold again. I skipped the first couple days of the cold snap but have gone twice the past few days. Each trip was a skunk, not even a bite. As before I continued to throw the salamander and smaller jigs that previously produced, and because of the pond's small size I was able to target shallow, medium and deep depths. I figured the fish had gone deep, but if they did they had lockjaw. I switched baits and colors, even throwing a small rattle trap.

 

Any suggestions on what the pattern might be for a small pond cold snap bite?

Wait until spring!

 

But seriously, folks. Try a ned rig fished really slow in the deep water and in transitional depths.

16 hours ago, Koz said:

Wait until spring!

That's how I do it. Actually small bodies of water are less thermically stable than larger ones, so react quicker to warming and cooling trends. A couple of warm sunny days, and voila! 

I live right next to a small 2-3 acre pond that I fish at a lot. Even if the water is dirty (1-2 ft clarity) a drop shot can work fine, just fish slowly. I always use Roboworms in Morning dawn color for my dropshots. Also it really helps when the sun is out.

Patience and a ned rig.

One of the best days I've ever had for numbers came in a shallow pond in February. It was the last day of a 3 or 4 day warming trend. But fish will bite a jig, T rigged craw or even a spinnerbait slow-rolled. They just won't be "on fire" until the water warms. You might have to slow way down. You can downsize too. Good news is the fish that do bite will probably be bigger. Around here, February can be the best month to catch a monster as they stage for spawn. Try the shallower end of the pond if you have full sun and work all the wood cover you can find. Try the deepest end if overcast. This time of year, you can probably use just three lures.

Two suggestions:

1. Use a spinnerbait or lipless crankbait with rattles fished very slowly in all three water columns and throw to one spot at least 10 times before moving to another spot.

2. Bring a heavy rod with a strong baitcaster with 50 pound test and a circle hook and a 1/2 ounce sliding weight along with a package of 1-inch sections of cut up hot dogs and fish for catfish.  

 

P.S. The last time I went out and did this I caught a beautiful two-pound largemouth that ate my hot dog.