When fishing a small pond, tactics lend themselves to the finesse approach -- innertube floats, canoes, kayaks, two-man plastic pontoons, even a pair of waders.
Mini-boats come in handy when a pond's perimeter has been ringed with vegetation, which is almost always the case. How many times have you walked as close to the shoreline as possible, and cast blindly to the middle? Maybe it was the only way to reach open water. Chances are, you were casting away from the best fish habitat, rather than to it. Worse, you wound up stripping moss from your hooks, like peeling a stringy, green banana.
Next time you fish a pond, rather than lumbering up to the water like a thirsty Neanderthal, ease out beyond the vegetation.
Bass, like deer, are "edge" animals, so cast parallel to the weed line.
Focus on the Mepps-style in-line spinners and the Beatle Spin spinner-jig combinations that weigh one-eighth ounce or less. Check your tackle shop for the life-like miniature crickets, crawfish and minnows. These lures float, then dive 6- to 18-inches on retrieve.
For plastic worms, skip the 8- and 10-inchers in favor of four-inch models. Rig them Texas-style, with a hook forced back into the worm. No slip sinker. Pinch a single BB-sized split shot to the line, six inches above the bait. These tasty little baits may weigh a fraction of an ounce and look fragile, but they tend to generate more strikes.
Reprinted with permission from Pond Boss Magazine
