Pond Fishing

[oglejust]

hello, im new to this website and looking forward to learning some tips and techniques for bass fishing. im currently fishing from a bank at an east central illinois farm pond (no grass or cover) just a lot of trees that i happen to snag a little more often than id like. looks like u can c about 2 ft down into the pond altho its pretty muddy. im using a zebco 33 with 14lb line. ive been using spinnerbaits and whistler jigs with no luck. i have had pretty good luck with a small red tube worm with white tails on a small hook. i caught about a 2lb bass the other day with it which i was happy with im just looking to do this more often or maybe get something bigger. can u guys give me some tips on using rigs that would work in a pond and what kind of lures u would recommend. thank you

[cassidyta]

First off, welcome to the site.

I would say that the spinnerbait is a good choice, but you may want to consider a color change. Do you have a trailer bait on your jigs? You may need to cause a little bit more disturbance in the water to get the strike. I would also consider going to a 6" worm or creature style bait and try to work it through the trees.

[oglejust]

just learned about the trailer bait tonight and made a couple up. gonna try that tomorrow. been using 3 or 4 inch grubs but im gonna try the 6 inch with a trailer hook. thanks for the advice

[cassidyta]

I am not sure what your water temp is, but you may need to slow it down a little bit as well. The trees can be a great tool, but too many and it is really trying to find a needle in a hay stack.
For me, I work the sunny side of the trees in the morning and the shady side after noon.

[keithdog]

First off, welcome aboard ogle to the site. Make yourself at home and feel free to share your thoughts. Now for your post. I'm over here in Indiana and the water is still very cold on our area lakes. Ponds will warm up faster though so things should start to pick up for you. How large is the pond? Spinnerbaits should work very well for you soon. They are always an excellent choice here. I prefer a 3/8 oz size, white skirt and gold blades. I especially like the Strike King KVD spinnerbaits with the magic tails. A trailer is not needed with those and I catch plenty of fish with those. You might want to try tossing a 1/4 oz version in a small pond. Often, smaller size baits work better in a small pond. A lipless crank is a great bait this time of year, but around wood you have to be very carefull as they will snag fairly easily. Since you have murky water and lots of trees, you might want to try a 1/4-3/8 oz jig black/blue with a trailer like the Strike King Rage Craw or the Yum Money Craw in a matching color. Both trailors will give the jig plenty of action to draw a strike in murky water. Toss the jig out right up against those tree trunks and work it slow. Also, try looking for isolated trees rather than a large group of trees. Bass will often be attracted to the more isolated trees.

[Bassboss]

I'll second the 1/4 jig. The rage tail trailer sounds best to me, lots of vibration, so it should help the bass find it in that murky water. Black and blue is great color.

[WatterBoy]

I would try a 5" senko, either wacky rigged or T-rigged. Yamamoto senko color 222 (Waterelon/Red/Green) is my favorite 5" color.

[oglejust]

thanks for all the replies, let me rephrase what i said. the trees r on the bank providing a lot of shade.. not actually in the water, sorry about the confusion. i had never heard/seen a wacky rigged lure b4 so ill definitely try that, and i rig weedless almost every time so im not new to that. i have some crawfish lures but ive never tried them, maybe ill try that with a trailer hook.

[bamabassman]

welcome to the best site on the web pal.


now.got that outta the way fer ya.


ok, fishing a pond right? how deep is it where the trees are? near the dam? what part of the country are you in? all this means alot now. cause your fish may be bedding, hard to catch bedding bass.

now her is another thing oyu can use.
find oyu some 8"-12" worms, dark colors, like grape, black, motoroil or similier. use a 5 or 6 ought hook. texas rig it. now throw it at the base of the trees next to the water. there is a root system nder there oyu can't see. the fish are backed in there. waiting on what ever comes in so they can eat it. jig it up and down a few times. if you don't get bit, try another tree. jsut another thing to think about.

[WaffleJaw]

Welcome!

The first thing I would do is chainsaw a tree and let it fall into the pond...Then come back in three days and fish it.

I understand chainsaws are hard to come by...sooo something fun I got tied on right now is a 1/4oz football jig with a wacky worm rigged 13'' above the jig that Ive been dragging slowly on the bottom...A little double rig action!

And some times a roadrunner,roostertail or beetlespin are a ponds best weapon.


Any ideas on what the bass are feeding on?

[bamabassman]

Rooster tails are great up near the shallow end of a pond. Find where the water comes in and use there.

[oglejust]

Originally Posted by bamabassman

welcome to the best site on the web pal.


now.got that outta the way fer ya.


ok, fishing a pond right? how deep is it where the trees are? near the dam? what part of the country are you in? all this means alot now. cause your fish may be bedding, hard to catch bedding bass.

now her is another thing oyu can use.
find oyu some 8"-12" worms, dark colors, like grape, black, motoroil or similier. use a 5 or 6 ought hook. texas rig it. now throw it at the base of the trees next to the water. there is a root system nder there oyu can't see. the fish are backed in there. waiting on what ever comes in so they can eat it. jig it up and down a few times. if you don't get bit, try another tree. jsut another thing to think about.

Yes I'm at a pond,I'm I'm east central illinois. The trees I was talking about r on the bank providing shade and a place to lose expensive lures haha

[bamabassman]

well...that will happen from time to time pal. you will learn no how the bottom is and how to avoid losing so many. feel the bottom witht he worms. memorize it in oyur head. it'll come to ya pal. i promise.

[oglejust]

We had a had rain today and I went out after the rain stopped and never landed a fish. I feel like my reaction time is sooo slow, I notice the bite then its gone when I go to set the hook

[oglejust]

well had some luck today, caught an 18 inch bass.. thinkin its close to 5 lbs, biggest fish ive ever caught so im really happy about it. if i get me an 8 pound bass its probably gonna go on the wall.

[Bassboss]

Congrats! That's a nice bass for sure! A nice fish feels great after a while with only dinks!

[oglejust]

thanks! ive been catching fish on a little red tube worm with white tails, can get a pack for $0.98 at wally world. just using them on a minnow jig. got a 12 ft semi v boat today so i was able to get to the other end of the pond.. well worth it

[bamabassman]

VERY NICE BASS buddy!! now you're getting the hang of it. and it is only gonna get better. keep posting these kinds of pics too. we love photos of our favorite species,lol.