Snake Pond Fishing near Ticonderoga, New York

• Overview

  Snake Pond is one of the Essex County waters in New York. Country round the bank runs to rolling bush. It covers about 3 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. It is a small entry by Essex County standards. Ticonderoga is the closest town at 9.6 miles. Albany is the closest city, 85 miles away. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Snake Pond

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Records held for Essex County cover brown trout, brook trout, white sucker, pumpkinseed and yellow perch. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. The shape of Snake Pond decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 67°F in July and bottoms out near 17°F in January. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around mid April. Break-up near mid April, freeze-up near early December: that is the shape of an average year. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. On Snake Pond that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Parking is mapped about half a mile from the bank. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. If the gate is shut, Arnold Pond at 0.6 miles is the nearest alternative. Check the current arrangement for Snake Pond.