Which Clear First?

[RoachDad]

It rained pretty good here on Thursday.  I chose to fish a Farm Pond on Sunday thinking that it might clear up quicker than the lake. 

 

It was really muddy.

 

Does anyone have an opinion on this?

 

I have to admit that the real reason i went to the pond was that a couple weeks ago i hooked a monster and did not land it.  Been dying to go back ever since

 

[MarkH024]

Well one thought is that farm ponds are there for run off and storing water, most of them anyway.  The soil around/in a farm is loose and broken up yearly making erosion more common. I would honestly think a normal lake would clear faster but again...I don't know there is a 100% guarantee of either. Time would only tell.

[Marty]

I don't know which would clear faster, but maybe a larger lake wouldn't get as muddy in the first place. In fact, some lakes would probably stay mostly clear while your pond looks like chocolate milk.

[Sam]

This weekend Buggs Island/Kerr Lake, 800 miles of shoreline and eight major creeks, was heavily stained up lake and my friend told me that the Clarksville area was a disaster with dirty and debris laden water.

 

Tried to find clear water but none to be found, especially in the backs of creeks in the upper middle of the lake.

 

We had lots of rain and snow previously and the water is now entering Buggs depositing lots of mud and debris.

 

Water was clearer near the dam and in Nutbush Creek down lake.

 

Now if a body of water such as Buggs can get dirty from water runoff I would think a pond would get clobbered with runoff and become stained to muddy. But wait a minute. Is that true?

 

I would venture to say that a pond that does not have grass around it or is fed by a drain field would absorb more dirt and debris than one that has vegetation around it and is spring fed. Depending on the current and the drainage system, a pond may clear sooner than a large lake.

 

As for which one clears off first, I would vote for the pond unless fresh water starts to enter the larger lake from the river(s) feeding it and pushes the dirty water out of the system faster than the dirt has time to fall to the bottom in a pond.

 

I vote for the pond to clear faster.

 

As for your lady friend that got away, I bet she is still in the same area waiting to spawn. You guys in the Carolinas are ahead of us in Virginia for the spawn and up this way we expect the ladies to hit the shallow waters this week and then go on their beds next week when the Dogwoods bloom.

 

By then your pond should be in good condition to fish.

 

Let us know when you catch her and post a picture.

[senile1]

I suspect that this question can't be answered as a comparison between every pond and every large lake.  It has to be answered based specifically on the pond and lake in question and the characteristics of each.  Factors such as the size of the watershed, the physical characteristics of the land and soil in the watershed, the type of lake (highland, lowland, riverine), schedule of outflows through the dams, cover surrounding the lake, expected average rainfall, etc. all affect how quickly water-borne soil will settle or be washed through the system.  Without that information I think one can only guess. 

[RoachDad]

I hope brother, I hope!

 

Let us know when you catch her and post a picture.

[RoachDad]

Sorry, I used Farm Pond generically, it is not REALLY on a farm.

 

But I'll just have to do some research so I can figure out which way to go.  We are looking at rain again this Thursday, if it does, I'll hit the lake on Sunday and see how bad it is.

 

of course, High Rock is always dirty, so ......

 

Well one thought is that farm ponds are there for run off and storing water,