Pond Fishing The Cape
TOURING THE SWEET WATERS OF BREWSTER
By: Team Goose Manager Dan Jones
Though Cape Cod has over 360 ponds to choose from, I want to focus specifically on some of my favorite ponds in Brewster, where I live year-round. Brewster is centrally located on Cape Cod, and is home to some of the best fishing in the area.
First up is Nickerson State Park, located on Route 6A in East Brewster. You could spend an entire day wading the shorelines of the four beautiful ponds in the park; Big Cliff, Little Cliff, Flax, and Higgins Pond. All four are stocked in the spring and fall with state raised trout, featuring brown, rainbow, brook and even tiger trout---you may even find the occasional small or largemouth bass! Kids can have lots of fun catching yellow perch with just an old-fashioned worm on a hook. The park is open for fishing year-round, but roads are sometimes not plowed during the winter months.
Pond Action/Advice
Next is Bakers Pond on the Brewster/Orleans line, located off Bakers Pond Road. Be advised, there is limited access and parking. The best option for fishing is trolling in a small boat or kayak, although I have caught plenty of fish right from the shore. Bakers Pond is also stocked yearly and has a healthy dose of largemouth bass. This pond is a good spot to hit in the early Spring and late Fall.
Last is my favorite spot, Sheep’s Pond in Brewster. Located off of Route 124 at the end of Fisherman’s Landing, this pond features a beautiful boat ramp and ample parking. Note, there is a 3 horsepower limit on gas-powered motors in the pond. Sheep’s Pond is a great location to slow troll for a wide species of fish. The water here is crystal clear, and you can easily see 10 feet down into the water. It can get a little busy with people swimming and kayaking during the Summer months, but if you are willing to get an early start you have a great shot at catching something.
When it comes to bait, nightcrawlers, shiners, and power bait are three choices I recommend for freshwater pond fishing. You can fish the shiners both on the bottom or with a bobber to keep the bait in the strike zone. With night crawlers I like to use a worm-blower, (a small bottle equipped with a syringe tip), to inject air into the worm to make it float. My favorite thing to do, however, is cast a spinning rod with spoons, spinners, and stick baits, both floating and suspending. I like to fish early mornings before sunrise and in the evening after work until well after the sun sets. In low light conditions, trout are not as easily spooked and cruise the shorelines looking for an easy meal. Big Brown Trout are notorious for nocturnal feeding. A slow, steady retrieve will almost always guarantee a strike. As summer approaches, water temperatures rise and trout will move into deeper water, making them more challenging to catch. This being said, using a kayak or small boat to get into deeper water will increase your chances.
So, if you don’t feel like surf casting, try freshwater fishing at some of the Cape’s many ponds; I have only touched on a few, but there are many more to choose from. So grab your gear, a few shiners or worms, and hit one of the sweet water ponds of Brewster.