Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Own a Small Pond or a Boat and Big Lakes?

Hi Drue. First off welcome to PB. I haven't fished public waters in years so I can't really comment on that. I was hoping DIED would weigh in here because he is an active fisherman on both his own pond and on public waters. If the public waters in your area are real crowded then you may not enjoy the experience as much. One way that you might be able to see if you like it would be to plan a fishing trip to the area that you are thinking of purchasing property and renting a boat and experiencing the lake for yourself.

I have a 2-3 acre pond that is completely on my property. Part of what I really enjoy about it is that only my family and friends fish on it. Its secluded and quiet and the fishing so far has been very good. I think there are pros and cons to owning a portion of a pond versus the entire pond. A 10 acre pond is a very good sized pond that has enormous potential. Based upon what you said it seems as though the pond has a good mix of fish. I think it would just depend upon the mix of neighboring owners.

Most every pond large or small will require some management in order to keep it a good fishing spot. If the fishing on the 10 acre pond is good and the relative weights of the LMB and BG are good then you may not need to do much of anything. If the fishing is not good and/or the relative weights of the fish are not good then some management may be in order. Same is true if you have a vegetation or water quality problem.

The main disadvantage that I see in a co-owned pond is management by committee. Trying to get a group of people to (1) agree on anything and the (2) open their wallets can be a real pain.

The main disadvantage of 100% ownership of a pond is that you have to do all of the work and spend all of the money.

Tell us more about the 10 acre pond...

How is fishing on it?

Any idea about the relative weight of the LMB and BG?

Post some photos if ya got them - I'd love to see a photo of the place.