We are open for business: Monday through Friday 8am-6pm, and Saturday
& Sunday 8am-5pm. When entering the store please maintain a 6ft
distance from other customers and per the governor's decree, and you must
wear a mask/face covering of some sort inside the store (both your mouth AND nose must be covered). We are happy to
deliver curbside if you are uncomfortable shopping inside. Just give us
a call.
Cover pic is Zach St. Amand and his netman (aka his son) with one helluva nice brown. 2nd pic is customer Brett with a really, really nice brown he fooled with a dry fly.
We've received a literal pile of inventory items recently, our leader/tippet wall is virtually full and no longer
looks like a checkerboard. The counter fishbowls are once again full with
economical hemostats & nippers. We have 5+ Lamson Liquid reels (the
#5/6 size, and perfect for most Euro rods) in stock now, and a bunch
more fly lines. Flyagra floatant is back in stock, as are Fishpond Net
Magnets. We have virtually all sizes of Maxima Chameleon.
FYI we have plenty of the hard to find "magic" UTC Sculpin Olive wire in the ever popular Brassie size (for Lance Egan's "Thread Frenchy" nymph), as well as size Small.
Hot New Rods:
The brand new T&T Contact II series (10' #2, 10' #3, 10' 9" #3, and
10' 9" #4) is all here, and as of Friday 7/31 we have a couple (we had
three) of the 11' 2" #3 in stock (I think we were literally the 1st shop
in the USA to receive them!). New improved materials, new guide spacing
, downlock
reel
seats are standard now (to better balance), and a new fighting
butt design that is more comfortable. Recovery is noticeably
better/crisper, and
the actions "tweaked" for more big fish playing power. The blanks are
incredibly strong and much much harder to
break. These rods are easy to cast, will give you more distance, and
they deliver with
improved accuracy. Retail is $825.
As of Thursday morning, the MDC reduced the dam release from 250cfs down to 150cfs, apparently due to electrical damage to both Goodwin (Hogback) & Rainbow Dams. Not sure if they will bump it back up as they get that straightened out, as we are still in a drought and only got maybe a 1/2" +/- of rain on Tuesday during the storm. The wind knocked out power in New Hartford Tuesday afternoon straight through Wednesday, but we've had power back and been open since Thursday. 150cfs is definitely low, but not as low as some of the late Summer/early Fall 60-75cfs levels we've seen before in recent years. Ironically enough, while most of us prefer the flow higher than this, lower flows lead to more rising trout- slower and/or shallower water makes it more efficient for trout to eat off the surface. The low water will also really make early & late in the day the best times to be out, midday with bright sun and low water can be a tough combo (secrets are look for shade, faster riffly or choppy water, and/or structure such as big rocks, downed trees, undercut banks). Prospecting with terrestrials such as beetles & ants, attractor dries, and Dry/Dropper rigs are all good strategies when there is no hatch. Dry/Dropper bridges combines dry fly fishing & nymphing, a hybrid technique you could say. Low water also makes for spookier trout and more technical fishing. For general dry fly fishing I'd recommend longer leaders (12' or even longer) with long and relatively light tippets. FYI you can take a 9' leader that is slightly heavier than what you want for a final tippet (say 4x or 5x), and then add 3-4' of tippet to make it a better dry fly leader. Longer leaders with longer tippets give you a more stealthy separation between your fly line and your fly, and they also make it easier to get a drag-free float. A #2-4 fly rod is preferable to a #5 or 6 rod as the fly line lands more gently, plus the more flexible lighter rods give you more tippet protection.
The water coming out of the dam still nice and cool, 8am Riverton water temp was 54 degrees 2 miles below the dam, rising to 59-60 in mid/late afternoons the previous 2 days. With reduced flows, the water temps will rise more during the day and wont stay cold as far downstream, so make sure you stay in trout-friendly water. If it's cool at night, you can still start a fair ways downstream, but don't start below New Harford/Canton, and make sure by late morning you work your way more upstream toward cooler water. A stream thermometer is very useful this time of year. Optimum trout temps are low 50s to mid 60s.
Tricos have joined the other small bug morning hatches (Needhami #22-26 & Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24). They are at least as far upstream as the lower permanent TMA/Catch & Release (C&R), and likely up at least as far as Church Pool (educated guess!). They run #22-26, and the spinner fall is the main event. They form balls of spinners in the air, and allegedly hit the water when the air is about 68 degrees. Typically they are an early to mid morning event, but that all depends upon air temps. They start earlier on warmer mornings, and later during cool ones.
Dry/Dropper is very effective, especially now with the lower water. This technique will let you fish slower and shallower water that can be tough to fish with Euro Nymphing or Indicators. Try a small weighted nymph 18-30" below a larger buoyant dry
fly. Nymphing the fast water, either Euro or with an Indy, is almost
always effective. Just make sure to fish a pair of nymphs, and make sure
one of them is small (as in a #18-20, give or take). Dominant
hatches include Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24 (mid/late morns) &
Needhami #20-26 (have duns & spinners), assorted Blue Winged Olives
#18-26 at various times during the day, and #10-12 Isonychia (later in
the day, faster water only). Attenuata are just about done, they are a light hatch and limited to just Riverton in the upper 2 miles and a light hatch now- you may still see a few (hatch is only in Riverton and almost done) small Dorothea Sulfurs up in Riverton too, usually no bigger than #18. There are also assorted Caddis #14-22 (tan, brown, black, olive/green), various
Cahills/Summer Stenos (eves), assorted spinners (especially Rusty), and
the big Varia/Potamanthus #8-12 (eves, slow water). Beetles & Ants
are great midday choices when hatches are sparse- you can blind fish
them over likely water, or fish them to sporadic risers.
Their first nymphing clinic filled up in 2-3 days, so Antoine Bissieux & DJ Clement are put on a second
Advanced Modern Euro Nymphing clinic
on Saturday August 29nd from 9am-5pm- both clinics are now FULL, but we
are taking down names for waiting list & future clinics. The above
link is clickable and will take you to
the page with all the details about this class. Learn what the top
competitive anglers from France, Spain, Czech Repbulic & Poland are
doing to outfish everybody else. This is an intermediate level class (no Euro Nymphing beginners!!!), make sure you have a good grasp of euro nymphing techniques and suitable tackle (as in Euro rod) & flies before signing up.
If you are subsurface, smaller nymphs #16-20 predominate, but... big
#6-12 Stoneflies can pull big trout in the early/mid morns (usually done by 9-10am), and later in the day
big Isonychia nymphs can catch big fish too. Just make sure one of your
two nymphs (assuming a double rig) is a smaller one (as in #18 or even smaller), some days it makes
all the difference. Trout are eating plenty of Caddis Pupa in the first
half of the day FYI. A small Mayfly type nymph is a good choice with all
the Blue Winged Olives hatching lately, but small gaudy/flashy
attractor style nymphs can be very good too. In the early to mid AM, streamers, nymphs and
dries are all possibilities. Match the hatch if you have risers, chuck
streamers for big fish, blind fish big Stoneflies in the fast water, or
try a Dry/Dropper rig.
A
lot of
anglers are reporting big creamish yellow #8-12 Mayflies in the evenings
in the slow water (prob mainly Varia, aka the "Yellow Drake", maybe
some Potamanthus mixed in too, and I've even seen a few pics of what I
suspect may be a Hexagenia or "Hex", the biggest of all Mayflies) all
over the river. You may not see
Isonychia hatching in big numbers, but despite that trout are always on
the
lookout for that big #10-12 bug, both the dry and the nymph. The bugs
you will see hatching will depend upon which section of the river you
are in, and the water type (fast, medium, or slow)
All methods are producing at moments: Dry Flies, Dry/Dropper, Nymphing (both Euro & Indicator), Streamers,
and Wet Flies/Soft Hackles. If you haven't yet tried it, Dry/Dropper
with
a buoyant dry like a terrestrial (Beetles, big Ants), Isonychia,
Stimulator, or other attractor dry, and a small weighted nymph (#16-18)
dropped underneath it, is both very fun and quite effective. 18-24" is a good
starting distance between flies, but
go longer if you aren't catching fish or you are in deeper water. FYI
the
bug activity has
many quality trout holding in shallower, broken water. Don't
limit yourself to only waiting for bugs and rising trout, as some days
you won't be in the right spot, or maybe you don't want to brave the
often crowded conditions in the popular, known "dry fly" pools. Dry/Dropper
lets you have the pleasure of fishing a dry, and some fish WILL eat the
dry. You can also blind fish the same type dries with no trailing
nymph.
If you are dry fly fishing to rising trout during a hatch,
match
the bugs as closely as you can, paying close attention to fly profile
& stage (Mayfly, Caddis, emerger,
dun/adult, spinner, etc.), the size, and the approximate color. Doesn't
matter if you cannot ID the bug or know the Latin name, just match what
it looks like, paying close attention to the size and making an
accurate, drag-free drift. At this point in the season, all the trout
have seen a ton of fake flies and real bugs, so you need to be on your
"A" game to fool them. Get as close to the as you can, and use a long
tippet (3-4' or even longer if it's not windy) to help get a drag-free
float. If you get a few accurate
natural presentations with no takers or you get a visible refusal,
either change flies or move to another fish. A refusal means you are
close, but something isn't quite right (size is slightly off, color
isn't right, they want an emerger, etc.). As a last resort, sometimes a
gentle twitch when the fly is a couple of feet above the trout will seal
the deal. But sometimes it will spook them, so do that judiciously.
Caddis dries fished in riffly water often fish better when you twitch
& skate them, they are a very active insect.
Streamer fishing is an option
if you want a change from dries & nymphs, especially on overcast days. Low light conditions and
increased and/or off-color flows (like during or after a rain) make for a better streamer bite- the biggest trout will
often be near structure like big rocks, undercut banks, downed trees,
etc. Olive is a good starting color for streamers, but it's important to
change colors (black, brown, tan, yellow, two-tone, etc.), fly size,
fly type, retrieve, depth fished, etc.
Be aware that bug activity varies from day to day and section to section, but also depending upon
water type.
Don't look for Isonychia 200 yards down a pool in the flat water, as
they are a fast water insect and that's where you will normally find them, at the
pool heads and in pocket water/faster water. I hear customers tell me
there were "no bugs", but then I find out they were fishing early
afternoon in flat/slow water on a bright sunny day and expecting to see
Iso's. Do your homework and learn at least a little about major hatches
(e.g. Iso's) that are common and last a while. Mayfly Spinner
falls occur over riffles & pocket water. Caddis most commonly hatch
& egg-lay in riffles and faster water. Big trout will often drop
into the tails of pools in the evenings to feed. Bottom line is that if
you aren't seeing bugs, move around to different water types, and move
up & down the river.
There are truly no secret "hot spots". The entire stretch of river from the
dam in Riverton down to Unionville (20+ miles), has trout spread
throughout it in very good numbers (be careful about going too far downstream in August, temps can sometimes get too hot to trout fish if you get too far below the dam). Big trout are scattered throughout
the entire river. This
is not a river where you have to be in one of only a handful of spots to
do well. The trout are truly everywhere, a mix of 2020 stockers,
multi-year holdovers, and plenty of wild fish too. Excellent habitat and
many miles
of cold water means the trout exist in good numbers all over the river.
Yes, the 6.2 mile permanent TMA/C&R (catch & release) likely
has the highest density of trout, but.... the rest of the river holds a lot of trout too, and some
really good ones. Most years I catch my biggest trout
outside
of the permanent TMA/C&R. Go out of your way to explore new water on the
Farmington, drive until you see some juicy looking new water unoccupied
by other
anglers and explore it, I think you will be pleasantly surprised
If you are fishing wets/soft-hackles (and you
should be sometimes), try a 2-3 fly rig, on tag end
droppers about 24-30" apart. During hatching activity where you see bugs and
occasional rising trout, keep all your flies unweighted and fish near
the surface. If it's slow and trout don't seem willing to move to your wets, use a lightly to moderately weighted
soft-hackle or nymph on the point position to get your rig down deeper
where the trout are. Throw across & slightly upstream and make an upstream
mend to sink your flies, let them dead-drift (watch your fly line tip
for subtle strikes), and then let them do the traditional wet fly swing-
expect strikes especially at the 3/4 downstream point when your flies
rise toward the surface. At the end of the drift let them dangle for
several seconds, then twitch them up & down a couple of times. Add
some slight rod tip twitches during some drifts, and on others just let
them drift. Keep your rod tip up around 10 o'clock during the entire
drift for tippet protection, better fly animation, and better hook-ups- this creates very
slight controlled slack you need so trout can inhale your fly and not
short strike it. This technique is great for covering riffle & pool
water where the trout are spread out and can be anywhere, the kind of
water that can be difficult/challenging to nymph.
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Current Store Hours:
8am-6pm Monday through Friday, and 8am-5pm on weekends.
Flow:
The
Farmington is currently low and at a total flow of 178cfs total flow
through
the permanent TMA/Catch & Release (C&R) area, and averaging in
the mid 50s to upper 60s for
water temps on most of the river, depending upon the weather, river
section, and time of day. Riverton is 154cfs from the dam on the West
Branch, and the Still River is adding
in an
additional 24cfs below it's junction with the West
Branch. 6am Riverton
water temp was 54 degrees this morning, downstream water temps are
higher (mid 50s to mid/upper 60s), temps will rise during the day. Most mornings (assuming a relatively cool night) water temps are
trout-friendly as far down to Canton/New Hartford, but I would not go further downriver
(Collinsville/Unionville) than that. Work your way upriver as the
day progresses, that way you will stay in cooler water.
Hatches/Dries:
