[harleyhunter]

Hey Guys,

I've lived in Staten Island for 15 years. I can't believe I never thought of all the ponds around here. I always thought only little kids went to them for pumpinseeds.

Well yesterday I meet a gentleman who lives nearby and goes fishing at 4-5 different ones that are within a 5 minute drive from me every weekend. He said him & his son catch plenty of fish each in a couple of hours of bigmouth and smallie bass. All the pond are catch & release. He also told me the smallies average close to 4 pounds and the bigmouth between 7-8 pounds. He shared many of his tactics and some hidden pond I never knew where here. He even said that 1 small lake and a pond have a fish that is like the freshwater cousin of a barracuda (not pike). He caught one 26" this past summer. I forgot the name but he said they can be mean. I can't wait for next year. I was also told there is plenty of room at some for fly fishing. I'm going to get to learn bass bugs right after I get the hang of traditionals. I'm even going to buy my 5 year old daughter a spinner cast set for christmas (sorry, too young & impatient to get the hang of fly fishing ... YET ). Man I'm so psyched for the spring.

Just figured I'd share my happiness. Tight Lines!

Sam

[Joe Hard]

Thats cool whenyou find out about a good fishing spot. Even better when it so close to home. If she likes to fish she just might be interested in a fly fishing outfit down the road

[Graham]

Hey Sam,

That sounds like a blast, and being so close to home, with big fish, wow, good stuff. It sounds like one of those special places that's pefect for getting kids to have enjoyable time fishing and hooked for a lifetime.

Graham

[Blueman89]

I wish I had stuff like that around here. BTW, were the toothy critters you mention Pickerel?

[harleyhunter]

Blueman89, pickerel sound familiar but I can't say for sure. Looks like I'm gonna have to catch me one to tell huh. LOL

Graham, & joe hard, my daughter likes hanging with her dad. She even likes to watch me tie flies and wants to learn too. She has fishing gear at my fathers place upstate but now she needs a set here too. I'm sure Santa will make sure a fly fishing lesson or two will follow on my gear after she sees her dad landing fish on a fly I've tied.

Sam

[steeldrifter]

Thats cool Sam. Always pays off to do a little earching on small local ponds/lakes, theres alot of them that people pass over thinking they are too close to cities or to small and they figure that they dont hold good sized fish, but many of them do.

Good luck to ya and let us know what you find in there.


SD

[harleyhunter]

Hey SD,

Thanks for the luck buddy. I'll keep you guys updated in the spring. The fish regulations book says open all year on all the ponds I'm talking about but I think its a little too late in the year to catch any smallies or bigmouth bass. Correct me if I'm wrong. Otherwise I'll have to make an excuse to get there sooner.

Sam

[steeldrifter]

It's starting to get kinda late for smallies in the areas me&you live, but you can probably still find a few right now. They feed pretty heavy on minnows in the fall to fatten up for the winter so it couldnt hurt to try some white streamers sometime before the first snowfall comes.

My grandpa caught the biggest smallie of his life at about this time of year back in the 80's as a matter of fact, a 24"er on a pike chub in early November. So it couldnt hurt to give it a try.

[harleyhunter]

Thanks again SD.

Sam

[SwampHunter]

Pond fishing is great! We have a nice hidden gem about 2 minutes from the house. At times it can't be beat for fishing.