Shortly after dawn, I arrived at the trail head to one of my favorite
trout ponds, and
shouldered the frame backpack that I carry all of my pond fishing gear with.
The hike to this particular pond is just under two miles, but in this case, its
two miles up the side of a mountain.

The sun had already begun warming the shallows as I arrived at the shore of
the pond. I was greeted by the welcome sight of a couple of trout slurping their
breakfast from the ponds surface (in this case a size 22 gray midge). This
got me moving as I quickly donned my waders and float tube, and began paddling
my way towards a big rock, halfway down the pond. The area in front of the rock
is strewn with submerged rocks and weedbeds. During the month of May, it usually
is a prime feeding area where the trout gather to feed on damselfly nymphs and
the occasional midge.

I wasnt surprised at the heavy strike that came on my third retrieve. The
rod bowed as a nice Adirondack brook trout put on an impressive aerial display
as it attempted to free itself of the hook. This particular fish, and several
others like it that I caught and released that day, fell for a green damselfly
nymph, fished on a sinking line. Nearly all of the fish were in the 11 to 13
inch range, and every one of them was a deeply colored brook trout.

This scene has repeated itself on nearly every spring trip to this pond, and
here in New York, there are many ponds in the Adirondacks where anglers can
catch brook trout that weigh up to 3 or 4 pounds. Currently, there are numerous
Adirondack ponds that offer good fishing, largely due to the restoration work
that has been done by the Department of Environmental Conservation. It should
also be noted that while the brook trout is the usual species found in these
ponds, there are some stillwaters that contain landlocked salmon, brown trout,
lake trout, and in a couple of cases, kokanee salmon.

Before you ever head up a trial to a trout pond, there are a couple of things
to be aware of. We have had a couple of unfortunate deaths with lost hikers in
the Adirondacks, and there are a couple of people who have yet to be found. Most
trails are very well marked, but a map of the area and a compass are absolute
necessities on any pond fishing trip. Another thing that is very important is
signing the book at the trail head. This gives the Forest Rangers an idea where
you are if something happens.

The biggest difficulty in fishing a trout pond is that some sort of boat is
needed. It is true that fishing from shore can produce during the early season
just after the ice melts, but a boat is essential for catching fish after that.

On ponds where there is less than a mile walk to the waters edge, I
carry a canoe in to the pond. One item that I would recommend along with the
canoe, besides the paddles and other obvious stuff, is a small anchor. Last year
I was fishing towards the end of the season, when I encountered a good midge
hatch that had the trout on a feeding frenzy. The problem was that the light
breeze made it impossible for me to control the canoe and fish at the same time.
One neat trick is to bring an onion or burlap bag that a rope can be tied to,
and find a decent sized rock once you get to the pond. This saves some weight on
the hike in.

Another item that is very good for use on canoes is a set of oar locks. If
you are fishing solo, and are going to be trolling the pond, oars are a lot
easier, because you can watch the rod for hits better when you are facing
backwards.

When the hikes get longer than mile, I prefer to fish from a float tube. I
carry the tube fully inflated, because the last thing I want to deal with when
the trout are rising is the lengthy task of pumping a tube up by hand. If you
are going to fish from a tube, use neoprene waders during the entire season. The
water in most trout ponds stays very cold, and good waders are needed to stave
off the chill when fishing from a tube. A life vest is another essential item
for float tube fishing. I recommend the inflatable vests that have a cartridge
that blows them up in an emergency. They are light, and do not get in the way
while fishing.

The equipment that I use for fly fishing ponds is pretty standard. If I am
going to be fishing from a float tube, I use a 5-weight rod that is 9 feet long.
This is the best rod for most of the situations that are encountered in pond
fishing. If I am going to be fishing from a canoe, I carry a 7-weight rod for
subsurface fishing, and use the 5-weight for dry fly fishing. On very calm days,
later in the season, I usually drop down to a 4-weight for fishing midge hatches
on the surface. I have the fly rods rigged with double-taper floating lines, and
also carry spare spools with sinking lines as well. The sinking lines can be
used for casting to submerged structure, and for trolling the pond with
streamers.

Fly selection for pond fishing is fairly simple. Carry a selection of midge
patterns for both surface and subsurface fishing. Mayfly hatches on the ponds
can be imitated with an Adams (sizes 12-16), Light Cahills (sizes 12-16),
Hexagenia patterns (sizes 8-12), and a few Dark Cahills (sizes 12-16). It is
also a good idea to carry some caddis patterns, because some of the ponds will
have a caddis hatch. For subsurface fishing, carry dragonfly nymphs, damselfly
nymphs, Wooly Buggers, Hornbergs, Mickey Finns, Grey Ghosts, and Muddler
Minnows.

When the ice first leaves the ponds, somewhere between late April and the
middle of May, depending on the elevation the pond is at, the trout feed very
heavily. Usually at this time there is a migration of damselfly and dragonfly
nymphs towards shore, and the fish will take nymph patterns very well at this
time. In addition, during a really warm spring, there may be some surface
activity in the form of a midge hatch if the surface is calm.

Trout feed actively in the ponds up until late June (depending on how warm
the weather gets). During the hot summer months, trout can still be caught, but
the prime fishing is during the spring months. As September approaches, fishing
gets good in the ponds again, and lasts until the season closes. One September,
a friend and I encountered a good hatch of large mayflies, and I caught a few
beautiful brook trout in their fall breeding colors, on a #12 Dark Hendrickson.
On another occasion in September, I encountered a midge hatch, and had a good
time on a pond that had brown trout and landlocked salmon.

Where to Fish

There are hundreds of ponds that are managed for trout in the Adirondacks,
far more than I can write about in this article. The best way to find ponds is
to contact the Conservation Department, and request a list of reclaimed ponds,
as well as a stocking list. The wilderness ponds are stocked by air, and are
noted as such on the stocking list. The NYSDEC Region 6 Office covers the
western half of the Adirondacks, and they can be reached in the Watertown Office
at (315) 785-2261. The Region 5 Office covers the eastern half of the
Adirondacks, and they can be reached at (518) 897-1200 at the Raybrook Office.
In addition to the Regional Offices, stocking lists can be downloaded off of the
Internet at the DEC Website. The address is http://www.dec.state.ny.us, and
stocking lists are available under the fisheries section.

One area where there are many ponds that can be fished is the St. Regis Canoe
Area in Essex County. There are a number of ponds that can be reached by canoe,
and although they usually require a short carry, they are quite accessible and
have good fishing.

If you enter the area from the eastern end by paddling through Little Clear
Pond from the launch site behind the state fish hatchery on Route 30 (no fishing
is allowed in this pond), you can (after a short carry) reach St. Regis Pond.
St. Regis Pond has splake, lake trout, and brook trout as the major trout
species. From St. Regis Pond- Little Long Pond can be reached after short carry,
and it contains brook trout.

On the western end of the St. Regis Canoe area, the entry way is off of
Floodwood Road through Hoel Pond, off of Hoel Pond Road. From there you can
reach Turtle Pond, Slang Pond, Long Pond and Clamshell Pond, all via canoe.
Portages are required to reach Long and Clamshell Ponds. There is also a state
boat launch on Long Pond at the western end that can be reached off of Floodwood
Road, past the West Pine Pond turnoff. Hoel Pond and Long Pond have lake trout,
and Turtle, Slang, and Clamshell Ponds have brook trout.

Other good bets in Essex county include Whey Pond in the Fish Creek Campsite.
This is a special regulations water that has an artificial lures only rule,
where you can take three fish that are at least 12 inches long. In addition to
Whey Pond- Black Pond, Horseshoe, Echo, Sunrise, Green, Rat, and Sunday Ponds are
nearby and all have brook trout. West Pine Pond off of Floodwood Road holds lake
trout, and nearby Pollywog Pond has Kokanee Salmon.

These are just some of the possibilities in this area. There are about thirty
trout ponds in the area around Upper Saranac Lake.

In St. Lawrence County, the biggest concentration of trout ponds is in the
Cranberry Lake Wilderness Area. Cowhorn, Clear, Glasby, Cat Mountain, Olmstead,
Simmons, Spectacle, Fishpole, and Darning Needle Ponds all have brook trout
fishing. From Wanakena, the High Falls Loop goes to Glasby Pond, after a two
mile hike. Another mile beyond Glasby Pond on the same trail is Cat Mountain
Pond, and Cowhorn Pond is less than mile beyond that. Clear Pond is about a
mile from Cowhorn Pond past the Cowhorn Junction. The best way to reach
Olmstead, Simmons and Spectacle ponds is to paddle across Cranberry Lake from
the public campground, past Buck Island, and head up the blue trail. After the
first mile on the trail, the yellow trail splits off the right, and Spectacle
Ponds are about another mile. Simmons and Olbstead ponds are mile beyond
Spectacle Ponds on the same trail.

A map to all of the trails in the Cranberry Lake Region is available from
NYSDEC Region 6 at the number listed above.

Another large concentration of trout ponds is in the Pharoh Lake Wilderness
Area. Within the Pharoh Lake Area, there are over twenty ponds within close
proximity of each other. Crane Pond is a popular trout pond within the area, and
contains both lake trout and rainbows. Crane Pond is reached via the trail off
of Route 74, just to the east of Paradox. Further up the same trail, Glidden
Marsh, Oxshoe, and Crab Ponds all hold brook trout. From the Putnam Pond State
Campsite, Clear, Little Rock, Rock, and Grizzle Ocean Ponds all have brook
trout, and can be reached by hiking up the trail from the campsite. These are
just some of the ponds in this area, there are several more.

Fishing for trout on our back country ponds is something for anyone who
enjoys a true wilderness fishing experience, either through hiking with a float
tube, or pond hopping with a light canoe. If you time your trip well, the
Adirondacks has many ponds where trout can be caught, as well as some of the
finest scenery that the state has to offer.