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8am-5pm Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm on Saturday & Sunday. These will be our hours through March.
Pictured up top is Craig Peterson with a tank of an FRAA rainbow that was stocked back in April. He was guided by Derrick Kirkpatrick of CT Fish Guides, and he also landed a 20" hook jawed male brown. These bows have held over well and are healthy and colored up now, ranging from 20-27”.
As of 9/1, the entire upper 21 miles of river from the dam in Riverton to the Rt 20 bridge in Unionville is catch & release until next spring.
We just got in some inexpensive used older Orvis rods/reels in immaculate condition, Silver Label Rods& Madison Reels, check ‘em out in the store. They are true classics.
Friday 10/18 morning Report:
33 degrees at 8am this morning! Cold nights and shorter days have really brought out the fall colors, I’d say this weekend through next weekend should be peak foliage week- I love October. Daytime highs push into the 70’s from Saturday through Wednesday, but night remains seasonably cold. It will be a beautiful, sunny, dry, and colorful weekend to be out on the river.Trout haven’t started spawning yet, but will be VERY soon. Peak spawn is typically late October/early November, even going into December. I’ve seen a few browns spawning as late as mid January.Keep your eyes out for redds! Main hatch remains Tan/Brown Caddis #16-20, Isonychia #12-14, and Blue Winged Olives #18-26.
120cfs total flow in the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release as I write this Friday morning- the Riverton gauge shows 106cfs from the dam down to the Rt 20 bridge, with the Still River adding in 14cfs downstream. Riverton water temp is 58.5 degrees at 8am, yesterday afternoon it peaked there at 62.5. Water temps are dropping, but will continue to come out of the dam in the low 60's until the reservoirs flip, probably in late October.
Brown trout are heavily pre-spawn and aggressive on streamers. You will often see the males chasing each other around as they stake out their territory. Spawning will begin very soon, so keep an eye out for redds (the oval shaped lighter areas in shallow pea gravel riffles where the trout deposit their eggs) and please LEAVE SPAWNING TROUT ALONE, it’s unsporting to target them and only adds to spawning stress, let them do their thing unmolested. What you want to do is target the often unseen fish downstream from them that are eating loose eggs in the drift, usually in the first darker/deeper water below the redd. Don't walk through the redds, or the first 15 feet or so of water below them as many of the eggs the trout deposit drift 5-15 feet. If you walk on the eggs you are killing future generations of wild trout.
Egg flies, particularly in small sizes, will work well for the remainder of the Fall/Winter. A 4mm size single egg fished at the end of the leader will often be effective. While all egg patterns work, the Otter Egg is particularly effective as it features a realistic rubber egg at its center with a milky veil over the top.
Cold nights and days will see some morning hatches push more in to the afternoons. Streamer fishing is picking up. They are a good choice now that the brown trout are getting more aggressive. Best time to streamer fish is in the morning, the earlier the better, and again at the end of the day when the sun gets off the water. Make sure to play with streamer colors, size, pattern type, and retrieves to see what is working better at any given moment.
Flows remain low and highly fishable as long as you are stealthy in your approach and match your rigging & flies to the conditions. The minimal water release is due to a lack of rainfall. The upside of low water is easier wading & access, easier to figure out where the trout are because you can eliminate a lot of the water, and less water encourages the trout to feed on the surface when there is a hatch.
Antoine Bissieux (the “French Flyfisher”) is bringing world champion French flyfisher Bertrand Jacquemin to do 9 clinics focusing on Sight Fishing & Dry/Dropper. Bertrand is literally one of the best trout fisherman in the world, and he retired with 11 medals in competitive fly fishing (4 of them gold). The French team is the best in the world at fly fishing for trout, and this is a unique opportunity to spend a day learning from one of the world’s best, without having to spend $5,000 dollars to visit him in France. Europeans use some deadly flies, rigging & techniques that vary from what Americans see and use. Clinics range from $300 to $450 dollars, and the dates are 10/19 to 10/26. Contact Antoine directly at 860-759-4464 to sign up, clinics are filling up fast.
Local guide Mark Swenson is doing a Beginner Fly Tying class on November 17th, contact him directly at 203-586-8007 to sign up. Cost is $150 person, with a maximum class size of 6 people. I would expect this class to fill up quickly.
Large Golden Stoneflies still crawling out on the rocks to emerge between first light and mid/late mornings, they run from about a #4 down to a #12, and this should continue at least through the end of October. Big Stoneflies are on a 2-4 year life cycle, so they are always present and a possible food source (immature ones will be smaller though). Imitate them with #8-12 nymphs in the fast water, big trout key in on them. They are active & emerging from June through October. Look for their empty shucks on protruding rocks in fast water, you’ll also see a bunch on concrete bridge abutments. Fishing these big nymphs will net you some bigger fish, especially if you fish the fast water from first light until about 10am. You can beef your tippet up when fishing bigger bugs like this for bigger trout. 4x to 5x is not to heavy.
FRAA trophy rainbows are still getting caught. They have been averaging about 5-7 pounds, and some are even bigger. A good amount of trout are holding in faster water: riffles, faster runs, and pocket water. Also the FRAA put in 18 large Golden Rainbows, and you will see them here & there, along with the leftover ones in the upper river from the Riverton Derby in early April. They are always a challenge to catch because they stick out like a sore thumb (they are a bright yellow/orange color) and everybody targets them.
Be prepared to go subsurface with Caddis pupa, small Mayfly patterns, big Stoneflies, Isonychia nymphs #12-14 (can also use big Pheasant Tails & Prince Nymphs to imitate them), wet flies/soft hackles, and streamers. Also try BWO nymphs #18-22, #12-20 Pheasant Tails/Frenchies and other assorted nymphs. Small nymphs #18-22 are often the ticket this time of year, with the fly size being more important than the exact pattern. Mops (cream, chartreuse) & Squirmy Worms (pink, red) are always worth a try, especially as a clean up fly after you nymph a run, or if trout are not responding to your usual more imitative patterns. They can also be good during non-hatch periods. Don’t neglect attractor nymphs that have flash, fluorescent colors, UV, or gaudy colors- metallic pink beaded nymphs are very effective.
The new Thomas & Thomas Avantt II fly rods arrived in March, and they have really impressed us. Slightly more flex in the tip, but still plenty of power in the mid & lower sections, with fantastic crisp recovery and a low swing weight.
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Hatches/Dries:
-Caddis #16-20 (tan, brown): main hatch now, hatching mornings & afternoons, and come back in the eves to egg-lay
-Isonychia #12-14: typically a mid/late afternoon through dusk hatch in fast water. This bug brings some large trout to the surface in fast water later in the day. You can also blind fish it in likely looking water or use it in a Dry/Dropper rig.
-Blue Wing Olive #22-26: cloudy afternoons, evenings too. In the eves fish small rusty spinners #22-26.
-Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24: hatching in early to mid morning, all year long
Nymphs & Wet Flies/Soft Hackles:
-Small Nymphs #18-22: frequently size is more important than the exact pattern, especially this time of year when most of the bugs are smaller. Generic bugs like Pheasant Tails/Frenchies, Hare’s Ears, Walt’s Worms, etc. all are good choices.
-Caddis Pupa #16-18 (tan, brown)
-Blue Winged Olive Nymphs #16-22, good all year, and especially in the fall, common item in the drift
-Isonychia Nymph #12-14: fish in fast water, mid afternoon through dusk. Try dead-drifting, swinging, and even stripping them in.
-Egg Flies #12-18: Otter Eggs, Eggstasy, Glo-Bugs, etc. Fall is prime time for eggs! Shades of yellow, orange, pink, or a mix of those.
-Pheasant Tails/Frenchies #12-20: imitates a wide range of Mayflies including Isonychia, Blue Winged Olives, Sulfurs, small Stoneflies, and more
-Stonefly #8-12: excellent in early to mid mornings when they crawl out in low light onto the rocks to emerge in fast water. They emerge from June through October on the Farmington River, and can produce some big fish.
-BMAR Isonychia Nymph #12: fish in fast water, mid afternoon through dusk
-Wet Flies & Soft Hackles #12-16: assorted colors/patterns, try to imitate the main hatches, but also use flashy attractor patterns
-Junk Flies (Mops, Squirmy Worms, Green Weenie)
-Zebra Midge #18-22: black, olive, red
-Winter/Summer Caddis Larva #18 (yellow): can also imitate Midge larva
-Caddis Larva (olive to green) #14-16: lots of these in the river
-Attractor Nymphs #14-20: such as Sexy Waltz, Rainbow Warriors, Frenchies, Prince, Triple Threats, Pink Bead Walt’s Worm, Pink Bead Pheasant Tails, etc. Often work better than drabber, more imitative flies.
Streamers:
Fall is PRIME TIME for streamers! - Especially colors like olive, white, yellow, brown, and yellow paired with other colors (brown/yellow, olive/yellow, etc.).
-Jigged Streamers #8-12: various patterns/colors, deadly fished on a tight-line/Euro rig, often sorts out bigger fish. Great to use as a clean-up fly after you nymph a run. Olive, tan, white are effective colors here.
-Ice Picks (tan, gray, white, yellow): tied by Rich Strolis, a very nice single hook baitfish pattern
-Wooly Bugger #4-12: assorted colors, try also Don's Peach Bugger
-Zonker #4-6: a classic fish catcher! In white, natural
-BMAR Yellow Matuka #6: deadly fly! Also standard Matuka in olive, brown
-Zuddler #4-8: one of our favorites, in olive, white, brown, black
-Complex & Mini Twist Bugger #2-6: assorted colors, very effective