Little (Spy) Pond, Belmont 9-20-09
I have been eyeing "Little Pond" for a while now. Located within the Alewife Brook Reservation, it is just across Rt. 2 from Spy Pond (and there are some references to it as "Little Spy Pond") and the source of Alewife Brook, which feeds into the Mystic River. The shoreline is almost entirely inaccessible, and I had contemplated whether it might be possible to traverse Alewife Brook in the kayak. I met some kayakers today that did just that, starting off in Lower Mystic Lake, but they said it took them 90 minutes at a leisurely pace, and they said some areas were pretty tight. Instead, after some searching on the internet, I found someone who shared with me the location of a very well hidden, dirt access road that leads down to an old broken dock where you can park your car and launch a kayak (or canoe, but that's about it).
The water in this pond is very murky, but it is otherwise a beautiful place to visit. Very isolated and protected from the otherwise urban surrounding, wildlife abounds. The pond is rather shallow. There are no lilly pads, but many weeds along the northern shore. There are lots of down trees in the water providing additional cover to fish. It's full of big but skittish carp, and even bigger turtles (and even bigger mosquitos...).
I was out in the kayak for about three hours, half of which was spent just paddling around enjoying the views and the wildlife. I saw some kind of huge hawk/eagle (not the usual redtail hawk) that was screeching like it was the end of the world, many other birds and an albino squirrel. I only caught one fish, a small bass on a 4" Senko, but had a great time and I will definitely be back. I saw another kayak fisherman and two guys wading, really the only ways to fish this water, in addition to the kayakers that made their way from Winchester. Recommended for kayak fishing, no serious shore access.