Fishing at Little Fish Pond, Franklin County, New York

• Overview

  Little Fish Pond lies in Franklin County, in New York. This is lake country bush ground. At roughly 23 acres, the whole thing is within casting reach of a single walk. Tupper Lake sits 12 miles from here and is the nearest stop. Saranac Lake is 13 miles and Lake Placid 21 miles. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end. It repays a second visit more than a first.

• Where to Fish on Little Fish Pond

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Open biodiversity records for Franklin County list brook trout, white sucker, brown trout and yellow perch. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Work Little Fish Pond in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 65°F; by January the average is down near 13°F. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. Look for the thaw near late April; the fishing lifts straight after. The water is typically free of ice between late April and early December. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. That is the shape of the year on Little Fish Pond.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. Access points are not mapped for this water, which suits people who like quiet. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. Should this one be busy, Little Long Pond is 0.2 miles off. Check the position on Little Fish Pond before loading the car.