8+ Pounder In Small Lakes?

[einscodek]

You know how many of the records in the northeast are caught in "Ponds"?

Most of the record LMB are!

[Fisher-O-men]

Man, I wish there were ponds around here.... Wait all of our lakes are ponds, now!

[Insanity]

A small 11 acre lake here gives up 8 and 9 pound fish all the time. It mostly depends on the amount of forage as to how fast and big they grow. This lake is cram packed with baby gills all the time.

[Fisher-O-men]

Check this out:

 

http://www.sdfish.com/forums/t/private-pond-produces-big.149129/#post-372971

[bigbill]

My personal best from shore is 10lbs.so far. I seen bigger and lost bigger. I fish smaller places that were 200 year old man made dams for water power, that were once rivers. Some are fed from big lakes in the area. In in ct and my thoughts are if we have bigger bass here every state must have them, there not being caught. There very smart plus these bigger gals are the breeders keeping up the supply of the bass fry.

FACT, it's not the size of the body of water it's how healthy the pond is, how much of a food supply there is, how many fish there are.

Possible? Are you kidding me? Here's the tips to hooking into bigger bass. I use lures only. I find that the bigger bass don't like live bait here. Plus they want something moving it's the challenge in the predator. Bass are predators like cats. Some cats/bass will strike right away and others are lazy so it may take a few casts to excite them.

Fishing from shore. I go out at 4:am. In very, very quiet, very, very stealthy. I walk softly, do not step on roots or rocks. They send vibrations into the water. Handle your tackle with no noise. I use spinning tackle only and close the bail by hand. Being STEALTHY is the key like your not there you have to be that quiet.

Topwater first walk the dog rip, rip, rip n pause. Shallow cranks reel slow. With inline spinners, spinnerbaits reel just fast enough so the blades spin/vibrate. Vary your baits. Don't fish too fast. Using a scent helps too. My first cast is far and scented.

I use a hummingbird portable fish finder the wristwatch one we cast out. To learn the bottom structure and depth. Now I know what depth lures to use.

Now as the sky starts to light up (twilight) I switch to brighter colors it's still like dusk, very low light. As day light approaches match the lure colors to the water conditions.

I do not cast into the Lilly pads I cast past them and about 10' away from them. There maybe more than one fish there so I don't spook them. If you cast at them you may get one fish. I walk the dog near the pads and draw the bass out one by one. In the open areas or submerged weeds do not fan cast. I skip fan cast. I do not put my casts next to each other. I cast left then right. I skip around.

Casting Rocky points I skip fan cast plus fish up the point from the deeper water. Fish the back side of the point if there is current. Fish the bottom edge were there is no current. The fish ambush what ever goes by.

The smaller places do have this structure. You need to find the Rocky points, flats, drop offs and holes, deep pockets. Submerged weeds and weedlines. It's all there.

Good skill in your hunt. Post your results. Bill

Every body of water holds bigger bass in every state. I'm positive from what I'm seeing here.

[Montanaro]

WV state record came from a farm pond...and WV doesn't have big farm ponds and I come from the part of the state with farms.

[Dogmatic]

WV state record came from a farm pond...and WV doesn't have big farm ponds and I come from the part of the state with farms.

Is it a public body of water? If they allow state records to come from private "ponds", that's a completely bogus record. If that were the case, I will break the PA state record. What stops a private landowner from stocking his pond with large adult bass? As a property owner I know, has done. Is TX going to allow it's State record to come directly from that guy who is growing trophy bass in his private shrimp fed lakes? I don't think so. Dog Run Lake at 22 acres is no "farm pond".

[J Francho]

The NY record is from private water. Total Bologna. I'd love to be the one that breaks just to get that bogus thing off the books.

[ABW]

I fish a 10 acre public pond and it receives a ton of fishing pressure. Out of the 140ish fish I've caught so far this year, only one of them has reached 3 & 1/2 pounds. There's a limit of the size people can keep (14 in and over) so that just leaves all the dinks. I do believe that there is a big fish in there, though.

[Senko lover]

Every mud puddle that can hold a bass in it coughed up a 10 pounder, according to at least one random guy fishing that day I'm there. Seriously, every single time I hit a shore spot, there's some random guy talking about a 4,5,6,7,8,9, or 10 pounder caught there. I let my own personal results tell the truth, and I generally keep it to myself.

 

Too true.....I had a guy tell me he caught a 34 inch bass out of my pond. I could believe a 24, but not 34. 

[Jmoose]

Oh it is definitely possible. All of my biggest fish (to 6lb 7oz) have come out of ponds that are no more than an acre and a half. There just needs to be enough food and some good water depth somewhere in the pond. If the conditions are right, it is more than plausible. 

[Jmoose]

Haha, maybe not 34 inches. I wasn't talking about that one XD

[SPEEDBEAD.]

Is it a public body of water? If they allow state records to come from private "ponds", that's a completely bogus record. If that were the case, I will break the PA state record. What stops a private landowner from stocking his pond with large adult bass? As a property owner I know, has done. Is TX going to allow it's State record to come directly from that guy who is growing trophy bass in his private shrimp fed lakes? I don't think so. Dog Run Lake at 22 acres is no "farm pond".

 

I'll bring the big stuff, just let me know where to meet you.

[00 mod]

5 and a 7.  Then an 8+ out of a 20 acre lake.  The week after the 8, my fishing buddy caught another 8 that I lipped for him!

 

 

 

Jeff

[gulfcaptain]

City parks in the Los Angeles and Orange County area of S. Cal almost all have double digit fish in them.  Most you can walk around in less then 5 min.  Some maybe 10min.  They owe their size to the state for stocking those 8-10" trout all winter for the most part.  But they are small, hold sizable fish in numbers but may not be the easiest to catch.  So yes small bodies of water can produce large fish.  My PB came out of one of them that I can walk around in less then 5 min and she was 9lbs, pre-spawn she would have been a double digit fish easy.  But middle of summer no belly I wasn't going to complain as she was still a great fish

[the reel ess]

This fish 14lbs-8.5oz came out of a 7 acre pond.

 

 

That fish ate my personal best!

[greentrout]

Bass Resource: http://www.bassresource.com/fish_biology/selective_harvest_bass.html

[Mainebass1984]

 Small ponds produce huge bass all over the country. I don't fish farms ponds or smaller ponds under 50 acres or so. I like the added changing of finding and catching big bass in bigger bodies of water.

[bigbill]

The government did a survey. The results was to eat the smaller bass and put the larger breeders back. I say eat crappie they taste better and catch and release all the bass. In ct we have a slot limit now.

[bigbill]

I seen movement in a large puddle after the high waters settled down.I tossed in a joesfly trout lure and caught a small carp. I returned him to the river. Even puddles can hold fish. LOL

[Dogmatic]

The government did a survey. The results was to eat the smaller bass and put the larger breeders back. I say eat crappie they taste better and catch and release all the bass. In ct we have a slot limit now.

If you want to grow big bass slot limits are the way to go. I just wish CT resource officers would get in touch with PA's!

[Dogmatic]

I'll bring the big stuff, just let me know where to meet you.

...it'll be a year or two, but why would I do that, the fox in the hen house, I want my name on the bogus record, and it doesn't look like you have any trouble finding the hogs? It is a great proving ground though. ; )

[bigbill]

Looking for bigger bass stay going.

I was fishing everyday up at 3:30am there by 4am. 24/7 and I got burned out by around 3 months. You need to push your physical limits. Once your in the hunt stay in the groove.

Big bass don't do the tornies 9 to 5. These big hogs hide when the sun is up. There might time feeders. You might catch one during the day that's rare for me anyway.

The three small places I was fishing regularly I seen big bass swim by me at the drop offs. Bigger bass then m y PB 10lbs. If I have bigger bass here there has to be bigger bass in every other state. Look at what some have caught in Maine.

The bass love that Rebel BIG CLAW crawfish crankbaits that dives 10'. The chartruese/green is the hot one here. I use the smaller ones in rivers. Match the colors of your natural crawls.

Presentation is the key.

I put crawfish scent on it. Then cast it out as far as I can in the open channel along side the weedlines. I close the bail and sweep back the rod so the rebel BIG craw dives to the bottom(10'). Then I crank it slow all the way in. This rebel BIG CLAW is one of my hottest baits. Since its a floater too we can use it over submerged weeds. Fish it slow.

[agilmorefishing]

Very possible. I live right by Lake St Clair and Lake Erie, two well known fisheries. But my PB was caught in a lake most people don't even know. Small lakes hold big fish.

[mwh33]

I caught a 10 lber on a square bill crankbait out of a 3/4 acre pond on a golf I used to live on in FL about 5 years ago. I also caught a 10 lber out of a 1 acre private lake in GA last year on a 10 inch power worm.