Trap Pond tips

[ReelLucky22]

Hello All,

I'm heading down to the beach this week for vacation and I'm bringing the yak along with me. The plan is for a week long fishing blitz going back and forth between driving up on the beach to surf fish, and paddling around Trap Pond State Park looking for LMB. Also wouldn't mind catching my first pickerel. Anyone familiar with the place that can point out some launch spots or productive areas to try first? Any input is appreciated.

Thanks!

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[Delawhere?]

I always do the best in the top half of the lake around the cypress trees and their knees, which can be pretty far away from the base. If not out by the trees they are right up on shore in the thickest stuff you can find. It's a muddy pond so dark colored plastics (black&blue, junebug) like senkos, beavers, or my favorite jigs.
Pickerel shouldn't be a problem finding, if your not catching on plastics just throw your favorite lure around structure. They love to bite off whatever your willing to feed them...lol. They fight pretty good but the teeth, slime, and smell gets old....unless your targeting them. Good luck bud

[Mark]

There's a group of us on the forum here who make an annual spring trip to Trap Pond.

Here is our report from May of this year: http://www.snaggedline.com/showthrea...ight=trap+pond

Trap is one of my favorite fresh water destinations. The pond is about 90 acres and approximately 1 mile long from the dam end (where the launch is) to the back where the bald cypress trees are that Delawhere? mentioned above. It's shallow. I don't believe it is much more than 8 feet at its deepest. As a result, I primarily fish it along the edges with topwater. Mostly I use a fly rod and foam poppers, but I'll also use light spinning tackle and shallow running lures.

I have caught fish in every part of the pond but I probably have done best along the southern shoreline all the way from the back near the lily pads to the old swimming beach area.

There are nice bass and pickerels in the pond and some big bluegills too. Generally, the crappies I've caught there have been small and frankly a nuisance. All will come up for poppers in the spring. I imagine they will now before the sun is high.

I've never fished it in the heat of summer. I've heard that the surface is susceptible to algae blooms at this time of year. Perhaps someone on the forum can validate that. It's also a popular campground and you may run into competition for spots on the water from canoeists. In fact even in May before the campground is full of tents, popups and trailers, I had a paddler cruise right between me and the shoreline I was fishing.

Best of luck to you and please let us know how you do.

[Hemingway]

Trap has blue-green algae blooms this time of the year. It can cause skin rash, and is very toxic to dogs. If you get wet, shower off. Obviously, I would have hand sanitizer on the yak, and not eat any of the fish. Might be a good idea to wear some boots if you are wading on the ramp.

[ReelLucky22]

Well I tried it out this morning and skunked. I wasn't a fan of the conditions: 85 water temp, very muddy with 6 inches of visibility, and hot with low wind.

I paddled from the ramp, to the back lily pads, and back. I marked two fish all morning and marked no structure, just a flat bottom. I tossed a crank bait along edges of lily pads and groups of cypress trees. Also threw plastics and jigs at the cypress groups. I hit the lily pads hard with a hollow body frog, but no techniques got a nibble. Average marked water depth was only 2-3ft.

The closer it got to noon, the more recreational paddlers came out, by no means was it crowded, I just didn't enjoy hearing someone's conversation from the other end of the pond. I came in after almost 3 hours.

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[Mark]

Well I tried it out this morning and skunked. I wasn't a fan of the conditions: 85 water temp, very muddy with 6 inches of visibility, and hot with low wind.

I paddled from the ramp, to the back lily pads, and back. I marked two fish all morning and marked no structure, just a flat bottom. I tossed a crank bait along edges of lily pads and groups of cypress trees. Also threw plastics and jigs at the cypress groups. I hit the lily pads hard with a hollow body frog, but no techniques got a nibble. Average marked water depth was only 2-3ft.

The closer it got to noon, the more recreational paddlers came out, by no means was it crowded, I just didn't enjoy hearing someone's conversation from the other end of the pond. I came in after almost 3 hours.

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Thanks for your report.

Too bad you got skunked. The pond really does have a good population of nice fish. I've always concentrated on the visible structure near the edges -- vegetation and wood, especially in the shade. The southern shoreline has always been good to me. Perhaps it fishes different in spring than it does now. I plan to return for a few days in October when I hope the bass will be on their fall feed.

Did you encounter the algae that Hemingway mentioned? If so, I hope it's gone by fall.

[ReelLucky22]

In stagnant areas there was a light green film on top of the water but that was it.

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[Mark]

In stagnant areas there was a light green film on top of the water but that was it.

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Thank you.

[Hemingway]

I think the state park tries to post warnings at the ramp if there's a bloom

[Mark]

The pond was created about 200 years ago for mills, at least one of which was used to make lumber from the very trees that are its prime attraction now.

At one time the water was clean enough for swimming as evidenced by the remnants of the swimming beach now.

[Hemingway]

I grew up swimming at trap Pond every summer, there were actually two beaches for a long time. Hundreds of people could be found swimming there on any summer day. The pond was cool and clear back then. I have some great childhood memories of those days. The depth of the pond has changed as the runoff and silt as filled it in.