I moved down south 10 years ago into a housing development that has several small ponds, and those are what I fish daily. These are not natural ponds, but shallow depressions bulldozed and dug out by the developer to create scenery and provide water drainage. I have found no lake topography maps as exist online for larger natural lakes. Boats are not allowed so no onboard electrical assistance is available.

I have no idea how fish are in them since they have no natural structure but there are sunfish, bass, catfish and even huge alligator gar, not to mention many, many alligators. Trying to imagine what structure does exist from the lay of the land above water, the depth from sinking lures and the snags is all I have, except for my assumption that fish I have previously caught are an indicator that there is something fishy at those particular spots.

Today I saw something new and wonder if it has any meaning. It is raining cats and dogs and is in the 60's with no wind. I went fishing and noticed that while most of the pond had a choppy surface that blocked any visibility below the surface, there were irregular areas where there were the individual circles of raindrops hitting the surface, but the overall surface of these areas was smooth and had some water clarity. I did not have my phone so took no pictures, but these irregular areas looked like depressions or ditches might look in shape and might mean more depth in these spots. What else would cause these spots less disturbed by the rain than depth? This would mean structure, except these areas did not correspond that closely to what I have previously thought were the good spots.

I assumed it was structure and fished those areas today. I had no luck but that may just be because they are not biting this morning on the lures I used.

Any thoughts? Think this is a good indicator of structure? To make it easier to respond I will present multiple choice answers:

a. You are a moron, of course it is structure

b. You are a moron, of course it is not structure

c. You are a moron with too much time on your hands

d. You are a moron; you need a new hobby that requires less intelligence

e. You are a moron; did you take your pills this morning?

f. You are a moron, does the nurse know you escaped your room?

g. Fill in the blank _____________________________________________________________________________

I fish electronically blind all of the time, but I have a good memory for where I caught bass and when I do catch bass, I "pin" the place in my brain, assuming there's structure there. Without electronics, I'll never know, but I don't think I need to know because once I know that a place holds bass, it's as good as knowing the shape of the structure.

I see that you're in the SC Lowcounty and I lived in both Hilton Head and Bluffton for many, many years and fished a hundreds (thousands?) of lagoons within different communities. If you're in that area, many of those lagoons are essentially bowls without a lot of differentiating features under the water.

What I looked for was any aquatic vegetation along the shore that bass could hide under. Some lagoons had thicker mats away from shore, and dragging a frog over those usually caused a blow up. I also looked for any single, overhanging trees. I never found much in areas where there was a line of overhanging trees. But one low, overhanging evergreen usually produced.

If you're in an area where the lagoons are connected via stormwater pipes (to balance water and prevent flooding), many times there would be slight channels with drain pipe outflow. Those would draw bass and baitfish.

Of course, steeper banks usually led to more silt runoff, creating areas that were shallower than the rest of the lagoon and that could create more of a dropoff. Look for washed out, undercut banks as well and cast parallel to them. Gators also like to hang out under those areas.

In all of the years I fished down there, the overwhelming majority of fish I caught were casting parallel to the bank or casting diagonally from one bank to another. For example, standing on the south bank and casting diagonally to the east or west bank.

For a small investment you could try one of those castable sonar devices. But just beware that they are also alligator magnets. Use a high speed reel!

27 minutes ago, Kayak Koz said:

I see that you're in the SC Lowcounty and I lived in both Hilton Head and Bluffton for many, many years and fished a hundreds (thousands?) of lagoons within different communities. If you're in that area, many of those lagoons are essentially bowls without a lot of differentiating features under the water.

What I looked for was any aquatic vegetation along the shore that bass could hide under. Some lagoons had thicker mats away from shore, and dragging a frog over those usually caused a blow up. I also looked for any single, overhanging trees. I never found much in areas where there was a line of overhanging trees. But one low, overhanging evergreen usually produced.

If you're in an area where the lagoons are connected via stormwater pipes (to balance water and prevent flooding), many times there would be slight channels with drain pipe outflow. Those would draw bass and baitfish.

Of course, steeper banks usually led to more silt runoff, creating areas that were shallower than the rest of the lagoon and that could create more of a dropoff. Look for washed out, undercut banks as well and cast parallel to them. Gators also like to hang out under those areas.

In all of the years I fished down there, the overwhelming majority of fish I caught were casting parallel to the bank or casting diagonally from one bank to another. For example, standing on the south bank and casting diagonally to the east or west bank.

For a small investment you could try one of those castable sonar devices. But just beware that they are also alligator magnets. Use a high speed reel!

How close did you let gators get to you before leaving? Did you have any close calls with them?

The Electronics Monkey insisted I tell you about depth finder bobbers. They look like a bobber but have a transducer in them. They send a signal to our phone and combined with a phone are capable of mapping a small pond. I don't know if one would really help an angler catch a bass, but that hasn't stopped me from buying next to useless products in hope of catching the big one. Once in the seventies, I spent a good chunk of my fishing tackle budget on a device called a depth- O - plug. I would cast it out and let it sink to the bottom and let it sit in one place for a couple minutes. It would use pressure to determine the depth and also gave the water temp. I used it a few times and gave up on new technology for awhile. I always regret buying it, instead of a few Bagleys crankbaits. I don't care if I ever see a Depth- O- Plug for sale, but would pay a large portion of my tackle budget for some of those old Bagleys square bills.

38 minutes ago, SJS said:

How close did you let gators get to you before leaving? Did you have any close calls with them?

I've been stalked and even chased by alligators while bank fishing down there. Always, always, ALWAYS, keep your head on a swivel. That means scan all around you while your working your bait.

If you're not sure what a baby gator sounds like, please Google it. If you hear that sound, go fish somewhere else. Mama is nearby and she will protect the nest.

Get some polarized sunglasses and look into the water BEFORE you approach the edge of the bank. Gators will sit just under the surface looking for prey.

Juvenile gators (usually 4 feet or less) are a pain because they chase every bait. Unless people have been feeding gators, the bigger ones usually (but not always) keep their distance. Many times they'll just setup 30-50 feet right in front of you. You probably have other lagoons nearby, so just move on.

Keep a readily accessible, sharp knife on you in case a gator grabs your bait or a catch and you have to cut the line. I think one of my old posts has a video of a bigger gator that grabbed my frog. I've also posted a list of gator safety tips somewhere on here.

I have no fear of fishing in gator waters, and most of the lakes I fish now in my kayak also have gators. But I have a healthy resect for them and I am always watching out for them. I absolutely do not bank fish or kayak fish at night in waters with big gators. Other people here on BR are that brave. I am not.

I fish with no electronics and have spent a lot of time learning to read the water as a result. From your description, I'm going to assume that is bottom structure -- probably the outlines of deeper water or potentially the edges of weed mats. It's impossible to say until you fish it more.

Fish along those "seams" and I bet you'll pick up some fish. Go out on the next windy day and see if that pattern holds. If so, it's probably something worth noting. You can also try dragging a fish finder rig through there and do analysis by "feel".

Thanks, Kyak Koz. I have had the same experiences with them, and I would not get in a kayak in these lagoons. I am used to them coming in when they detect a struggling fish on the hook, but when they come right up to me for no reason except me being there, I leave when they get to about 10 yards. I have lived here 10 years but have only fished these ponds for a few weeks and they are pretty great except for those beasts.

I grew up in Florida and bank fished and canoe and kayak fished. When on the bank never turn you’re back to the water.

It always makes me nervous when people start talking about alligators within 500 miles of my location.