Duck-on at Sunset Pond

With the prospect of catching a Pumpkin Seed, a variety of sunfish that I have yet to check off my species list, we headed to Sunset Pond in Draper. With virtually no knowledge of this community fishing pond we were truly heading out on an adventure. Once we found the parking access we unloaded the kids and a couple of 5 buck pizzas and made the .25 mile jaunt to the first pond. It was a small secluded water that held a quiet beauty. The atmosphere was enhanced by the buzzing of dragonflies and the constant chatter of ducks.

After taking a quick walk around the small pond and taking inventory of the new environment I began rigging and setting out fishing rods. We finished our pizza and began fishing from the wooden deck on the north side by the trail. I could tell right away that the bite was going to be slow.

The kids quickly lost interest and began entertaining themselves exploring the wetland area and harassing the wildlife. As soon as all of my small fisherman in training  had disappeared I noticed one of my  bobbers moving around as if it had a mind of its own. I quickly reeled in a small fish that matched the size and  shape I was after. It even matched the coloring to an extent but upon closer examination I determined that it was just a bluegill.

When the kids returned they were sad to hear they had missed an opportunity to retrieve a fish and everyone picked up a rod and proceeded to help, yeah not really, but that's how it goes. Other than all the help that the little ones like to offer another obstacle was the constant shifting of ducks. At once it seemed as if 30 ducks would swim from one side of the water to the other (probably trying to escape my kids) each crossing my lines and acting a little un-nerved and surprised as they paddled over the top. One duck in particular was less graceful about negotiating the lines than the others. It did an about face and then a circle and then did a flapping hop to get over. Next thing I know I have a flapping, squawking mallard on the end of my fishing line with all eyes on me as if to ask, "What are you doing to that poor duck?" I tried to get close enough to free it but it took off in a flash of feathers breaking my line and taking with it, hook, line and sinker, and a fairly large red and white bobber for that matter.

I caught up to it on the other side of the pond and a fellow angler rendered assistance helping in what had become a rescue operation. When I say rescue operation I mean for the duck, and not my fishing tackle as some of my friends and family would believe.

The individual that had assisted me happened to be a regular on the pond and told me that they had caught lots of small uniquely colored bluegill in past years. This is exactly how you would describe a pumpkin seed. Unfortunately he also told me they had not seen any this year and that maybe they had fallen victim to winter-kill. Not wanting to give up yet we played and fished for a little longer. We tried a few different baits, some on the surface and some on the bottom. Finally we left the park with exactly what we had set out for. No, not a pumpkin seed, an adventure.

Final Tally

1 Bluegill

1 Mallard Duck