Billfish Pond Fishing near Patten, Maine

• Overview

  Billfish Pond is a Piscataquis County water, in Maine. Lake country bush runs right down to the water. At about 65 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. The full circuit measures close to 1.4 miles on foot. For supplies, Patten is 21 miles out. The big place round here is Lévis, 121 miles distant. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on Billfish Pond

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Records held for Piscataquis County cover Atlantic salmon, rainbow smelt and brook trout. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Treat Billfish Pond as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is 10°F to 65°F. Winter shuts things down for a spell, then spring reopens them fast. Count the season from break-up, usually late April. Averages suggest open water from about late April through to roughly late November. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. At Billfish Pond the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Overnight stays are possible half a mile away. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. For a change of water, Round Pond is 0.4 miles distant. Rules at Billfish Pond are worth checking on the day.