What the heck

[fisher20]

I can't catch anything to save my life.... HELP!!!!

 

[alm21]

I don't fish there but if you describe the techniques you are applying, you may get some helpful feedback.

 

[the_intimidator03]

I haven't fished the ponds however in ponds 3 and 6 and perhaps another that i can't remember get stocked with trout. I do think all ponds include warmwater species such as bass, bluegill, green sunfish. When I say all ponds have warm water species I am even talkin about those dog training ponds as well. In Addition there is a pond with catfish.

 

[chrisohm]

The ponds are also connected from what I have read on this forum through an underground network of pipes. I have seen trout in a couple of other ponds besides 3 & 6. Those ponds get way too much pressure and fished out quick. Try to fish early, when the park opens rather than later in the day. Have live bait and dough baits with you. Fish off the bottom with a 16"-20" leader. If you are not getting action from worms, retrieve them slowly, maybe a couple twitches too! All that bank access with those ponds and it comes with all the snags as well. I have actually retrieved logs from that place just so I could get my lure back.

 

[Coyote]

I've found that worms always work best for me there. I've caught trout with worms, bass with worms, those little annoying sunfish and catfish, all with worms. So, I don't know what you're fishing for or if you have a species you are specifically targeting; but if you just want some action, I would recommend worms. Simple and basic, but effective.

I have never once caught anything there on powerbait, but thats just me. Not saying you can't do it, but I have had no luck with it at St. Louis.

For bass fishing, I saw a guy catch some big ones with a plastic worm.

I'm going there Sunday for the first time in a few months. I'll let you know if I have any luck

 

[PNW Sam]

They just put 75 more brooders in pond 6 this week. I would suggest powerbait fished 12-18 inches off the bottom. If you have a two rod validation, throw large spinners like rooster tails while your bait is out.

I might be out there tomorrow.

 

[Coyote]

They just put 75 more brooders in pond 6 this week. I would suggest powerbait fished 12-18 inches off the bottom. If you have a two rod validation, throw large spinners like rooster tails while your bait is out.

I might be out there tomorrow.

Good info, thanks. I'll make sure to try out pond six Sunday. I'm sure it will have been hit enough by then but maybe there'll still be some brooders for me and my friend on Sunday.

Do a lot of people still go in the winter? Never been there except in summer before.

 

[PNW Sam]

A couple months ago I hooked a big 30+ inch brooder in Pond 6 about 2-3 weeks after they last stocked them. I think they hold over pretty well, or at least longer than a normal batch of 8-10 inchers. You can only keep one fish over 20 inches per day, and even fishing all day you might not hook one, so they at least last a little while.

There are almost always a couple people there in the winter. Especially with the brooders coming in. I would say that you could expect 10-12 people per day throughout the winter.

This is a spot on Pond 6 that I have found produces better than average, and it is away from the crowds: 45 06'42.41" N 122 55'38.44" W
You can Google Earth those coordinates.

Good luck on Sunday; I'm sure there will be fish left for you guys.

If I'm not there tomorrow I will probably go this weekend, so if you see me out there say hi. I fish mainly at the spot I gave coordinates to, and there are pics of me in my profile.

 

[Coyote]

Wow, thanks for the great info Sam. I will definitely say hi if I see you out there on Sunday. I generally move around to a lot of different spots between the ponds, but I will definitely check out the coordinates you gave me. Good luck tomorrow and/or this weekend!

 

[PNW Sam]

I went out today and fished about 3.5 hours. I fished with rainbow powerbait and pink power eggs off the bottom. Also threw various size and color spinners. No bites. I have a two-rod validation and I was making use of it. There were a lot of people there as well, but I didn't see any fish caught. I saw one guy leave with two or three smaller trout. Since it has been so long since a stocking of "normal" fish, and there are mostly brooders in there, it's a crap shoot whether or not you will hook something.

I would say go for it if you want to get out and do some lazy fishing. If the weather is nice like it was today there is no reason to not give it a try.

 

[fisher20]

Oh yeah sorry ive just been useing spinners and power bait

 

[Coyote]

Sorry for the delayed response, I meant to post this after I got back and just seemed to slip my mind.

MY friend and I went out there the saturday before last. We were planning to go Sunday, but the weather reports predicted rain so we went Saturday instead. We were there for a pretty long time, not sure exactly how long. Over 5 hours easy.

At any rate, we didn't catch anything but he got 4 nibbles and I got 1, all off of worms under a bobber. For some reason I seem to have trouble setting the hook when I use a bobber, not sure why, but I seem to land less fish. Also, we saw a good size fish jump literally right as we were walking up to pond six on that gravelly path. Couldn't tell you what it was though as I only saw it out of the corner of my eye.