Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Selecting a site starting the dream

Just thought I would post a quick update.

Since last Dec 1 when I was let go from my job I shut off the well and basically walked away for the winter. I went back late April to check out how things had wintered. With the little snow and no spring rains, the ponds had dropped but since they were never truly full, and never fully finished wicking, I thought the amount was not terrible. With little rain and snow and no well running for 28 weeks, the ponds dropped about 24 inches. I am thinking that the compaction, clay and DB-200 may have created fairly strong seal.

Life has arrived inspite of me to the ponds. There are millions of tadpoles in all 5 ponds. Many raccoon tracks, deer and even saw a blue heron swoop in for a bit. I have not stocked fish so he/she probably did not spend too much time. Heard a coyote howl and lots of birds and a couple of ducks.

With no job still, moving slowly and really watching the budget. Since the ponds are down I have decided to alter the plans and bit. I spent last weekend digging down and installing and drain down pipe with overflow pipe in the forage pond, strenghtening walls. Forage pond will overflow into the swimming hole and at the end of the sseason, I can drain it down and move the minnows to the swimming hole for trout (maybe) or to the catfish pond. Mark Lasig of "On Lasig Pond" dropped off 2000 lbs of bentonite left over from his pond which I am using when installing pipes and flows. Thank you Mark. I tell you, you all are a weird group of people and I mean that in the nicest way. I have never met Mark before but it did not take long before he is showing me pictures of his fish and swapping short stories about other pond boss people. Mark has been around a while and met far more people than I have. Someday, I hope to get to meet more of you and learn. Thanks again, Mark.

I am building or wiring up a valve and timer to the well so I can set it up and have the well turn on one day a week and flow to the different ponds for som many hours. I need to connect the forage pond with the 2 marshes with PVC piping and then set the overflow from the swimming hole to the catfish pond.

Things are moving slow, another 12 days without rain really puts a kink in the grass seed planting. Erosion hit a few areas hard so they need fixing.

I have ordered the fatheads and catfish so I should be stocking next week, fingers crossed. Once the fish are in, I will have the summer to finish up all the details around the ponds.

Last detail...I want to raise the swimming hole by 1-2 feet. Deepth is 5 feet 1/4 acre. My wife will not swim with fish larger than minnows. I want to swim in the summer, and stock trout in the fall, fish them out bu late spring before we start swimming again. With the electrical box for the timer on the well, I will add a circuit for areation which the trout will need during the winter.

Enough boring stuff from me. I will try and post a picture of the BIG day when fish finally get stocked. 2 years and counting but closer than ever.