Highly Pressured pond techniques

[Bankfisher22]

I have a pond thats about 2 acres in size near my house. Its a public pond and people fish it every day mostly using catfish bait, what can i throw to lure the bass into biting? Besides catfish bait.....

[Michigander]

A tiny jig. They're magical.

[lynxcat]

1 hour ago, Bankfisher22 said:

I have a pond thats about 2 acres in size near my house. Its a public pond and people fish it every day mostly using catfish bait, what can i throw to lure the bass into biting? Besides catfish bait.....

Ned rig is perfect for ponds. Jackhammer is fantastic for a reaction strike before it gets too cold, especially in semi-dirty water. 

[DitchPanda]

Something I use alk the time in clear water or pressured situations is a weightless trick worm. Its even more finesse than a senko...and in my opinion just as effective.

[TnRiver46]

3 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Something I use alk the time in clear water or pressured situations is a weightless trick worm. Its even more finesse than a senko...and in my opinion just as effective.

+1! 

[Bluebasser86]

2 options I like in very pressured ponds, either small and super natural, or big swimbaits. The first option for obvious reasons, the second because they're not seeing them most likely, and big swimbaits draw even pressured fish in.

[Hammer 4]

I've fished lots of very heavily pressured ponds/ city park lakes. After throwing everything cept the kitchen sink, and no bites, my go to is 6lb test with a 1/16 or 1/8 oz split shot, and a 4" worm, I use a  4" roboworm in hologram shad. Caught a few 7 lb'rs on that set up.

[BrianMDTX]

9 hours ago, DitchPanda said:

Something I use alk the time in clear water or pressured situations is a weightless trick worm. Its even more finesse than a senko...and in my opinion just as effective.

I like fishing weightless Trick worms. They are easy to fish with little or a lot of action, depending on the retrieve and rod action. 

[roadwarrior]

 

[Bankbeater]

Zoom finesse worm on a split shot rig, or a 3” senko type on a split shot rig. 

[DitchPanda]

Another thing I'd add is smaller versions of full size baits seem to work for me for pressured fish. Like instead of a full size lipless I throw a 1/4 oz...instead of a full size spinner bait throw a booyah pond magic or even a beetle spin. One mistake I think people make in a pressured pond is only throwing finesse overlooking the power of a reaction bait to draw a response strike. You gotta remember these fish see finesse stuff alot and can become wary even to that...but sometimes a bait flying by can still draw a reaction.

[Bassfishingfred]

The Mojo rig or Split shot rig are very effective in clear pressured ponds. Usually I pair it with a green pumpkin chartrueus yum dinger or roboworm in Bold Blue gill and have caught loads of fish on it. You should also try the weedless Ned technique using a #1 size Robo straight shank hook with a yum dinger or weedless neko, both are very effective in grass filled ponds

One other thing to keep in mind, sometimes up sizing and throwing the big stuff also works. I've caught plenty of big girls throwing Swavers and big Swimbaits on pressured ponds

[soflabasser]

Fish at night

[plawren53202]

I fish our highly pressured subdivision pond a lot. On one level it seems like there is not really any logic to what works; sometimes super finesse like Ned rig or a slooooow drop shot works for me, other times a pure reaction bait like a wide wobbling KVD 1.5 or a big bold bluegill pattern swim jig. My natural tendency for a body of water like this is to go ultra finesse, but I am often surprised at how something very opposite can work.

 

The best logic I've put together to try to explain what works is, in my experience, most people who fish a body of water like this tend to use the same things all the time. During Covid lockdowns (round 1 anyway ?) there were hordes that descended on our pond and it seemed like (the non-bait fishermen, anyway), used one of about three things: a white spinnerbait, a purple curly tail worm, or a white buzzbait. No matter the water temperature, sun or wind conditions, recent weather changes, etc. 

, 

So I think above all, it's throwing something different that the fish don't see AND is appropriate to the conditions and season. In particular I've had good results all year changing with the seasons. For instance last couple of weeks the temperatures have really made a turn toward late fall/winter temps. I pulled out some of the baits appropriate for this time of season, that wouldn't necessarily fit into "finesse" categories. Vision 110 Jr. jerkbait, red craw Red Eye Shad caught several for me last week. I think a lot of these seasonally-appropriate baits are things the fish don't often see (no one at this pond throwing jerkbaits, swim jigs, soft swimbait on an underspin, weightless fluke, etc.). So they're not strictly ultra finesse baits (though those can certainly work).