Fearing Pond (Myles Standish State Forest)

Fearing Pond is a small, clear kettle pond in the woods of Myles Standish State Forest in Plymouth, and the only pond in the forest that MassWildlife stocks with trout. It's an easy family trout pond: a sandy beach runs all the way around it, so you can fish from almost anywhere, and The Fisherman's writer circles May as the time to go.

When to fish

• Spring and fall: MassWildlife stocks trout both seasons; it's mostly put-and-take, with few fish carrying over.
• May: The Fisherman's pick for trout.
• Time of day: trout make themselves scarce under a high sun, so fish early morning and late afternoon.

Where to fish

• The deepest water: the pond averages 10 feet and reaches 23; the writer's advice is to find the deep spots and fish them.
• The shoreline: a wide sandy beach circles the pond, which is small and sheltered enough to wade.

How to fish it

Cast small spinners and spoons, or hang a dry fly or nymph under a clear float. For bait, fish a small shiner, mealworm, nightcrawler or dough bait on a slip-sinker rig, or retrieve a shiner or worm slowly along the sandy bottom.

Getting there

DCR's beach and parking area (room for about 50 cars, with a parking fee) is in the southeast corner off Fearing Pond Road. You can carry in a cartop boat; only electric motors are allowed. There's a PFAS consumption advisory for the pond's fish. You need a Massachusetts freshwater fishing license, and small lead sinkers and lead jigs are banned in fresh water.