We are open for business: Monday through Friday 8am-6pm, and Saturday & Sunday 8am-5pm. When entering the store please try to maintain a 6ft distance from other customers if possible, and per the governor's decree you must wear a mask/face covering of some sort inside the store (both your mouth AND nose must be covered, no lowered masks please). We are happy to deliver curbside if you are uncomfortable shopping inside. Just give us a call.
Guide Mark Swenson is offering a Beginner fly tying course (clickable link) Sunday October 18th, it is geared to tying a variety of flies that are effective on the Farmington River, while simultaneously teaching you necessary fly tying techniques. This class is for pure beginners, there will be follow up future courses geared more toward novices/intermediates following this. Click on the link above for more specific class info & Mark's contact info- contact Mark directly to sign up for this class.
Lead picture is a real dinger of a brown caught recently on a big streamer by talented customer Nathan Mumford. 2nd fish pic is a beauty caught by Jarred Jones a fly tied by CT Fish Guides (Derrick Kirkpatrick & Matt Cassella).
Today is the first official day of Fall 2020. The last several days have seen early mornings in the upper 30s for air temps, with highs in the low 60s, and every day we see a little more color in the leaves- cold nights accelerate the process. FYI typically peak foliage is historically mid/late October in our area. Long range highs aren’t as cold, starting Wednesday the 10 Day highs will average mid 60s to mid 70s (mostly 70s), with nights averaging low/mid 50s. Flows remain very low, and will be until we get substantial rain. Dam is releasing 71cfs, with the Still River kicking in another 12cfs, giving us a total flow of 83cfs in the permanent TMA/Catch & Release (C&R). Water temps are a non-issue with the cooler weather now here to stay, it was 60 degrees at the gauge in Riverton this AM. Paradoxically, in the mornings the water is colder downriver than it is at the dam, as it’s coming out in the low 60s, and then cooling overnight as you move further downriver.
Bugs of late are mainly a mix of Tricos & Winter/Summer Caddis in the mornings, and then small Blue Winged Olives (BWOs), Isonychia, Rusty Spinners & smaller Caddis in the afternoons & eves. If you are out in the evening fishing dries, stay until the end as there is normally a 15-30 minute window right near dark when the fishing becomes easier and the trout seem to become less selective and will eat a variety of patterns, often bigger flies too. Tricos are moving upriver and probably getting near the end, bug the milder temps moving in this week should stimulate some good hatching. Look for small Flying Ants on the water, especially milder afternoons when they fall during mating swarms. BWO hatches are picking up on the cooler days. If you are nymphing, small flies are norm, as in #18-22. With both dries & nymphs, keep your leaders longer (12’ or longer) and go lighter on your tippets: mostly 6-7x with dries, and mainly 6x with the nymphs. You can always take a 9’ 4-5x leader and add 3-4 feet of lighter tippet to it. Longer tippets = less drag and better presentations. Don’t spook your quarry: be stealthy in your approach in low water, stay a little further away, and wear drab colors to blend into the backround.
Starting to get more & more good
streamer reports, trout are prespawn and getting more aggressive.
It’s also a nice break from the technical small fly/light leader
fishing and allows you to cover water quickly and target some of the
biggest trout. Some yellow incorporated into your Fall streamers can
be very effective, brown trout react aggressively to their own
heightened spawning colors. Can be all yellow, or two-tone such as
brown/yellow or olive/yellow. Olive is always a color worth trying
too. Cover lots of water, play with retrieves, and experiment with
colors & patterns. Make sure to use heavier tippet, nothing
lighter than 2x-3x with average size streamers, and if you are
chucking the big stuff, go right up to 0x. The old school Muddler
Minnow is a neglected classic that works quite well in the often low
water conditions of early Fall: it can be floated, dead-drifted,
swung, or stripped, very versatile fly.
The river was
electrofished by the DEEP last week, originally scheduled for 2 days
but they got so many fish the first day they did not need to do a
second one. They bring 150 16" plus wild/holdover trout back to
the hatchery, artificially spawn them, and then return them to the
river when done. One of our customers watched them shock the pool he
was in, and he said several of the trout were so big they looked like
salmon!
The river remains low and will likely stay that way for the foreseeable future- we need rain, and lots of it! Fishing continues to get more technical, anglers are working hard to fool trout sipping flies in the flat water pools. Targeting the faster ripply/broken water with Isonychia, attractor dries, terrestrials, dry/dropper, small nymphs, and wet flies is easier and often more productive. Flying Ants have been on the water some days, and if that happens and you have the matching flies (small #20-24), it can be some good fishing. No matter whether you experience good or bad fishing, every day gets a bit more colorful as we see more peeks of autumn foliage.
Trico spinner falls are still happening, though with the colder nights here now they will happen later in the morning, so you don't need to be here at the crack of dawn to hit it- the spinners normally fall when air temps are 65-70 degrees. Best Trico reports of late are above Boneyard now, with Campground & up seeing the best action. It's technical fishing, so make sure to bring your tiny flies, long leaders, and light tippets (7x), and expect to work for each and every fish. Flying Ants have also been a major player some days, September is typically a big month for them- look for warmer sunny days ideally. When they are on the water, the trout rise like crazy, so make sure to have a few winged ants on you to imitate them.
Our most
popular jig hook, the Hanak 450 Jig Superb, is now finally available
in #18, and we have a pile of them
in stock. Just in time for tying the nymphs of late Summer/early
Fall. The hook design is excellent: ultra wide gap for better
hooking, curled in barbless point, and
a slightly short shank to tie smaller bugs. Ends up being more like a
#20, but with the gap of at least a #16. If you want a hook with
slightly heavier wire that is available
in smaller sizes, try the Fasna F-415;
it goes all the way down to a #20 and runs about
one size smaller than the Hanak. A #16
Fasna is about the size of a Hanak #18.
As
of September 1st, virtually the entire river went Catch &
Release: (21 miles from
the dam in Riverton down to the Unionville Rt 177 bridge) until
6am on Opening Day in April 2021. If you see anybody keeping
trout, don't confront them, instead call the CT DEEP TIPS hotline at
800-842-TIPS(4357) and report them. Even if they are unable to
come & ticket or arrest them, it gets logged and can help us get
more future DEEP enforcement on the river when they
analyze their call logs data. I recommend programming that phone #
into your cell phone. Please don't ask us to call them for you, it
carries more weight when lots of different individuals are calling in
violations, rather than coming mostly from UpCountry.
Although
the lower water makes for some technical fishing, we continue to get
pictures of big trout landed. Many customers are working hard for
only an occasional hook up. Don't feel bad if you are working your
butt off for each fish you catch, you need to be on your "A"
game in these tough early Fall conditions. You have to adapt to the
low flow, time of year, and the current bugs. If you do what you were
doing to be successful in June, and fish only the same spots, you
will struggle. Be flexible where you fish, try new spots, experiment
with your flies & tactics. If you move around & look, fish
can be found of the surface most of the day, with mornings & late
afternoon through evenings the peak hatch times.
The toughest fishing of all right now is the flat water, tiny dry fly game in the mornings & afternoons, you have to do everything right and even then it can still be hard. Or, you can cover water/blind fish and focus where there is more current & choppy water, fishing attractor dries, terrestrials, Dry/Dropper (with a very small #18-22 nymph dropper), or nymph fish with small #18-22 flies (either a very light Euro rig, or a small Indicator rig with one small split shot, I recommend 6x tippet with small nymphs). Fish holding in faster, choppy/riffly water have to make a quick decision and don't get as good a look at your fly. The "easier" dry fly fishing is in the evenings, when there are hatches of somewhat bigger bugs in the #10-18 range- don't overlook spinner, especially if you see gentle rises later in the evening. Rusty spinners in various sizes probably cover 60% of all Mayflies, regardless of what color they are when they hatch. Cream spinners are good too. Stay until full dark if you can, there is often a window of easier fishing in the last 15-30 minutes of light when the trout will eat a variety of dries.
Dry/Dropper tips:
While
many of the tiny hatch-matching dries require 12' or longer 6x-7x
leaders, trying to throw a Dry/Dropper rig on that is a recipe for
disaster. Think more like 9', and no lighter than 5x, and big air
resistant dries may require heavier (3x-4x) and sometimes even
shorter (7.5') leaders. You have to be able to accurately turn over
that rig, if you cannot, go shorter & heavier. Attach your nymph
to 18-24" of 6x fluoro tippet for starters. Shallow runs and/or
surface feeding trout may mean running it 12" below, and
deeper/faster runs may require up to 30-36". Most people tie the
nymph off the hook bend of the dry, but if you want the best rig of
all, create a tag end dropper for your dry fly (just like you would
in a Euro nymphing rig) above your nymph. Flows are currently low and
most of the bugs are small, so think #16-22 nymphs. This is a shallow
nymphing rig, so don't worry about dredging near the bottom, there
are different rigs for that (Euro or Indicator nymphing). For those
of you doing a Dry/Dropper rig on a Euro rod with a Mono rig, it's
totally doable if you have a thicker mono set up. 15-20# Mono is
optimal, but you can go a little thinner if the dries aren't too big
and bushy. If you go too thin, there's not enough mass in the mono to
turn the flies over. The weight of the dropper nymph actually helps
you make the cast with a Mono rig, just make sure it's not too heavy
for your dry fly to support. It becomes more critical to balance out
your flies with a Mono rig though- bigger dries need heaver flies to
be able to cast them, and smaller dries balance with lighter nymphs.
That is not necessary with a traditional fly line and
tapered leader. But the advantage to a Mono rig is that for short to
moderate range work you can high-stick it and keep all the line off
the water, up to maybe 25' or so.
Most (but not all) bugs are much smaller in late Summer/early Fall, so it typically pays off to also downsize your flies. The current main exceptions would be Stonefly Nymphs (#6-12) & Iso dries/nymphs (#10-14). Stonefly nymphs are active in early/mid mornings, and again in the evenings. Isonychia are normally active/hatching sometime between late afternoon and darkness. Don't use heavily weighted Stoneflies right down, you will be dragging bottom & hanging up constantly. Either lead weight only with no bead, or beadhead ones that aren't too heavy.
Hot New Rods:
The
brand new T&T Contact II series (10' #2, 10' #3, 10' 9" #3,
10' 9" #4 & 10' 8" #6) are now available, and now the
11' 2" #3 has joined the lineup- Zach & I (Torrey) were
closely involved with the prototype development of this last rod, and
on version 7 of the prototype they absolutely nailed it. 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, plus the newer
materials they use to make the rods inherently store more energy and
give the rod more 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.
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Current
Store Hours:
8am-6pm Monday through Friday, and
8am-5pm on weekends.
Flow:
The
Farmington is currently remains very low at a total flow of 83cfs
total flow through the permanent TMA/Catch & Release (C&R)
area, and averaging upper 50s to mid 60s for water temps on most of
the river, depending upon the weather, river section, and time of
day. Riverton is 71cfs from the dam on the West Branch, and the Still
River is adding in an additional 12cfs below it's junction with the
West Branch. Early morning Riverton water temp was 60 degrees this
morning, peaked out at 66 in late afternoon Monday. Downstream water
temps can be lower or higher than this, depending upon night time
lows, daytime highs, and sunshine (or lack thereof).
Hatches:
-Tricos #22-26: morning
hatch: the spinner fall is the main event, they fall to the water at
approximately 68 degrees air
temp;
hatch is best upriver, getting near the end
-Summer/Winter
Caddis #18-24: pupa & winged adults, typically early/mid
AM
-Flying Ants #18-24: typically afternoons/eves, especially
milder/sunny
days
-Blue Winged Olives #20-26:
typically afternoons,
especially
cloudy days
-Isonychia #10-14: late afternoon thru dark
-Giant
October Caddis: #8-12 late
afternoons/eves
-Caddis #16-20:
(tan & olive green bodies most common, anytime, but especially
morns (hatching) & evenings
(egg-laying)
-Light Cahill/Summer Stenos #12-20: evenings,
a few
-Ants
& Beetles #12-20: anytime, especially midday when hatches are
minimal
-Midges #20-32: anytime
-Parachute Adams #10-24:
different
sizes imitate Isonychia, BWOs, Midges and much more)
-Rusty
Spinners #12-26;imitates the spinner stage of most Mayflies,
afternoons & especially in the evenings
Nymphs:
-Small
Nymphs #18-22: size is more important than exact pattern
-Blue
Wing Olive #18-22
-Caddis Pupa
#14-18 in olive/green & tan
-Caddis Larva (olive to green)
#12-18
-Yellow Sally #16-18: Sulfur
nymphs imitate them well
-Isonychia
Nymph #10-14: can also use large
Princes, Zug Bugs & Pheasant
Tails
-Stoneflies #6-12:
golden/yellow, brown, black, best in morns & eves
-Frenchies
& Pheasant
Tails #12-20: various sizes imitate Mayfly nymphs like Blue
Wing Olives, Sulfurs, Cahills,
Isonychia
and many others
-Antoine's
Perdigons #16-20: black, brown, olive, yellow
-Zebra Midge
#18-22: black, olive, red
-Attractor
Nymphs #14-20: anything flashy, gaudy, or with a hot spot. Haast
Haze, Rainbow Warrior, Blue Lightning Bug, Miller's Victim,
Triple Threat, Princes, etc.-
Soft-Hackles/Wet
Flies:
-Assorted
Patterns #10-18: Hare's Ear,
Partridge & Orange/Green/Yellow, Partridge & Flash, Starling
& Herl, Leadwing Coachman, March Brown, Partridge & Pheasant
Tail
Streamers:
-BMAR
Yellow Matuka #6
-Muddler
Minnow #6-10: unweighted is very versatile in low water- float,
swing, dead-drift, strip/twitch
-Zuddler #4-8: olive,
yellow, white, brown, black
-Complex
Twist Bugger & Mini version #2-6: assorted colors
-Sculp
Snack #8 (George Daniel pattern)
-Home Invader #2-6- tan,
black, white, yellow
-Foxeee Red Clouser Minnow #6
-Dude
Friendly #8 (white, yellow, natural)
-Woolly Buggers #2-14
(black, olive, white, brown, tan)
-Rio's Precious Metal #4
(Kreelex copper, olive)
-JJ Special/Autumn Splendor/Tequeely
#4-8: brown & yellow is a DEADLY
Fall color combo
-Matuka #4-8
(yellow, olive, brown)
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