Inlet Pond in Suffolk County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Inlet Pond stands in Suffolk County, New York. The surroundings are rolling hill. It covers about 4 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Ground here is low by New York standards. Greenport West lies 0.9 miles from the water. Then Greenport, 1.3 miles, and Shelter Island Heights, 2.4 miles. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Inlet Pond

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. Salt or brackish and tidal: fish the flow, rest at slack, and watch the mud on a falling tide. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. County-wide records name alewife, blueback herring, pumpkinseed, bluegill and largemouth bass. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. The shape of Inlet Pond rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 72°F, the coldest about 31°F. Some winters cap it and some do not. In a normal year the cover is thin and short-lived. Spring and autumn carry the year; summer squeezes it into the ends of the day. It sets the rhythm of the year at Inlet Pond. Late evening often out-fishes the whole afternoon.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. Parking is mapped about half a mile from the bank. There is a campsite half a mile from the water. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Failing this one, try Silver Lake, 0.9 miles away. For Inlet Pond in particular, ask before you travel.