Burnt Pond in Penobscot County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  This water sits in Penobscot County, Maine. What surrounds it is lake country bush. At 321 acres this is proper open water rather than a pond. The edge covers about 3.5 miles, enough to hold several distinct areas. You are 7.5 miles from Holden. The nearest city of size is Sherbrooke, 171 miles away. A border sits close enough to be relevant to the paperwork.

• Where to Fish on Burnt Pond

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Penobscot County records list Atlantic salmon, brown trout, smallmouth bass and chain pickerel among the fish reported. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. At Burnt Pond the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 68°F for July and 17°F for January. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around early April. Open water usually runs from early April until about mid December. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. The season on Burnt Pond rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Bangor Water Supply Lands runs up to the bank here, which usually means extra restrictions. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. The nearest alternative is Little Burnt Pond, 1.2 miles out. Where Burnt Pond is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.