Fishing Rhododendron Pond in Essex County, New York

• Overview

  Look for Rhododendron Pond in Essex County, New York. The surface lies 1,552 feet up. The water measures roughly 3 acres, so nothing here is far from anything else. Our Essex County list holds plenty of bigger water. Supplies mean a trip to Mineville, 9.8 miles off. Then Port Henry, 13 miles, and North Elba, 15 miles. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Rhododendron Pond

  Depth figures are not published for this one. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Reported across Essex County: brown trout, brook trout, white sucker, pumpkinseed and yellow perch. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Treat Rhododendron Pond as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 64°F in July and bottom out at 15°F in January. Spring and autumn carry the fishing; summer and winter test it. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around mid April. The water is typically free of ice between mid April and early December. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. That is the shape of the year on Rhododendron Pond.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Parking sits half a mile out, which makes for a walk with tackle. Overnight stays are possible about half a mile out, where camping is mapped. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Cranberry Pond, 0.3 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. None of that is settled for Rhododendron Pond in what we hold.