Who fish's private lakes?

[Jake Dogfish]

Great thread Mallard83 and thanks to KevinB for digging it up.
I used to fish a private lake as a kid and I thought all fishing was that easy. It was Fairview lake in Kitsap County. My family used to have property there, and when they sold it we would go fish at a friends house. They eventually passed away but man what good times. I fished opening day every year there as a kid for 10+ years. Some years they planted some big fish in there, other years there was at least a few holdovers. Add a few Big Bass, Crappie and eventually Catfish and bluegill. Trust me, you never know what you got till its gone!
Bob I thought Bassinbomber might have been talking about Lake retreat also. Atleast we are paying attention.

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Reflection lake north of Spokane is a great private lake with houses around it. It is about 100 acers and all you need is permission from one of the owners. Tons of bass and broad stock bows.

[aaron42ash]

Reflection lake north of Spokane is a great private lake with houses around it. It is about 100 acers and all you need is permission from one of the owners. Tons of bass and broad stock bows.

Hey tollefs....any other panfish in Reflection? Also, does this lake have specific seasons or could it be available to ice-fish if permission is granted? My Wisconsin blood needs to find a place i can catch crappies and gills through the ice. Thanks!

[Ditch Pickler]

my Bro-n-law's family has a private lake with nothing but LMB and bluegills...very easy to catch 2-4lbrs dam near every cast!

[BassinBomber]

my Bro-n-law's family has a private lake with nothing but LMB and bluegills...very easy to catch 2-4lbrs dam near every cast!

That's a cool place 2 start the Lil ones Bassin Pinoy!

BB

[Ditch Pickler]

my Bro-n-law's family has a private lake with nothing but LMB and bluegills...very easy to catch 2-4lbrs dam near every cast!

That's a cool place 2 start the Lil ones Bassin Pinoy!

BB

Ya my and my nephew go there a few times a year so he can catch decent bass. I know theres at least more than a handful of 6-8lbs in there minimum. His older cousin caught 3 6lbrs out of there last year and but got permission to keep and eat them.

He started bringing all his big bass catches to the lake starting in 94'. Most of the big bass came out of Kitsap and long lake and released into the private lake. Water is very clear and its exciting watching bass come up and hit your bait. Especially when a decent bass picks up a jig thats dragging....i need to get a polarize camera lense so i can get footage of batter in the water better..

[fishing collector]

Now that this thread is opening again. Does any one know if Lake Cochran is still private. It is located north of Monroe a bit. I was just wondering. I used to fish it when I was a kid over 50 years ago. The fishing then was incredible and last time I tried it was 10 years ago and it was full of nice 2-6 lb bows and nice big bass. It used to be stocked by the land owners around the lake. I was just wondering if it was still private. Thanks, Steve

[BassinBomber]

my Bro-n-law's family has a private lake with nothing but LMB and bluegills...very easy to catch 2-4lbrs dam near every cast!

That's a cool place 2 start the Lil ones Bassin Pinoy!

BB

Ya my and my nephew go there a few times a year so he can catch decent bass. I know theres at least more than a handful of 6-8lbs in there minimum. His older cousin caught 3 6lbrs out of there last year and but got permission to keep and eat them.

He started bringing all his big bass catches to the lake starting in 94'. Most of the big bass came out of Kitsap and long lake and released into the private lake. Water is very clear and its exciting watching bass come up and hit your bait. Especially when a decent bass picks up a jig thats dragging....i need to get a polarize camera lense so i can get footage of batter in the water better..

Sounds cool,..maybe this season we can all head up 2 the lake and do some Bassin!

BB

[Ditch Pickler]

That's a cool place 2 start the Lil ones Bassin Pinoy!

BB

Ya my and my nephew go there a few times a year so he can catch decent bass. I know theres at least more than a handful of 6-8lbs in there minimum. His older cousin caught 3 6lbrs out of there last year and but got permission to keep and eat them.

He started bringing all his big bass catches to the lake starting in 94'. Most of the big bass came out of Kitsap and long lake and released into the private lake. Water is very clear and its exciting watching bass come up and hit your bait. Especially when a decent bass picks up a jig thats dragging....i need to get a polarize camera lense so i can get footage of batter in the water better..

Sounds cool,..maybe this season we can all head up 2 the lake and do some Bassin!

BB

for sure!

[qwerfdsa12345]

I was curious if anyone else has a private lake that only you or a select few have access to. I am not looking for access by any means (unless you are feeling gracious). I just want to hear what kind of privet not secret lakes/ponds you are able to fish and what kinds of fish are in there. It could even be a body of water you used to have access to but don't anymore. I currently only have access to one privet pond, my grandpas. This pond is where I learned to fish when I was barely old enough to walk. There are a lot of memories for me there. It is a man made pond that my grandparents dug long ago and eventually stocked it with bullhead catfish and various sunfish. The sunfish are long gone now because the catfish ate them along with the occasional unwary baby duck, which caused the catfish to grow to about 18-24" on average. The catfish these days are only about 2-10" with the occasional larger one, due to overpopulation. It is fun watching them eat though because we toss out bread on the surface and it is just an all out feeding frenzy. The fish are so easy to catch that the bait doesn't even have time to hit the bottom before you have a fish on and sometimes I even catch them on a bare hook under a bobber. The other private lake I have fished was on a friend of my grandpas property. The pond was small enough to throw a stone across it, but was about 20' deep and was very clear. There was lots of 5-20 lb (thats right I said 20 lb) rainbow trout in there and were always hungry and willing to bite. That was years ago and the pond washed out with a flood from a nearby river and he lost all of his trout. In the next few weeks anglers on the river reported catching unusually large rainbows, but only a few in town knew where they came from. So lets hear about your fishing adventures on private waters.

20 lb'ers!! What were you feeding those things!

[SnohoBassGuy]

I know of a couple of private lakes that I fish. I never really got permission, but the people around dont seem to mind (that I know of). I never keep fish out of either of them though.

They are Hilton Lake and Ruggs Lake near Everett. Only caught a few out of Hilton, but I tried Ruggs last year during June when the bite was way off. I usually float tube them, no motors.

I know Travis fishes Hilton as well.

What are your opinions on fishing without permission?

[BassinBomber]

I feel it's best 2 ask "someone",..even if you don't know them,..just don't want 2 upset anybody about being on private property,..it's always a good thing 2 be curtious and "just ask",..!

BB

[blufin loui]

Hey ya SnohoBassGuy
Asking Permission is a first line way to build good relations between "us" fishermen (gals) and landowners. If the landowner happens to not live in the area of water in question, all the more reason to seek Permission. The fact that others may not object is irrevelent. Think of it as being ambasadors of the fishing cult (uuuuh sport) therefore building good relations and it just furthers the bond between the two.
What would you say if while fishing the spot (without permission) another fishing person showed up and wanted to fish also. Potential snowball effect.
And who knows the owners could be great people, and it could be the start of a friendship.
Go out there and enjoy the "act of fishing."

[kevinb]

Hey Snoho

I know your intentions are good but as a land owner on a private lake I have seen many
folks fishing my lake who were not suppose to be. I firmly believe that most of these folks are harmless
and just want to get a quick trip in but we've had a few folks come in and keep quality bass. I believe
it only takes one uneducated angler to destroy a fishery. Don't get me wrong...I'm not dropping you
in this catagory but just check around with locals on the lake and I'm sure most would appreciate it and
probably point you to some good spots.

[spliff721]

a friend and i were over in easton, fishing the easton ponds last summer. i got bored with the lack of actoion on the ponds so i hiked back into the woods behind the ponds to the river. fished it for a while, caught a tini fish. and then got the bright idea that i need a better angle on my spot. i looked across the river and seen the angle i wanted. so i rolled up my pants(alot of good it did for me, the water was waist deep.)and crossed the river. i climed up the bank and behold, a sand pit with a decent size pond/lake. i called at my buddy and he followed me. got over to the pond and waded out on thes little delta that was about a foot deep. there was fry everywhere. i thought they would eat my feet off. so i cast my line. a little wedding ring looking spinner with a fake worm trailing it. caught 2 16-18 inch beautiful rainbow trout on my first 2 casts, fatties. we fished it for an hour or so more. we could see tons of fish. the water was so clear you could see 20 ft down.
i havnt been back since. but my friend went back and caught a couple more fatties.
now this sand pit has a road that goes to it with a gate on it. it is also right buy what looked to me like a hatchery. i dont think it was a hatchery lake, cuz i saw some signs that said property of DOT. my friend and i think that maybe the hatchery throws extra fry in there or something.
we call it the espionage hole on account that we dont think we are really suppose to fish it. but its hard let a little thing like a gate stop you from fishing a spot you know there are tons of nice fish.

[sharpshooter223]

a friend and i were over in easton, fishing the easton ponds last summer. i got bored with the lack of actoion on the ponds so i hiked back into the woods behind the ponds to the river. fished it for a while, caught a tini fish. and then got the bright idea that i need a better angle on my spot. i looked across the river and seen the angle i wanted. so i rolled up my pants(alot of good it did for me, the water was waist deep.)and crossed the river. i climed up the bank and behold, a sand pit with a decent size pond/lake. i called at my buddy and he followed me. got over to the pond and waded out on thes little delta that was about a foot deep. there was fry everywhere. i thought they would eat my feet off. so i cast my line. a little wedding ring looking spinner with a fake worm trailing it. caught 2 16-18 inch beautiful rainbow trout on my first 2 casts, fatties. we fished it for an hour or so more. we could see tons of fish. the water was so clear you could see 20 ft down.
i havnt been back since. but my friend went back and caught a couple more fatties.
now this sand pit has a road that goes to it with a gate on it. it is also right buy what looked to me like a hatchery. i dont think it was a hatchery lake, cuz i saw some signs that said property of DOT. my friend and i think that maybe the hatchery throws extra fry in there or something.
we call it the espionage hole on account that we dont think we are really suppose to fish it. but its hard let a little thing like a gate stop you from fishing a spot you know there are tons of nice fish.

i'll bet you are NOT supposed to be fishing that pond, it probably is property of the hatchery. thats kind of an odd post to make you first post. if you know you arent supposed to fish it then you shouldnt be fishing it.

[Fishaholic]

Fishing private lakes can be a blast! I personally have a small lake that I go to in the Bonney Lake area quite often And I do know of some of these lakes in the Buckley and ravensdale areas that you guys were talkin about. I may give them a try as well. Fishing small lakes like the one I have access to doesnt always produce huge fish, but if your having a slow day at a bigger lake like tapps its fun to stop in cause you are sure to catch fish. The lake holds trout, countless numbers of small bass, perch, and sunfish. And all the people who I have met have no problem with me fishing there except for one, but I dont let one grump slow me down lol.

[SnohoBassGuy]

Hey Snoho

I know your intentions are good but as a land owner on a private lake I have seen many
folks fishing my lake who were not suppose to be. I firmly believe that most of these folks are harmless
and just want to get a quick trip in but we've had a few folks come in and keep quality bass. I believe
it only takes one uneducated angler to destroy a fishery. Don't get me wrong...I'm not dropping you
in this catagory but just check around with locals on the lake and I'm sure most would appreciate it and
probably point you to some good spots.

I will be sure to ask around, and get someone who lives on the lake's permission. Thanks for the feed back.

Oh, and sorry for the changing the topic

[Smar969905]

So im new here, but just poking around. One of my friends lives on her parents property between mill creek and clearview, and they have a small pond on it. The pond is maybe 6 feet deep at the deepest point, but i doubt it. they put a fountain in the middle of it. it is probably 30 feet across at the widest point, so very small. my friend would have a few people over and we throw whatever we have across the pond and bring it back in. half the time it is pulling in weeds, but there are several little smallmouths in there. she was telling me about her family having a competition there, and she had a small bass hooked on, and right before she got it landed, a bigger bass bit onto the small one, and she landed both at the same time. once the weather warms up again, i will spend more time over there to see if i can hit a few bass in the head with a lure or 2.

its not a private lake, but if anybody is in spokane area, jump off joe lake is a small and quiet little lake to fish on. it has a public launch, and allows up to 10 hp motors. it is north of mead. my dad and i took my grandpa out there, for probably his last fishing trip ever last july or august. i had a few bites, but none of us landed anything.

[topdawg47]

Yea, private ponds are best/money for catching fish! They are under fished and usually produce quite well.

Back in Cincinnati, OH which is my where I grew up as a youngster that was a pond in Indian Hills that my grandmother would take us and you would just catch big slaps of Bluegills, I mean the size of your hand and thick! Very tasty, besides all the bones. And, o dont let me forget the Bass fishing! I caught my biggest bass ever out of that private pond. Man, can't remember the actually weight on it though!

But, it was well worthy of being mounted..That was in the works but never came to play.

Aww, the good old natti days!