I’ve always been fascinated with all the old millponds that are scattered across North Carolina. Most of them have trees standing in the dark brown colored water and, besides being so picturesque, they’re usually full of largemouth bass and a good variety of sunfish. I can’t think of a much nicer way to spend a fall afternoon than paddling a canoe or kayak around in one of these wonderful freshwater ponds.

Years ago I was the coach at Woodland-Olney High School over in Northampton County when our basketball team was scheduled to play Gates County. Scouting the area before the game, I happened to pay a visit to one of the most beautiful millponds I’d ever seen, located in one of our N.C. State Parks. I’ve never forgotten my first looks at what is now known as Merchants Millpond State Park.

Curious about just how this area became a state park, I found a wealth of information about this from the park administration in Raleigh. Settlement in the Gates County area began in 1660. Residents of early rural communities made a living by farming and lumbering. In the early 1700s, Hunters Millpond was built at the head of Bennetts Creek to provide a means of processing and marketing regional produce. Highway construction destroyed this millpond in 1922. But further downstream, Norfleets Millpond, which was built in 1811, thrived. Gristmills, a sawmill, a farm supply store and other enterprises made the area the center of trade in Gates County. Thus, the pond became known as Merchants Millpond.

Shortly before World War II operations around the millpond came to a halt and millers sold the land to developers. In the 1960s, A.B. Coleman of Moyock purchased the property and later donated 919 acres, including the millpond, to the state. His generous donation led to the establishment of Merchants Millpond State Park in 1973. In the same year, the Nature Conservancy contributed an additional 925 acres of woodlands to the park that now encompasses more than 3,250 acres.

I didn’t have a chance to return to the park until years later when a friend and I decided to mix a camping and fishing expedition to Merchants Millpond. Preliminary planning to the park involved finding about what kind of fishing, camping and paddling would be involved when we arrive. The park ranger who talked with us recommended that, since we were after a newspaper story about this State Park, we wait until cooler weather killed off some of the insects that can sometime be bad, particularly in areas of the park that were off the main pond.

Since we had planned our camp at a very private, primitive site well into the Lassiter Swamp that lay at the head of the Park, getting the two of us to the site involved one kayak and a canoe. Since no gasoline motors are allowed to be used on Merchants Millpond, our gear would be onto the very light side. We even took in adequate firewood for our cooking fire.

Since our trip was planned for the cooler weather, we found that the fall colors were just beginning and the photo taking was ideal. So was the fishing.

Casting plastic worms cast up against the trunks of the trees that grew from the water, we found that there was a good population of largemouth bass in the pond. Likewise, the fishing for crappie and bluegills easily produced enough fish for a meal.

We’d hoped that maybe we could do a little duck hunting for wood ducks that were using the swamp as a roosting area, but the N.C. Parks do not allow any hunting.

Since Merchants Millpond lies very close to the Virginia state line, you might think that there would not be any alligators in the area, but there are a good number and some of them are large. Likewise, snakes, including our infamous cottonmouth moccasin, are present in the water.

Park Ranger Jeff Corner tells me that there are over 10-miles of hiking trails in the park and the paddling trails leading to the various campsites are well marked on the trees that stand in the water. He also tells me that the fishing in Merchants Millpond has been in a decline since Hurricane Irene struck Eastern North Carolina a few years ago. There are still restrictions on using gasoline motors on private boats there, but they can still be attached to your boat, as long as they’re not used. Electric motors are all right. This park rents canoes and kayaks for a very nominal fee these days.

The rangers at Merchants Millpond State Park can be reached at (252) 357-1191. For a complete run-down on the park go to their website at merchants.millpond@ncparks.gov. Their full address is 176 Millpond Road, Gatesville, N.C. 27938-9440 Their GPS coordinates are: 36.437105, -76.701585.