Follow this sign to reach the public access point.
Big Clemons Pond is an 85-acre body of water located in Hiram, Oxford County, Maine (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 4 C2). From Hiram, drive north on Routes 5/113 (Pequawket Trail). After about 2 miles, turn left on Notch Road. Drive 2.5 miles down this road and turn right on Clemons Cove Road. After a few hundred feet, turn left at a small discrete “boat ramp” sign. The access to the pond is unimproved but provides plenty of parking area. Note that both The Maine Gazetteer and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife indicate the presence of a hard-topped boat launch at this location. What I found was an unimproved dirt public launch that can only accommodate small hand-carried craft, or perhaps a small-trailered boat, in a pinch.
The bottom by the boat launch is soft and muddy but the area is wadable
Big Clemons Pond is a lightly developed pond with a gorgeous view of the Burnt Meadow Mountains to the northwest. The state stocked this pond earlier in the fall with 150 13-inch brook trout in anticipation of the upcoming ice-fishing season. This pond is open to fishing between October 1 and November 30 using artificial lures only and with the stipulation that all salmonids must be released alive at once. Click here for a depth map.
Come to papa!
My 14 year-old grandson Geovani and I arrive at the Big Clemons Pond launch around 10:45 am. We are enjoying beautiful late October weather, with the air temperature in the high 50’s, full sunshine, and no wind. We don our waders and wade enter the water 15 minutes later, armed with our ultralight spinning rods, small spinning reels, and trusted #2 Mepps spinners. Note that I cut off the third hook of the treble and flatten the barb on one of the two remaining hooks to facilitate lure removal and minimize damage to the fish. I notice that the homeowners immediately to the right and left of the launch have posted their land to keep people out. I explain to Geovani the importance to stay in the water at all times to avoid trespassing. The substrate around the launch is rather silty and the bottom drops off quickly, so we have to stay relatively close to shore. Aquatic vegetation also obstructs some of the water. I go to the left, and Geovani to the right, and we both start casting towards the center of the cove in order to locate the trout.
I’m not done fishing yet, but I’ve lost Geovani. It’s time to return home in order to keep it fun.
It takes about ten minutes of searching before I hook the first brookie. I noticed that Geovani is losing interest: he’s playing with sticks and found a beer can that he is throwing around. I get it: this is our third pond of the morning (click here and here) and he is ready to go do something else. However, I am not done fishing yet. I encourage him to come next to me. He casts for another 10 minutes but then slips away again. I catch a second brookie 5 minutes later and decide to call it good. I would like to continue searching but would rather keep it fun for him. I leave a satisfied angler. And as always when fall fishing, we had the place all to ourselves.
The results: I caught 2 brook trout (largest = 13 inches) in 25 minutes of fishing.
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