Fishing at Pleasant Lake, Westchester County, New York

• Overview

  Look for Pleasant Lake in Westchester County, New York. It sits at 315 feet above sea level. Pleasantville lies 0.6 miles from the water. Thornwood is 1.2 miles and Hawthorne 1.4 miles. Also worth knowing: Choate Pond (0.4 miles), Beech Hill Pond sits 0.9 miles out, Hardscrabble Lake (1.6 miles), Bear Ridge Lake sits 1.9 miles out and Pocantico Lake (2 miles). This one sits near enough to a boundary to be worth checking.

• Where to Fish on Pleasant Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Across Westchester County, recorded fish include common carp, striped bass, bluegill and brown trout. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. At Pleasant Lake the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 73°F and January near 28°F on the long-run figures. In milder years the surface never sets. Cover comes and goes, so treat it with suspicion rather than trust. Late winter often fishes better here than midsummer does. Anyone fishing Pleasant Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. The closest car park is half a mile away, so pack accordingly. The water borders Graham Hills Park, so expect the reserve rules to apply. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. For a change of water, Choate Pond is 0.4 miles distant. Rules at Pleasant Lake are worth checking on the day.