Nichols Pond Fishing Guide, Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, Connecticut

• Overview

  This water sits in Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, Connecticut. It lies 653 feet above sea level. Small at around 18 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. Head to Oxford, 1.6 miles away, for anything you forgot. Waterbury is the closest city, 11 miles away. Also on the doorstep: Swan Lake (1.4 miles), Carrington Pond 2.5 miles, Great Hill Reservoir (2.7 miles), Hoadley Pond 2.8 miles and Seymour Reservoir Number One (3 miles). Two sets of local rules meet not far from this water.

• Where to Fish on Nichols Pond

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Species logged across Naugatuck Valley Planning Region include bluegill, white sucker, pumpkinseed, yellow perch and largemouth bass. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. On Nichols Pond a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 72°F for July and 27°F for January. Whether it freezes depends on the year. In milder years the edges alone go, and the middle never sets. February into May fishes hardest as the water warms. Nichols Pond fishes to that pattern most years. Cloud cover is worth more than temperature on a bright week.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. There is recorded parking some half a mile off. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Local rules can differ across the county line, so check where you stand. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Swan Lake, 1.4 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Where Nichols Pond is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.