Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Selecting a site Selecting a pond site - Step 1 Pictures!

Well I have been on here lurking, reading and absorbing for the past few weeks and just getting ready to order some of the finer publications mentioned in here, but thought I would share my "vision" for opinions. I recently purchased Tract 9, 22 Acres as shown below. Here's what I have:
satellite map

The following are pictures I made from my Topo software using GPS coordinates of my property lines. Also shown is the proposed pond (which would take up about 2 acres), road and house. (None of which are currently there, so anything can be changed.) The barn and lower houses shown to the south are already existing.
topomap1
topomap2

topomap3
topomap4

Please note the topo pictures are intensified 8X to show the contour of the terrain, it is NOT that drastic of slope. The area above the pond where the barn is located is actually pretty flat with a gentle slope south. (VERY exagerated on the topo map. Below is the sat picture of my proposed pond and road with existing tracts shown:
Pond Projection

(Note the nice trianglar shaped 5 acre pond, it's beautiful in person!)

The land rises back up on tract 8 and would be perfect if I owned it for a nice shape to begin with, but since I don't, the dam will have to be built along that property line. Most of the area where I want the pond stays wet most of the year anyway, although it is a hayfield. I really want to make this as big as possible from the get-go. I have NRCS agent meeting me Thursday to give his opinion, but thought I'd "test the water" with you guys to see if this is a doable project or not. I know I haven't provided much information yet as I have no idea what the watershed is for this area. Hopefully I will know more on Thursday and perhaps I can post some actual pictures of the land itself to get a better view. Any Comments?

Neat software. What is it and where did you get it?
I can't really tell enough but I do have a concern. If your watershed is coming off another tract, they may want their own pond above yours. You might be OK but I know of one situation where that did occur. The previous owners pond is now a dry hole.

It's called Delorme Topo USA 5.0. It works pretty well and you can use a USB GPS plugged into your laptop for mapping. I wish it was more integrated with their "street atlas" program which I also have.

From what I can tell most of the run off will come from the left (west) and up (North). The bulk of the acreage is to the North and I doubt there will be ever be a pond in the woods to the North of my property, but never say never right?

You can't really tell from the Topo Map, but if you look at the Sat. Photo at the top you can see a big cluster of trees where I want a portion of the pond to cover. This is a very low area and stays wet most of the time aside from a few months in the summer. I have been told I will need to make the dam pretty high to get 2.0 acrea of water. Of course the higher the dam goes the more it needs to move to the west off the property line to allow for a more gentle grade on the back side to be able to mow. By doing this I'm not sure I am gaining anything.
I realize that really no one can give good advice without seeing the land in person, but there might be someone out there who ran into similar issues or actual pond builders than can shed some light. Thanks.

chickenwarrior,
"course the higher the dam goes the more it needs to move to the west off the property line to allow for a more gentle grade on the back side to be able to mow. By doing this I'm not sure I am gaining anything." - Couldn't say it better.
I'd say you are getting the details like if you have enough run off taken care of like you should. The variables are up to you.
And realizing the higher you go the more room the dirt takes will help you figure what height will work best.

I'm no expert, but to me it looks like a pretty large lake and not a lot of run-off. You'd better check with a professional before you start building a dam. Ideally, you want to connect two rises in elevations (hills) with your dam. (Think of it as a "U" shape. The sides are the hills and the bottom is the dam.) I don't see two hills to be connected, so it must be more of an embankment pond. Meaning, you'll have a circle dam.

Also, if you're expecting run-off from the west, the road you've drawn will prevent most of the water from flowing into the pond. The road needs to be slightly raised to avoid wash out and in doing so will redirect water AWAY from your pond.

Well now that I am a faithful PB Subscriber and since it has been just about a year since this last post, I thought I'd show some pics of the pond since it's completion last fall. Everyone like pictures right:

8/25/05 - Pond completed and first rain. A little structure added and posts set for dock.


2/03/06 - Pond continues to fill and dock almost completed. A few more rock piles and concrete blocks added as well as some earthen "humps" added with a bobcat


3/17/06 - Pond continues to fill and dock is complete!

...too cool. I think George Peppard said it best: "I love it when a plan comes together".
How big did it wind up?

Whoa! Chickenwarrior is back! I love follow-ups. That's beautiful.

Great pics which are much enjoyed. What is the next step in the pond adventure plan ?

Hey thanks for all the comments! It ended up being about 1.2 acres with a 12 FT maxium depth. Next step is: WATER. DNR in KY won't stock until Fall followed by LMB in the Spring. They say this is tried and true, and they will not stock a pond until it has NO fish in it. I have always planned on the DNR stocking my pond for $25, but does anyone think I should go another route. I just read the killer Bluegill article in the recent PB, but the chore of putting only mature males in the pond might be a little too much for me....

Hello chickenwarrior,

Why would they stock bluegill in the fall and bass the following spring? The bluegill wouldn't have a chance to spawn. Most people stock bleugill and minnows in the spring, and the bass in the fall if not the following year.

That is how IL DNR did it with my pond too. Bluegill, Redear, Channel Cat in fall (October?) and Largemouth in Spring (June) of following year.

that's the same gameplan following by Iowa DNR...I still put a "few" gills of my own in during that first summer. Just wanted a jumpstart, and I ain't the most patient guy in the world.

Same plan for the new pond...and I'll start with some fatheads this spring and maybe a "few" BG's...