Kelly Pond in Piscataquis County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Kelly Pond is a Piscataquis County water, Maine side. Country round the bank runs to lake country bush. Around 60 acres of surface means several distinct areas to work. Around 1.1 miles of margin, front to back. Millinocket sits 27 miles from the bank. Lévis sits 116 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Kelly Pond

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Public occurrence data for Piscataquis County names 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. On Kelly Pond a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 65°F on average, January about 11°F. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around late April. On average, late April opens the water and early December closes it again. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Kelly Pond fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. For a change of water, Bean Pond is 0.6 miles distant. Nothing here settles the position at Kelly Pond for certain.