Monday 3/25/19 Farmington River Report: Slob City

Derrick Kirkpatrick with a dinger Brown from Sunday

It was a busy weekend in the shop at UpCountry, and even during the cold and very windy Saturday there were quite a few anglers out, but most waited for the much nicer weather Sunday. Fishing remains similar: you are working hard for your holdover and wild fish in the permanent TMA/Catch & Release, but 16-18" seems to be the most common size, with an occasional one in the 20" plus range. Half day efforts are typically 0-3 fish caught for most anglers, but as you can see they aren BIG. Quality over quantity. In the sections that were stocked in early March (Whittmore to the dam, and 219 bridge to Rt 177 bridge in Unionville), you have a better shot at numbers, with 12-14" being a more typical size. As you can see from the pictures, some real quality trout were  landed. Water temps are averaging high 30s/low 40s, but will vary depending upon the weather and time of day. Flows are very nice, almost 100cfs below average for today at a medium total flow in the low 400cfs range and

Sweet brown by John Holt 3/24

slowly receding. Long range weather sees highs 40s-60s!

Bugwise we are looking at Early Stoneflies (black mostly but some brown also), small Blue Wing Olives/Baetis in about a #20 have begun, and there are Winter Caddis, and Midges. The Caddis are typically and early morning deal, the other bugs are more in the afternoons. Milder weather here to stay now should ramp the hatches up, and with nicer flows you may see some risers. Subsurface is the go-to though, with lots of nymphs in the drift and cold water most trout (especially the bigger ones you see in the photos) just stay near the bottom and effortlessly suck nymphs & larva in. Streamers are also picking up some better fish, try starting with olive, black and white and go from there. "Low & Slow" is the name of the game with streamers now, but it pays to experiment and try some faster more aggressive retrieves and let the trout tell you what they prefer.

Antonio Varrenti and a good brown

Dan Phelan got this Bow Sunday

We have Devin Olsen's hot new book "Tactical Fly Fishing", and it looks really, really good- we are almost sold out and I will need to order more. Covers Euro style nymphing, plus a whole lot more. Based upon what he's learned from years of the highest level fly fishing competitions against the best trout fly fishermen in the world. It covers things in an extremely detailed way, and has some great "Case Studies" where he shows you different water type pictures with photo sequences of how they were able to successfully catch fish in them, and what adjustments they had to make in their rigging, approach, presentation & flies to find success. It's a good new option that does NOT duplicate George Daniel's two books on nymphing, but rather it compliments them. 


Early Black Stones (and Early Brown too now) have been active for a while now, and the holdover & wild trout are definitely taking notice. The freshly stocked trout that went in recently (above and below the permanent Catch & Release/TMA) will be receptive to a variety of flies, especially things like Woolly Buggers and "Junk Flies" (Eggs, Mops, Worms, Green Weenies). Look also at moments for trout rising to Winter Caddis (early/mid morns),  small Blue Wing Olives #20 (afternoons), Midges (late AM & afternoons), and Black Stones (afternoons). Hope for dries, but expect to fish subsurface with nymphs & streamer, and fish slow and deep. Remember that highest water temps occur in mid/late afternoon, and sunny days will see the biggest water temps increases.

Streamers have picked up less but bigger fish lately. If you wanna throw 4-6" streamers for trophies,

Vinnie Badaracco and a solid Brownie from the weekend

you are swinging for the fence and may strike out, but some days you will hit a home run and catch a giant. Be patient, and cover lots of water. Some anglers are finding fish rising to Winter Caddis, Midges, and occasionally Stoneflies. Look to slower water for dry fly fishing, but be prepared to go subsurface if needed. Sometimes they will eat the Black Stones on the surface, but it's very hit or miss. Junk Flies and various streamers fished slow & deep are also the ticket sometimes. Experiment and the trout will tell you what they want. It can vary from day to day, and even during the same day as water temps, trout metabolism, insect activity, and light levels all change as the day progresses.

While I still recommend focusing on the moderate speed water with some depth in March, this is just

Zach's client Rick N. with a beauty from Sunday 3/24

a starting point. Some of the better trout are moving into the faster water to feed in the afternoons. As water temps rise in the afternoon most days, trout often get more active and feed, and may move more into the current if there are bugs in the drift. When trout are less active due to cold water temps, it typically pushes them into pods in the softer water of pools, deeper runs, and gentle/deeper riffles. But they (and especially bigger fish) will often slide up into the heads of pools/riffles/runs into the somewhat faster water to actively feed. This is most common later in the day (afternoons) when water temps are highest and light levels diminish. It's a combination of rising water temps, bug activity, and light levels that gets the trout feeding.

Junk Flies (Mops, Squirmy/San Juan Worms, Eggs, etc.) should all continue to have their moments, but also try pairing then up with some regular nymphs. Early/Winter Stones (black, brown), Midge patterns, Caddis Larva, Pheasant Tails, Hare's Ears, etc. all could be good flies to pair up with a Junk Fly. Bigger Stonefly nymphs are still on the menu and make an excellent anchor fly when you need something heavy, and just might net you a bigger fish too. If you are fishing pools that get hit hard (like Church Pool or Hitchcock), make sure to fish some drab/natural flies (no bead, no flash, no hotspot) and/or patterns that are unusual and the fish haven't seen before. Heavy pressure can make specific patterns less effective, and sometimes shiny metallic beadheads and make trout shy away, so try some nymphs with no beads or black beads. And sometimes regular beadheads work way better than unbeaded patterns, you have to experiment if you know you are over fish but aren't doing well. Of course it goes without saying that a good dead-drift is critical (but let it swing out at the drift's end, strikes often occur at that moment, especially during insect activity). Slowly/deeply fished streamers are still connecting up with big trout, and some mornings have seen trout rising to Winter Caddis in early/mid mornings, and Midges after that. 

Nymphing is the #1 producer most days in March, as there are lots of nymphs in the drift now, but browns are hungry and sometimes want a big bite like a streamer. Many days Church Pool has been offering up morning dry fly fishing in the slower water (some days great, and some slow)- look for mornings that are not windy, preferably following a cold night. You may also see Midges sometime between late morning and the afternoon, and also Blue Wing Olives in about a #20. Other than the Winter Caddis, I usually target the late morning to late afternoon period for the most comfortable temps & best fishing (higher water temps = more active bugs & trout). The low light and higher water temps of the last couple hours often brings bigger browns out of hiding too.

Flow update as of 1:30pm Monday 3/22/19:
Total flow in permanent TMA/Catch & Release according to USGS gauge was increased by 33cfs at 9am and is currently medium and very nice at 412cfs and dropping (the Still River is 226cfs and going down), and in Riverton above the Still River the Farmington is medium at 186cfs. The Still River joins the Farmington River about 1/4 mile below Riverton Rt 20 bridge, roughly 2 miles below the dam. East Branch release was reduced to 150cfs at 9am this morning, it joins the West Branch about 3/8 mile below UpCountry near condos & sewage plant. 

Click this Thomas & Thomas blog link for a very recent review I wrote about their awesome new Contact 10' 8" #6 rod for Steelhead & Lake Run Trout/Landlocks: https://thomasandthomas.com/blogs/news/torrey-collins-contact-1086

Check out this link to my blog post on 10 of my favorite books on a variety of subjects:
http://www.farmingtonriver.com/classes-news-reviews/10-of-torreys-favorite-books-december-2018/ I'll be doing more blog posts on recommended books in the future, there are many great books out there.

A favorite image of mine Matt Supinski used in "Nexus"

Hours:
We will be open 8am-5pm, 7 days a week. Starting April 1st we will go to 8am to 6pm Monday through Friday, and 6am-5pm on weekends .

Water Temps: 
Look for water temps to average somewhere in the upper 30s/low 40s, but will vary depending upon the weather, time of day, and specific location. Highest temps will occur in mid/late afternoon, with sunny days seeing the biggest temperature increases- this often activates both the aquatic insects & trout. After colder nights, it may be wise to wait until late morning, thereby giving water temps a chance to rise a degree or two, which will get the trout (and bugs) more active- streamer fishing can be an exception to this, as it's not hatch-related, as can nymphing with egg patterns or other "Junk Flies" like worm patterns & Mop flies, or flashy attractor-type nymphs that stimulate a reaction bite.The bigger ones were pushing 3.5-4 pounds. They are now spread out nicely above & below the stocking points.

Hatches/Dries:
-Winter Caddis: #18-24 pupa & adults (early/mid AM, this is main/major winter hatch)
-Midges #20-28 (late morns through afternoons, light hatch) 
-Early Black Stoneflies #14-16 (mostly underneath, but sometimes gets fish on the surface) 
-Early Brown Stoneflies #14-16 
-Blue Wing Olives #20

Nymphs: 
-Black Stone/Black Nymphs #14-18 
-Brown Stone/Brown Nymphs #14-16
-Large Stoneflies/Pat's Rubber Legs #6-12- gold/yellow, brown, black
-Olive Nymphs #16-20
-Mop Flies #8-12 (various colors, especially cream/tan)  
-Egg Flies #10-18 (various colors: yellow, pink, orange, etc.)
-Blue Lightning Bugs/Copper Johns #14-16
-Pheasant Tail/Quasimodo Pheasant Tails #14-20
-Caddis Larva (olive to green) #12-16
-Cased Caddis #8-16 
-Antoine's Perdigons (various colors) #12-18
-Attractor/Hot-Spot nymphs #14-18 (Haast Haze, Pineapple Express, Frenchy, Triple Threat, Pink   Soft Spot Jigs, Carotene Jigs, Egan's Red Dart, Rainbow Warrior, Prince, etc.).

"Junk Flies": nymphs for high/dirty water, cold water, freshly stocked trout, or when there is no hatch and standard nymphs aren't working:
-Squirmies/San Juan Worms/G-String Worms #10-14 (pink, red, worm brown)
-Egg Flies #10-18
-Mops #8-12
-Green Weenies #10-14

Cortland's "Top Secret" Ultra Premium Fluorocarbon tippet has a glass-smooth Plasma finish and is by far the best and strongest stuff out there: it has the most abrasion resistance, stretch, flexibility & clarity. Total game-changer, and an extra-good choice if you like to nymph with lighter tippets - here's a link to purchase it off our site: http://www.farmingtonriver.com/cortland-top-secret-ultra-premium-fluorocarbon/

     -Report by Torrey Collins