The boat launch on Woodbury Pond is spacious and can accommodate big boats.
Sand Pond covers 177 acres and is located in Litchfield, Kennebec County, Maine (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 12 D3). This pond does not have its own hard-top public boat launch. The closest one is located at the northern end of Woodbury Pond, which is connected to Sand Pond via a wide underpass over which runs Routes 9 and 126. That public access point can be reached as follows: while driving north on Hallowell Road, turn left on Hardscrabble Road and make an immediate left on Whippoorwill Road. Drive 0.3 miles on this road until you see the blue public access sign to your left. The boat launch is clean, spacious and well-maintained. It provides plenty of parking and also access to a convenient porta potty.
A wide underpass connects Woodbury Pond to Sand Pond
Sand Pond, together with Jimmy Pond, Buker Pond, and Woodbury Pond, is part of the Takoma Lakes Chain. In preparation for today’s fishing trip, I was aiming for a setting similar to the one found at Horne Pond, namely (a) a relatively small surface area, (b) deep and clear water, (c) the presence of a thriving smelt population, and (d) annual stocking of brown trout. The goal, of course, is to duplicate the positive fishing results from last week on Horne Pond. Sand Pond meets all of these requirements and I have high expectations for it. Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. The fishing rules on this body of water fall under the general fishing laws.
I caught this fat crappy 20 ft deep over 70 ft of water! What was that fish doing there??
I arrive at the boat launch at 6:20 am. The access area is a beehive of activity, with about eight guys getting ready for a local kayak bass fishing tournament. I prepare my rigging, wait my turn to launch the boat, and buzz across Woodbury Pond. I’m ready to start trolling at 7 AM. Based on the positive results of last week, I’ll be “sowing” my smelt using a long needle instead of relying on a sliding minnow rig. The sowing technique is quite simple and effective. I’m using preserved smelt about 4” long. These kinds of baitfish are not ideal because they are stiff from the preservation process but at least present a smelt-like profile to the fish below. Using smelt in this pond is important because the browns are most likely keyed-in on that key food source.
Using a simple paper map showing the target depth contour line (30 ft in this case) greatly simplifies finding my “trolling zone” for today. The X shows the general location of the sheer drop.
I start trolling slowly in a circle along the 30-ft contour line shown on the attached photo of the depth map of Sand Pond. By the way, this simple exercise of drawing a target contour depth line on a paper map (I don’t have a fancy fish finder with internal mapping and GPS capabilities…) greatly simplifies my job when trolling a pond that’s unknown to me because I can position my boat directly in the right target area without spending frustrating time looking for it “on the fly”. However, using a simple depth finder is a must in order to quickly and effectively locate your target depth. I place the baitfish 15-20 ft below the surface with one rod using lead core line and another rod using monofilament teamed up with a portable downrigger. The rising sun is hiding behind clouds but a passing cold front is whipping up ferocious wind gusts which are going to make my trolling life miserable this morning.
A hard-fighting 19″ smallmouth bass, but no brown trout yet…
I quickly start hooking fish. However, to my displeasure, the first five are all smallmouth bass, one of which is a hard-fighting 19 incher. That’s not what I’m here for, but it shows that the fish are down there and that my preserved sown smelt is tricking them to bite. However, the recurring wind makes “fine” trolling a real challenge. I’m constantly blown in water less than 25 ft deep, which requires scrambling to bring up my bait and lures so they don’t get fouled with aquatic vegetation, or over the profundal zone where browns are unlikely to venture but where I catch a big fat crappie over 70 ft of water. The one feature that captures my full attention on this pond is an incredibly steep plunge from 20 ft to >60 ft over a distance of about 15 ft, i.o.w., a sheer vertical cliff (see the ”X” on the depth map photo). I’m trying very hard to troll right along the edge of that cliff but the wind makes that task frustrating and, ultimately, futile. I’ve been trolling for 4 hours now. I’ve yet to see a brown trout but have to start heading back home. The local fish gods finally take pity on my poor fisherman’s soul on the way to the underpass back to Woodbury Pond: I hook and land a 15” brown trout, literally at the last possible moment. Thank you Sand Pond!!
Finally, the local fish gods smile on me at the last possible moment. It’s not huge but it’s a brown trout. Success after all!!
The results: I caught one 15” brown trout, five smallmouth bass (largest: 19”), and a fat crappie in 4.5 hours of trolling with sown smelt in awful wind.
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