Don't Pass Up the Ponds by Don Dziedzina

Big lake, big fish; that’s a statement that really doesn’t hold a lot of water in my book.

 

You would be surprised with the size of some fish that can be caught in ponds as small as an acre. As you drive around town, going to the store, going to visit family, or on your way home from work, I’m sure you pass by a number of ponds. They shouldn’t be passed by.

 

I’ve been carrying a light action rod and reel in my truck with a small box of lures. When ever time allows, I will stop by a small pond that’s open to the public to see if there are any fish to catch. Most of the times, I’m quite surprised to see what happens.

 

Park districts just about everywhere have ponds that are stocked with fish and the majority of the time, the fishing is catch and release only. There’s nothing wrong with that because if you wanted to fish for 20 minutes or so while on a lunch break from work, what would you do with a fish that was caught anyway?

 

A friend of mine who lives in Chicago made a personal vow that he would try to catch a fish every day of the week for a full year. It took a lot of work on his part to fulfill his little promise but he did do it last year. He said it was brutal and would never do it again. Fishing throughout the spring, summer and fall was easy, but when family gatherings and trips came into play, it took some special effort go get that one fish. During the winter it was often nothing like spring or summertime fishing for sure. At times in the spring he would get his lonely fish within minutes. But in the winter, sometimes it would take hours to just get one tiny bluegill or perch. 

 

Now that’s a bit extreme in my book, but it definitely is dedication to the sport. You can be devoted to fishing and by just having that rod and reel available will put more fishing hours in your log book. You’ll learn a lot too.

 

Fishing small ponds you’ll have a tendency to walk around and fish different areas. You’ll quickly learn what types of structure that is visible from shore holds fish. This knowledge can be brought to the boat with you and help you there as well.

 

You might find that as summer creeps up on us the shores of many ponds will be weedy and seem unfishable. Now would be the time to go with a bit heavier rod and reel and switch over from the small baits to something like a buzzbait, frog or floating worm. Surface lures that don’t hang up on the emergent weeds will coax bass to explode at the surface making for some real exciting fishing. Definitely you will need heavy line to bring the fish through the weeds without it breaking off.

 

Check out the ponds at the malls. Contact your local park district and find out what they have to offer in the fishing department. Driving by the forest preserve lakes can warrant a short stop once and awhile. Some corporate and industrial park ponds allow fishing while some others do not. Don’t be afraid to walk into the office building first and ask if it is okay to fish. You’ll be surprised to learn that they will give you permission to fish when you promise them that you’re fishing artificial bait only and will leave nothing behind like bait containers and pop cans.

 

The small ponds need to be fished by you. Put a rod and reel in the trunk of your car along with a few lures. Make a stop or two during the week and you’ll be glad you did because you quickly see that great fishing is not that far away.