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Freshwater Pond

11K views 44 replies 13 participants last post by  drilltrash 
#1 ·
Alright I just checked out this freshwater pond we have on base that is supposedly stocked every year with catfish, bass (I'm assuming smallmouth?) and bluegill. Live bait is prohibited so I am completely confused when it comes to anything freshwater.....I don't know what type of plugs to use, what kind of structure to look for, or the feeding habits of freshwater fish. If anybody could throw out a couple of tips to get me started it would be great. I'm probably just asking random no good questions that seem pointless but I just don't wanna waste my time doing something wrong when I could get some good advice from people who know....... thanks in advance.

http://www.mccsmiramar.com/fishpond.html
 
#29 ·
I haven't kept anything yet but all around the pond are signs saying that you can keep fish. Two bass @ 12 inches each 3 cat fish @ 12 inches each and bluegill is no size limit and a maximum of I think 10 fish. Either the site you got the info from is not up to date or the signs around the pond are not up to date. The way I'm going I don't think I'll be keeping anything anyways...haven't caught crap yet....

A couple of questions though:

I'm always seeing tons of bubbles come up randomly around different parts of the pond.....fish or just air pockets?

Also what the hell is up with little fish following my lures back in? I've had fish about 5 inches long follow plugs back in that were just as big as they were....annoying little b****rds.

I had no luck this morning i might go back tomorrow A.M. I think I'm gonna hit the saltwater tonight....one good thing is that I work the night shift which perfectly fits in with my fishing schedule: sleep all day fish all night.


-Brian
 
#30 ·
Little fish are "followers", they can actually help you. If a bigger fish looks the follower can work almost like a teaser. If they follow it's usually when you reel fast, if you slow down you may be productive. Little followers do not deter the big fish from biting. The website I looked at was the one you posted. I see the bubbles alot in the ponds near me. I have theories but I don't know what causes it. Theory one: Musk Rats underwater exhaling, Theory two: Turtles exhaling, Theory three: Underwater animal/fish/turtle or something feeding off the bottom and opening up air pockets. I usually cast at them, but haven't noticed anything special as far as catching fish goes.
 
#32 ·
I'm starting to like this freshwater fishing thing. I'll hate it tomorrow though when I don't catch anything. I caught the bigger one on a Texas rigged worm....I was just jigging it off the bottom like you would a buck tail.....and the smaller one (which is tiny by the way in case you can't tell) I caught on a popper. I was popping it in and let it sit in the water about 2 feet in front of me and one of those tiny little fish I was talking about came up and hit it....I somehow managed to hook it. It's a bass too.....when they were in the water I thought they were little bluegill........







Time to hit the rack.....good luck to everyone fishing today
 
#33 ·
Not bad. Finessing works the best in hot summer months. Texas rig, just bouncing a rubber worm off the bottom is perfect. Work it slow and let it sit like I said before. Let it sit too long. Try texas rig creature baits if you can, they look like lizards. Carolina rigged creatures and weightless worms work well too. Wave Worms are available at WalMart and work well along with Kinai baits by Gary Yamamoto but Kinai are little bit pricier. I do not recommend berkley soft baits. They slide right off the hook unless you use a twist lock hook, which are about 5 bucks for 3 hooks...not that I don't buy them anyway lol. And I have caught 6-7" bass on a 10" culprit rubber worm so apparently if they think it will fit in their mouth they will eat it. Poppers work better for big in spring when it is cooler. In these hot months the big fat lazy cows hang out under cover so concentrate on weed beds. I got a 5lb bass that hit a berkley soft bait that was on top of a lilly pad (like a frog) . Fish came up grabbed it and the fight was on, so don't ever assume the cover is too thick. The thicker the veggies the better. I'm telling you...it's addictive, just wait til you catch one 3lbs or more. Did you weight the bigger one? I'd say a little under a pound and I know that one was fun to catch. Imagine one three times that size! It gets better and better thumbsup.gif
 
#34 ·
Thanks strawman....as far as the Berkley soft baits...I don't like them either. They seem too "stiff", didn't have the bounce and worm like appearance of some of the other worms I have. I think I'm gonna pick up some of those lizard creature baits you were talking about....they seem like its worth the try. Next outing I'm just going to use one method...a Texas rigged worm or lizard. This seems to be the most productive for me and I'm probably just wasting my time with poppers and other plugs. As far as weighing that fish, I didn't even think to do it. I just got a couple of pictures in really quick and released him.....if I get anything that I think is over a pound I'll be taking pictures. My goal this summer is get something in the double digits....I don't know if it's possible in a pond though.
 
#35 ·
Caught two more this evening...one was on a Texas rigged worm which I am really starting to fall in love with and the other was caught on a Rapala crank bait. Strawman, what you said about fishing in deep cover worked. i forgot to take a picture of where I caught it but it was deep under some cover...I'd cast on top of all the floating wood and then work the bait until it fell into the water. It only produced one small fish but I can't complain.



 
#36 ·
Well I caught another one today and missed about 4 other fish due to me not setting the hook right. I'm starting to figure out where the fish are and what makes them bite. I'm now just casting my Texas rigged worm into weeds.the weed line and if I don't get a bite on the fall or after about a minute I cast to another location......almost all fish I've caught take the worm as it's falling. I'm catching tons of small fish around a pound but nothing really big yet....my goal was to get something in the double digits but I'm not sure if there are any bass that big in the pond......I'll be happy with a 5 pound largemouth. As far as me missing all those fish earlier.....the bass were taking the worm as it was falling so by the time I went to set the hook it was too late....I'm using power pro now so I can feel exactly what is going on under the water but even that's hard to do when your reel is letting out line. One other note, today was my first time using fluorocarbon in the pond and I'm gonna have to say it made a HUGE difference. This is the first time I've got so many hits from fish during the day....usually it is completely dead.
 
#37 ·
I would imagine that the pond on Miramar gets lots of fishing pressure. There are other ponds on Pendleton that are more remote.

If you get tired of pond fishing, you should try the salt there as well. I spoke to a Marine (GA *******) who caught halibut on crank baits near the inlets (north on THE 5). Corbina also run in the surf in the spring/summer----supposedly, you can sight cast to them. Both are great table fare.
 
#39 ·
Sounds like you're getting it! I love fishing a Texas rigged worm also. Recently I've been fishing wacky rigged Senkos and having tremendous luck with them.

If you haven't seen a wacky rig, here's how I do it:

http://www.wackytool.com/

I've also used a small, black wire tie to attach the hook and it works just as well. With Senkos, the bass almost always nail it on the fall.
 
#40 ·
hey brian,

go to walmart... get a rooster tail spinner bait!!! they are amazing
i use myne every weekend and i catch tons of perch.. you will have a blast. doesnt really matter what size you get casue they will bite it... i have 1 little and 1 big and they bite hard at both..

cost 1-2$$$ good investment!!!:a_goodjob:
 
#41 ·
Thanks YungMoney.....my buddy told me to do the same thing...the problem is that same friend is on leave and has my fishing rod at his house...locked up.

Next week I plan on doing some serious fishing...haven't been out that much lately...to busy with working and stuff. :dizzy:
 
#44 ·
Yes YungMoney I'm pretty sure that's what I was using. Yesterday was my first day back in months....literally. No bites after a couple of hours fishing but it was great to get back out there. Even though it is still pretty warm out here in Cali it is still "cold" to the fish so I need to work on slowing down my presentation. I'm gonna haead back out there tomorrow afternoon (hopefully). I've been dying to fish for a while now but have been so freakin busy............
 
#45 ·
my prefered bass lure is a zoom brush hog. they make them in 4 sizes, tiny brush hog 3in, baby brush hog 4in, super hog 4in., and brush hog 7in. i usually throw the reg. brush hog, but when im getting short strikes i'll down size. they have some appendages that give it more bulk than a worm and also have a tale that flutters. its a year round bait, great for fishing all sorts of situations, i always have one tied on. i throw it with either a reaction innovations screwed up jig head or just texas rigged on a worm hook. the screwed up jig head has a piece that looks like a little spring on the head and you just screw your bait on there and it doesn't come off or get messed up. i find it a lot better than a worm hook, depending on the size of the bait. also, if theres bluegill in there like you said, i would try throwing a matts lure bluegill swimbait. well, good luck to you!
 
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