8am-5pm
Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm on Saturday & Sunday. These will
be the store hours through April.
Pictured up top is
Derrick’s client Paul Woodcock with a great male brown trout.
We
have tons of books at the moment- we received a bunch of used
books as well as a big order of new books that arrived
recently. Also, a bunch more used
rods & reels came in, we have a BIG inventory of used
stuff. Received big orders from Scientific
Anglers (fly lines) & Fulling
Mill (flies, boxes, beads, hooks).
We are once
again carrying the very popular Frabill
Landing Nets. They are very reasonably priced,
lightweight, and capable of netting large trout.
Diamondback
Generation IV Euro nymphing rods are now
available. I know many of you have been eagerly
anticipating them, and now we have the full line-up, minus the 10' 7"
#4 (not available yet, probably in early/mid fall). The models we
have include 10' and 10' 7" lengths in #1, #2, #3, and 10' 7"
in #6 & #7. These rods are very nice and have been selling
well.
After walking through the woods, check yourself for
ticks- they are very active now.
Monday mid afternoon Flow Update:
The dam release in Riverton was reduced by 17cfs at 9am this morning.
Monday morning
4/28/25
River Report:
The total flow on the river
below the Still River and in the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release
(C&R) is 400cfs
& dropping, the historical median flow for today is 437cfs-
today’s flow is a medium water level. Riverton is 170cfs
between the dam and the Rt. 20 bridge/Riverton Self Storage
(historical median flow for today is 251cfs). I would not be
surprised to see a small flow cut at the dam later today (it’s
based in part on the average inflow the preceding week). The Still
River is adding in 230cfs and dropping a little
below that, historical median flow is 186cfs. Riverton water temp is
44 degrees this morning, it reached 48 degrees yesterday afternoon.
Downstream water temps are higher, running high 40’s to 60 degrees
of late. Peak water temps are normally mid to late afternoon, with
warm sunny days seeing the biggest temp increases. Unionville USGS
gauge is reading 722cfs & dropping fast, historical median flow
for today is 761cfs.
Rain over the weekend was a
welcome/needed thing, and it put flows around the state back to
normal. The trees & bushes are all leafing out rapidly and the
landscape is turning green, this is sucking up a lot of water now.
Really feels & looks like spring now. We are sitting pretty at a
total flow of 400cfs and dropping as I write this Monday morning.
Despite crappy conditions Sunday (colder, very windy, cloudy,
elevated flows), the Hendrickson hatch was the best we’ve seen this
year, and the trout responded with surface feeding. Had a lot of good
reports late on Sunday, with many anglers catching quality fish on
the surface during the hatch. Today (Monday) could be a good one for
spinner falls- they need mild air temps, minimal wind and no rain.
With a high of 74 degrees, sunshine and only 5-10 mph wind- that’s
about perfect for spinners. Look for them in the air over the
riffles, the females have prominent bright yellow eggs sacks.
Hendricksons are as far downstream as Collinsville, and upstream to
about the Campground. Warm temps today & Tuesday (74-80 &
sunny) should create some good hatching, and also push the bugs a bit
further upriver each day. Be prepared with nymphs, wets, dries,
emergers, and spinners- see paragraph below for detailed info on the
hatch and how to fish it. When they aren’t rising, which is
normally most of the day, be prepared to fish subsurface with various
nymphs, streamers, and wet flies/soft hackles.
Hendricksons
are a #12-14 mayfly that hatches in the afternoons, and can bring
some large trout to the surface. They have gray upright wings, 3
tails, the females have a tannish body with tinges of
olive/brown/pink/gray, and the males are more of a brown color. The
hatch works it’s way upstream. Hendricksons are typically a
mid/late afternoon hatch, with somewhere between 1-2pm and 4-5pm
being the normal time frame. The hatch can run anywhere from about 45
minutes to 2+ hours. Make sure to have both dun & emerger
patterns for the afternoon hatch- often better fish will key on
emergers because they are more vulnerable & easier to catch.
Spinner falls (egg-laying) are an evening affair according to the
books, but on the Farmington River I’ve seen them anywhere from mid
to late mornings, concurrent with the afternoon hatch, and also in
the traditional evening/dusk time frame. Spinners falls require dry
weather, mild temps, and minimal wind. Cold or windy eves often lead
to mid/late morning spinner falls the following morning, well before
the “hatch” anglers are even on the river. Many of my biggest
Hendrickson dry fly fish have come during spinner falls- they are a
helpless meal that cannot get away, and often overlap with the
preferred low light period that big trout feed in. Spinners are all
rusty brown, and the females have a bright yellow egg sack at the end
of the abdomen. Look for them in the air over riffles, flying up &
down as they slowly work their way down to the water. Nymphs
resembling the Hendricksons can be effective, especially in the 2-3
hours preceding the hatch. Hatches don’t always mean rising fish,
so be prepared with nymphs. Think patterns in a medium to dark brown,
#12-14- the nymphs darken as they get near hatching time. You can use
a specific imitation, or something more generic like a Pheasant Tail
or Frenchy. They are bulkier than some other nymphs, so if you tie
them don’t make the abdomens too skinny, and make a robust thorax.
FYI Hendricksons are close cousins to Sulfurs, varying mostly in size
& color. Wet flies & soft-hackles can have their moments
during this hatch.
Hendrickson Dry Fly Tips:
-Have
assorted patterns in #12-14, trout can be unusually particular during
this hatch, and I don’t know why that is.
-Use a longer leader
(12’ or longer) with a long tippet section (at least 3-4’, and up
to 6 to 8 feet). This helps a LOT to get a drag-free presentation,
which is absolutely critical to catching fish.
-Where possible,
present down & across to the trout using a Reach Cast. This shows
the trout your bug fly first and is the best angle for big, hard to
catch fish.
-Emergers and patterns with shucks will often
outproduce standard dun patterns during the afternoon hatch. Emergers
& cripples cannot escape and are an easy meal, especially for
bigger, more experienced fish.
-Make sure to have some spinner
patterns, big fish love them (easy meal that is spent on the water
and cannot escape). Spinner falls require air temps about 60 degrees
& up, minimal wind, and no rain. If it’s cold or windy in the
evening, they often fall in mid to late morning the next day.
Spinners mate in the air over riffles and fall there. Both sexes are
rusty brown, but the females have a bright yellow egg sack, so make
sure to have some that imitate the egg sack.
Don’t be
afraid to explore and fish new water to get away from the crowds,
there are literally fish EVERYWHERE. The further you go downstream,
in general the less anglers you will see- especially if you walk 5-10
minutes away from the easy access points. Most anglers also focus on
the famous named pools, and skip the water in between. The water
outside of the Permanent Catch & Release/TMA gets less pressure
for the most part. FYI, many anglers don’t start until noon or 1pm,
and then they leave at 4-5pm when the afternoon hatch is done. We are
on the tail end of the Blue Winged Olive/Baetis hatch. A smaller
gray/brown Caddis has been hatching in the afternoons, but for the
most part trout don’t seem to surface feed on it. Other than the
afternoon hatches, it’s been mostly subsurface with nymphs &
streamers.
Various nymphs averaging #14-20 have been
working well on recent stockers, holdovers & wilds. Try #12-18
Pheasant Tails/Frenchies, #12-14 Hendrickson nymphs, #16-20 BWO
nymphs, #14-18 olive Caddis larva/Walt’s Worms, Mops, and flies
with pink beads (Walt’s/PT’s/Hare’s Ears). Junk Flies (Eggs,
Mops, Worms, Weenies) can be particularly effective on the recently
stocked fish before they figure out what real food looks like,
sometimes vastly outproducing traditional nymphs. And some days the
wild browns like to eat the Junk too. They are very much a hot or
cold fly, not much in between. If one of your nymphs is a Junk Fly,
pair it up with something smaller, drabber & more natural
(Pheasant Tail, Walt’s Worm, Hare’s Ear, etc.). Streamers are
also a good choice, a great way to cover a lot of water in a hurry,
and also be able to fish the water that you cannot nymph. Make sure
to cover lots of water, play with streamer color/patterns, and vary
your retrieves. Try tan, olive, white, and black.
Fishing
reports have varied widely, depending on the angler, river section
fished, time of day, and methods/flies used. Overall we are getting a
LOT more good reports recently. Dry fly anglers have come into their
time now. Nymphs & streamers have been producing most of the fish
you see in this report, but now is a good time to catch a big trout
on a dry fly. Expect to work for the high quality bigger holdover &
wild fish. If you get into a pod of recently stocked fish, you can do
some big numbers with subsurface flies. It pays to move around and
cover water currently. It one section is not producing, don’t beat
it to death, move to a new area. The big wild browns are the hardest
to fool, you need to do everything correctly. They’ve seen it all,
and they spook easily. They are also very tuned into real bugs &
minnows.
The Farmington River was stocked recently on the
entire river, including the Permanent TMA/C&R last week (on
Thursday 4/17 and Monday 4/21). Most sections have been stocked
twice, with more to come in the very near future. FYI, 20% of the
trout they stock throughout the state are over one foot, with some
much larger. The Permanent TMA/C&R gets 1,000 fat Two Year Old
Browns that average 14-18”, and some are bigger than
that.
****************************************************************
Dries:
-Hendrickson
#12-14: mid/late afternoon hatch, as far upstream as the Campground
as of 4/28, and working their way further upstream daily.
-Blue
Winged Olives/Baetis #16-18: Mid afternoon hatch, near the
end
-Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24: hatch is typically early to
mid morning, all year long. Trout focus on the pupa first, and then
as the morning progresses they normally switch to the winged,
egg-laying adults.
-Midges #20-28: afternoons/eves, sunny/milder
days are best
Nymphs:
-Hendrickson
#12-14: medium to dark brown mayfly, can use specific imitations like
a BMAR pattern or generic stuff like a Pheasant Tail
-BMAR
Hendrickson Nymph #14
-Blue Winged (Baetis) Olive Nymphs #16-18:
active/hatching in the afternoons, good all year, a common item in
the drift
-Caddis Larva (olive to green) #14-16: lots of these
in the river (most others too), imitates the common Hydrospyche, good
all year but especially in early spring
-Pheasant
Tails/Frenchies #12-20: imitates a wide range of Mayflies including
Blue Winged Olives, Hendricksons, small Stoneflies, and more
-Cased
Caddis #10-16: good this time of year, especially during & after
flow bumps
-Winter/Summer Caddis Larva #18 (yellow)- also
imitates Black Caddis larva & some Midge larva
-Junk Flies
(Mops/Micro Mops, Squirmy/San Juan Worms, Eggs, Green Weenie): eggs
are deadly in the fall/winter/early spring, and the others are good
change-up flies when the usual imitative flies aren’t producing,
during non-hatch times, cold water, on recently stocked trout, or
during higher/off-color water.
-Attractor Nymphs #14-20: such as
Sexy Waltz, Rainbow Warriors, Frenchies, Prince, Triple Threats, Pink
Bead Walt’s Worm/Pheasant Tails/Hare’s Ear, etc. Often work
better than drabber, more imitative flies.
-Midges #18-22
(black, olive, red): Zebra Midge, Flash Midge, Red Iris Midge.
Streamers:
*We
have a lot of new streamer patterns from MT Fly Co in the bins.
***Don’t
neglect streamers! - top colors have been olive, tan, white, and
black. Black is good on recently stocked trout (of which there are
lots right now), during low light (first & last light), and
high/dirty water.
-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.
-Ice Picks (tan, gray, white, yellow): tied by Rich
Strolis, a very nice single hook baitfish pattern
-Woolly 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 fall fly! Also standard Matuka in olive,
brown
-Zuddler #4-8: one of our favorites, in olive, white,
brown, black, yellow
-Complex & Mini Twist Bugger #2-6:
assorted colors, very effective