Ponds a primary source of fishing during hottest months

A happy Christina White, with some bass and bluegill she caught from a farm pond. (Photo by Ken White/Special to the Daily Mail)

Traveling across our Missouri Ozark lakes region, it's hard not to take notice of all of the small ponds dotted throughout the landscape. Primarily, they were built for livestock. If the pond is larger than an acre, you can almost bet it holds a good population of largemouth bass, bluegill and channel catfish.

Ponds are a nice option on summer days when the fishing can be as hot as our July weather.

There are hundreds of ponds in our area. Nearly everyone of them hold fish, especially fighting bass and bluegill. Though most are on private land, you can find some ponds on public lands like conservation areas.

You can almost always count on action fishing a pond. A case in point is one evening several summers ago, I fished a pond with my fly-rod targeting bluegill, which is usually the most abundant of fish species in our Missouri ponds.

Anyway, I had caught 15 nice bluegills when I hooked a fish that was obviously not a bluegill. It was a big bass, and although I didn't have a scale with me and intended to release the fish, I figured it would have weighed over five pounds. Before the sun set, using a small wet fly I had caught dozens of plump bluegills and three more bass. That was a great day.

Some of the best fishing and catching often happens when the heat is on. Many times in July and August ponds have saved the day.

Now is a good time to use topwater lures on ponds that contain big bass. Recently, hitting a small pond that I knew had bass, I chose a topwater lure and started picking up several bass in the 12 to 15-inch range, but then a big explosion hit my lure as a big bass had inhaled it. It turned out to be a six pounder. Another great day here in the Ozarks.

If I had to pick one outfit for pond fishing for bass, it would be a baitcasting reel with a 10-pound test line and a medium action rod. That would work well for casting spinnerbaits, plastic worms and a topwater lure.

You can fish most ponds from the bank, but sometimes, in summer months, weeds become a problem. A small boat, canoe, kayak or float-tube will enable you to fish with ease.

Like bass anywhere, the fish are in shallow water during the early morning and late evening hours. That is when spinner lures and surface lures work best. During much of the day, a 6-inch plastic worm rigged Texas style, will catch a lot of fish.

In looking over the Missouri state fishing records, there were seven record catches of fish caught in farm ponds in the pole-and-line category, which proves just how good fishing ponds can be.

Using a small boat, canoe or kayak is useful when fishing a pond with weeds along the bank. (Submitted photo)

Last week, a Harrisonville angler, Austin Campbell, caught a record white crappie on a trotline in a Cass County pond. The fish is one of four state records in the alternative category which also includes throw lines, bank lines, limb lines, jug lines, gigging, snagging and archery. The new record white crappie weighed 2 pounds 1 ounce.

The weather may get hot here in July throughout the Ozarks, but the fishing can be even hotter if you try topwater lures or maybe a fly-rod and a popping bug. The action will soon make you forget the weather.

Pond fishing in Missouri can be an excellent summer adventure. As I have stated before in other columns, many kids catch their first fish from a farm pond. Get them hooked on fishing and they'll never forget it.