The parking lot next to the transfer station can accommodate multiple vehicles. Note the total lack of snow…
Big Eddy Pond is a small, four-acre body of water located in the back of the Topsham Transfer Station at the end of Townsend Way, off Foreside Road in Topsham, ME. The pond is not shown on the Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map. Consult the Google Maps link provided above to find your way in. Note that when the transfer station is active, one can just drive through the open gate all the way to the shore of the pond. However, make sure to stop and talk to one of the attendants to explain your intent. If the transfer station is inoperative, leave your vehicle by the small parking lot to the left of the closed gate and walk in. It takes less than 10 minutes to get to your destination.
Spudding is efficient this morning because the ice is only 3-4 inches thick
Big Eddy Pond is high on my list of ponds I want to check out this season. Same thing for my 15-year-old grandson Geovani who specifically asked if we could ice fish it this year. The pond reliably freezes over early due to its small size. Except that our winter has been screwy so far this year. Southern Maine was hit by three rainstorms over the last 3-4 weeks which has severely impacted temperatures and ice formation in the coastal region. So, just to make sure, I drove to the pond yesterday morning (Sunday) to check the ice thickness using my trusted spud. I was relieved to find 3 to 4 inches of solid ice. It is not much for mid-January but thick enough to safely walk on. To my surprise, no one else was fishing when I came by to check and I also saw no recent fishing holes. It looks like we may be one of the first anglers to hit the pond this season… I ice fished here with G in late 2021 and liked the quality of the water, the quiet surroundings, and the fishing results. In the fall of 2023, the state stocked this little gem with 500 9-inch brookies, 75 13-inch brookies, and 10 20-inch brookies. Do the math: that yields an astonishing total of 146 brookies per acre which guarantees action! It also means that 3-pound brookies are swimming around those waters waiting to be caught. Who does not want the chance of catching one of those lunkers? You understand now why I am so eager to get going this morning… Ice fishing at this location takes place under the general fishing laws applicable to the south zone, i.e., up to five tip-ups, bait fish are allowed, and a two-trout limit per person per day. A depth map is not available for this location.
The flag action is continuous for the first 1.5 hours but the brookies are small
Geovani and I reach the small parking lot next to the transfer station at 7:15 am. We are the first to arrive and will be the only ones on the ice all morning. Just the way I like it! That is surprising considering that the kids are out of school (Martin Luther King Day). The air temperature is 18°F and forecast to rise into the mid-20’s with bright sunshine. We dress up warmly, off-load our gear, walk to Big Eddy Pond via the local trails, and reach it by 7:30 am. The lack of snow means that we cannot use the sled and must carry everything in. I am glad to have my buddy! The ice is glare and I put on my cleats for safety. We set up our operation along the eastern shoreline which will stay deep in the shadows as the sun rises above the horizon behind the local tree line. I did not bother bringing my auger because the ice is thin enough that the spud can do the job quickly and efficiently. G digs the holes along the shoreline in water 3 to 6 ft. deep, and I deploy the traps with small baitfish placed midway in the water column. I pin a salmon egg to the hook before adding the baitfish to add color and flavor. The action starts within 10 minutes when the first flag pops up, and it remains continuous. In fact, it takes us over an hour to deploy our eight traps because we are constantly interrupted by flags! I am glad because G is excited and enjoys the action. The only issue is that all the brookies, except for two 13 inchers, are of the much less interesting 9- to 10-inch variety. Where are the bigger ones?? Nonetheless, we get about a dozen and a half flags and land 10 brookies over the next 1.5 hours. And then the trap action suddenly dies out…
G caught the biggest brook trout this morning.
Oh boy, this pattern is sooo typical when ice fishing for brook trout. I have lost G by this point. He entertains himself by sliding chunks of ice all the way to the other side of the pond on the glare ice. That gives me breathing room to focus on jigging. Even though the flag action is done (we only catch another two brookies on baitfish), the fish are still interested in my Power Nymph and jig head combo. I increase the attractiveness of the lure by spraying crayfish juice on it when I go from hole to hole. I catch eight more trout over the next two hours, but none exceed 10 inches. Because the ice is relatively thin and transparent, and the water is crystal clear and shallow, it is fun to see the fish swim around the jig and take stabs at it. I am quite surprised to see just how inefficient they are at the task! The sun has now risen above the treetops and even the jigging action has died down. It is time to call it good. I enjoyed my morning on Big Eddy Pond but am disappointed that we were unable to catch more of the 13 inchers and none of the 20 inchers. Regardless, life is good and I am glad to be able to spend quality time with my grandson.
I continue catching brookies on the jig after the flag action dies out, but all those fish measure about this size. But it is great fun watching them biting the lure!
The results: We landed 21 brook trout (largest was 13″) in 3.5 hours of fun ice fishing.
Was the information in this blog useful? I invite you to share your thoughts and opinions. Also, feel free to discuss your fishing experiences at this location.
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