Fishing at Deer Pond, Lewis County, New York

• Overview

  Within Lewis County, New York, you have Deer Pond. It sits in rolling bush country. At 24 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Start from Carthage, 21 miles down the road. Kingston sits 66 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Nearby, in order: Trout Lake (0.8 miles), Rock Pond within 1.1 miles, Round Pond (1.8 miles), Long Pond within 2 miles and Lanes Pond (2.1 miles). One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Deer Pond

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. County-wide records name white sucker, brown trout and pumpkinseed. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. The shape of Deer Pond decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 66°F and January reads 15°F. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around mid April. Expect the water usable from around mid April until roughly early December. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. That is the shape of the year on Deer Pond.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Trout Lake, 0.8 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing here settles the position at Deer Pond for certain.