Simple pleasures of pond fishing

There's something about fishing a pond, whether it's from the bank or maybe aboard a simple

john boat, that appeals to the angler's most basic instincts. Quite possibly it's because

that is how so many of us got our start and caught our first fish -- sitting on the shoreline

or a boat seat and waiting for a bobber to bounce.

While fishing ponds and small lakes can be great fun at any time, for the next couple of

months it is especially appealing. Ponds warm up well before large reservoirs, and that

translates to excellent fishing opportunities in March and April. Add to that bedding bream

in May, and you have three months of pure pleasure.

If you have always dreamed of landing a true trophy bass -- once ranging upwards of eight

pounds -- there's no time like right now. After the lean times of winter bass are hungry and

the spawning urge is triggered by warming waters as well. On top of that, you are much more

likely to catch a genuine wallhanger in a pond than in a large lake.

At this time of year, there are a few things you will want to keep in mind. One is wind

direction. If there is much at all in the way of a breeze, it pushes the warm surface water

against the shoreline of some part of a pond. Check out the prevailing breeze and fish where

it works in your favor. The warmer water draws small baitfish, and that in turn attracts

bass.

Of course you may not be interested in bouncing a spinnerbait along the shoreline, and if so,

that's just dandy. In fact, do yourself and a youthful companion or two a great favor. Get

out in the yard or garden, spend some time digging up a can full of worms (right now there

must be fifty robins doing just that in my yard), and use this most traditional of all

natural baits beneath a bobber.

For starters, a kid thoroughly enjoys the process of getting bait, and you can't beat the

price (or the effectiveness of garden hackle). Beyond that, you never quite know what will

bite a worm. It is most likely to be a bluegill or shellcracker, but catfish, bass, and

crappie will, at times, take worms as well. In fact, never quite knowing just what might bite

adds a bit of fun and mystery to the whole process.

Another appealing aspect of pond fishing with kids is that these small bodies of water offer

an excellent opportunity for some nature lessons. You can pretty well count on seeing or

hearing frogs if air temperatures are moderate, and should a big old bullfrog tune up, it's

something which always gets a kid excited. Similarly, there's every chance you will see

swirls as bass chase bait, schools of minnows in the shallows, maybe some polliwogs, and

cattails are always interesting to examine. You might even point out that cattails are edible

(both the starchy roots and the tender new shoots of spring growth) as well as being a highly

functional plant working as a filter and pond stabilizer.

Don't forget to keep a few bluegills, if the fishing is good, for a simple feast. You always

do a pond a favor when you keep panfish, because they have a pronounced tendency to

overpopulate. Also, if you are teaching a youngster, you want to give him the whole picture

including cleaning and eating the catch. Perhaps if will even be possible to use the entrails

as poor man's fertilizer for a plant, and I know from personal experience that a kid loves

having a tomato plant, blueberry bush, or row of some vegetable designated as "theirs."

Pond fishing is about as uncomplicated as sport can get, and for me at least that gives it a

great deal of appeal. Almost everyone can gain access to a farm pond somewhere -- there's no

lack of them in this part of the world -- and a few hours spent probing such waters is a time

of enduring wonder.