Thanks for all the input Jim,
I plan on doing most of my initial flying (to get my feet wet, pun intended,) from a friend's pond at his home. He has both a "dry" strip and a "wet" one, and yet he drives over to fly at the club strip. Must be lonesome, but as soon as I get a float plane going he won't be!
I haven't seen it yet, but a couple the others have and they describe it as a "fire pond." Farms here, away from fire hydrant capabilities, have such ponds in case of fires. Pumpers can draw water from them. They are usually out in a clear area and make excellent float sites, but tend to get a bit deep in the middle. They aren't uaually too wide or long, so retrevial might not be as much of a problem as a river or lake.
We used to run boats in a like size pond and we'd get stalled boats back with casting rods and a weight instead of a lure. Good casting practice too.
As far as a Lake Ponchatrain Float Fly, well we may have to wait a bit on that one...but man that be a fun one at Mardi Gras time!