Fishing at Pickerel Pond, Penobscot County, Maine

• Overview

  Out in Penobscot County, Maine, sits Pickerel Pond. It lies 184 feet above sea level. It runs to roughly 81 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The edge runs 1.4 miles or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Ground here is low by Maine standards. You are 6.2 miles from Hudson. Further out sit Greenbush (6.3 miles) and Bradford (8.3 miles). This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Pickerel Pond

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Penobscot County records list Atlantic salmon, brown trout, smallmouth bass and chain pickerel among the fish reported. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. The near bank of Pickerel Pond is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 68°F at the top of summer and 16°F at the bottom of winter. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around mid April. In an average year the thaw lands around mid April and the freeze near early December. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. The season on Pickerel Pond follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No built facilities appear in mapping around this water. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Failing this one, try Pug Pond, 0.7 miles away. Rules at Pickerel Pond are worth checking on the day.