Mays Pond in Washington County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Set in Washington County, Georgia, this is Mays Pond. The ground round it is pine and hardwood. The nearest place of any size is Tennille, 5.5 miles away. Sandersville lies 8 miles off, Wrightsville another 15 miles. Water in the same corner: Purvis Pond a shade over 2.1 miles, Orrs Pond 2.1 miles away, Andrews Pond a shade over 2.5 miles, Fuqua Pond 2.7 miles away and Hodges New Pond a shade over 3.4 miles. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Mays Pond

  Federal mapping classes it as swamp or marsh rather than open lake, so expect shallow water and heavy cover. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Biodiversity records within roughly six miles include redbreast sunfish, redfin pickerel and American eel. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Fish Mays Pond where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 80°F; by January the average is down near 46°F. Fish stay active all year, but they move with the heat. Heat pushes fish deep from June onwards, so start early. February into May fishes hardest as the water warms. Anyone fishing Mays Pond regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Nothing built is recorded close to the bank here. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. The nearest alternative is Purvis Pond, 2.1 miles out. None of that is settled for Mays Pond in what we hold.