We’ve had several nights of below freezing temps .
Ponds cool off fast , but they also warm up fairly quickly.
I search out areas that catch the morning sun and keep it most of the day .
I got to the pond around noon .
I was armed with my 5’ St Croix UL Panfish series Moderate action rod , mated with my Daiwa Team Daiwa Fuego 1000 ,loaded with 4# Original P-Line .
I planned on using a drop shot rig with a 1/80th Woolybooger jig about 12-14” above a 1/16th ball head jig with the hook shaft cutoff at the head for a dropshot weight .
Casts were in the 50-60 feet . A molasses slow retrieve would take a while to get back it . I worked the rig like a shakyhead . Twitching , inches at a time .
With the little St Croix rod I could feel the weight and jig as it moved along the bottom. Anticipating the thump .
This type of fishing could get addictive.
It took about 15 casts and over thirty minutes before I felt the first thump . And as it turned out , the largest gill of the trip , one just at the 9” mark .
Next thump was from a small LM , then I switched to a float and catch the smallest gill of the day .
I missed the drop shot feel and went back to it and just before I needed to leave , I caught my fourth fish , another gill.
A fun two hours of winter time fishing .
