Help Catching Big Bass in Small Pond

[gbull87]

So there is a small pond (maybe a couple of acres) in my neighborhood. I have been fishing there for over a decade and have probably spent hundreds of hours fishing it. The bass are very overpopulated and skinny and seem to cap out at around 12 inches. There are also healthy bluegill and crappie populations, but no small baitfish really at all. The biggest bass I have caught in there was probably about a pound. 

 

However, just today I had a moderately sized bluegill hooked (maybe 5-6 in) and as I was bringing it in a huge bass grabbed it (my best guess is 5-6 lbs), lost it, and went for it again unsuccessfully. Of course, now I have to catch this bass, but I am not sure how: it seems like if I were going to catch it I would have done so by now. I have used pretty much every bass pattern there is out there in this pond, but crayfish patterns, topwater (especially frogs, but poppers too), and medium soft plastics (worms, super flukes are the best) tend to work best in there. There is essentially no structure in the pond, except for a dam and a feeder creek. It is shallow: maybe 4-5 ft in the middle. 

 

I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on how to catch this guy. I haven't really tried live bait before, so maybe that would work? Idk. 

Thanks!

[CrankFate]

Either throw anything and everything over and over. Repeat what almost caught it with a smaller BG. When all else fails, live shiners.

[Hower08]

Catch a bluegill transfer it it a rod with an appropriate sized hook for fishing live bait. I like a 1/0 ewg just below dorsal fin. Toss bluegill out gently and let him struggle. It will be like calling in a turkey.use to fish a pond that was the only way you could catch em. They would literally Chase the bluegills onto the bank, craziest thing I ever seen a bass do

[Bluebasser86]

Sounds like a bluegill swimbait would be worth a shot.

 

[schplurg]

If he chased a bluegill I'd definitely try some 'gill colored baits! You almost had him with a live one so I agree with the poster above, all of em actually

[Will1248]

The trick with ponds is they are usually very muddy so darker colors are more natural. To catch the bigger fish, you have to size up the bait a little. I'd use a 4/0 green pumpkin super fluke. And honestly every monster I've pulled from a pond is because I know where the fish lives, then I drag a spinnerbait over its head to tick it off and it bites it. Bass tend to stay around a general area in a pond for years. 

[GreenPig]

I'd try a Jackall Gantarel. It's 6.25" at 2.5 oz dives to 3' and floats. It has a spot on the nose to add weight if you like. They have multiple colors to choose from and you know what the bream look like in the pond. The Gantarel Jr. could be an option if 2.5 oz is to heavy for your rods.

[scaleface]

A small pond that is stunted with dinky skinny bass , that may be the only big bass in it . Invest in a fillet knife and thin it out to grow more big bass .C&R is not good for some waters .

[Fishes in trees]

What he said - you need to thin out the herd some.  A pond can only support so much biomass.  Take a couple of hundred small fish out on the pond.   That will help the pond over time.  If you're going to do that, might as well eat them.

[Sam]

In many ponds that are not managed correctly you will find many dinks and one big mommy.

 

It is easy to catch the dinks but the big mommy will be very difficult since she rules the pond.

 

As stated above, you can go big, live, or small for your baits. If she is in the area and is either hungry or just wants to kill your bait you will get lucky.

 

Just let me warn you: it will not be easy to coax her to hit your baits. 

 

A live bluegill is your best bet as stated above. After that, who knows?

 

If you do catch her, please post pics and be sure to release her.

[scaleface]

Set a reverse length limit say 14 inches . Keep everything below it .

[Midwest Fisherman]

I’ve been Bass fishing & strictly pond fishing for 5 years and everything mentioned in this post so far is good advise. I fish dozens & dozens of ponds and size and quantity are all over the place. I’ve caught my biggest bass dragging the bottom, in the dirtiest shallow water, in shallow slops, on various baits and any time of the year. My experience has been if there are dozens of dinks then the biggest I’ve caught would be about 2lbs and typically any pond over 3lbs I really don’t see an abundance of dinks. 
 

One pond in particular I fished once or twice a year for 3 years and never got a single bite then one day I landed a 6lb’r, first and only fish I caught in that pond, go figure.