Honey Pond in Essex County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Look for Honey Pond in the Essex County part of New York. Everything around it is lake country bush. It covers about 3 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Our Essex County list holds plenty of bigger water. 9.9 miles away sits Ticonderoga, the nearest town. Albany sits 83 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Honey Pond

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. County-wide records name brown trout, brook trout, white sucker, pumpkinseed and yellow perch. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Anyone new to Honey Pond should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 17°F in January to roughly 67°F in July. Seasons are distinct, and each one fishes differently. After mid April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Open water usually runs from mid April until about early December. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Honey Pond runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. For a change of water, Lilypad Pond is 0.4 miles distant. Check the position at Honey Pond before loading the car.