The "Farm Pond"

[itsfishingnotcatching]

This type of venue gets mentioned from time to time on here so, apart from the obvious "It's on a farm" how would you define it. Haven't a lot of commercials been developed from Farm Ponds?

[Lord Paul of Sheffield]

There was a farm pond that my friends and I fished as boys, we started with nets and jam jars for stickle backs and later with rod and reel for the rudd/roach that were there.

It was a small pond in the middle of a cow field, naturally there was a monster pike that lived in the water that ate ducks, small dogs and had even bitten a boys finger off (the boy's name was never know just that he had put his hand in the water to return a fish and the pike bit off his finger (which finger was never stated).
Several of my fiends hooked the monster pike only to be broken (looking back it was most likely a log underwater) and a few claims to have seen it though always when on their own.

[barbelboi]

I'd define it something like this Ian - natural looking and not commercialised, we're fortunate to have a few on our club ticket all less than an acre.
Jerry
PS the cows always arrive at the same time, queue up, wait their turn for a drink, move to the back then all leave together - very well mannered.

[mark brailsford 2]

I have never seen as many farm ponds as there are in West Lancashire. Nearly every field and rough meadow as some kind of small pond in the middle, usually with a few mature trees around it. Here in Derbyshire they are as rare as hens teeth as most were filled in years ago.

[Mr Cholmondeley-Corker (PaSC)]

There are a lot of 'dew ponds' on the north west. Built by Irish gypsies. The doug the ponds for farmers in return for food etc. basically they doug a hole and lined it with clay then filled it with straw. The straw would catch the morning dew and eventually it filled with water.

[mark brailsford 2]

Matt,
The dew ponds I know of are usually up on high ground (Peak District) and consist of a large shallow concrete ''dish'' and were built because of the impracticality of placing water butts and troughs up in the hills.

[chub_on_the_block]

I have also heard of wheel right ponds - i think these were medieval flint lined ponds that were presumably used to clean cart wheels and to straighten or mend them?. Cant find anything much about them though although you would expect to find them along old routeways.

[Mr Cholmondeley-Corker (PaSC)]

Mark

Dew ponds are all around where I live in Cheshire. One about 50 yds from my front door, 3 more 2-300 yds away. Loads of them on the farmland around me. An elderly neighbour was a lad when most of them were dug out.

[dannytaylor]

love fishing small farm ponds for whatever comes along, there often overlooked and not given a second glance by the serious angler however they can and do have some surprisingly big fish present. My best english common (29Ib) came from a tiny farm pond of less than an acre!

[Poshpaul (Angling Trust and PaSC)]

There are also decoy ponds...often on or near shooting estates. Always a slight risk fishing those during the hunting season I would have thought!!