Our hours have changed: we moved to 6pm on weekdays, but we are staying at 5pm on weekends. We are also now closing on Wednesdays, at least for a while.
Store
ours currently are 8am-6pm Monday & Tuesday, closed on
Wednesdays, 8am-6pm Thursday & Friday, and 8am-5pm on
Saturday & Sunday.
We have a lot of used reels at the
moment. As such, we are doing a 20% off sale on the used reels in
that specific case. Get ‘em while they last! This is an
in-store promotion only, no mail order on these.
Pictured
up top is Derrick’s client Pete with a great wild brown- look at
the size of those pectoral fins!
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, more used rods & reels
came in, we have a BIG inventory of used stuff.
We are
once again carrying the very popular Frabill
Landing Nets. They are very reasonably priced ($35-45),
lightweight, and capable of netting large trout. Rubber coated mesh
nets with flat bottoms make it easy to handle the trout once you net
them. Hard to beat for the money.
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 extremely active now. I’m picking 1 or more off the dog on
a daily basis, and finding them on me when I walk in the
woods.
Friday
morning 5/16/25
River Report:
The total flow on the river
below the Still River and in the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release
(C&R) is 396cfs
and slowly dropping, the historical median total flow for today is
331cfs- I would classify this morning’s flow as medium, clarity is
very good. Riverton is 184cfs (medium level)
between the dam and the Rt. 20 bridge/Riverton Self Storage
(historical median flow for today is 231cfs). The Still River is
adding in 212cfs and dropping, historical median
flow is 139cfs. Riverton water temp is 47.5 degrees this morning, it
reached 50 degrees yesterday afternoon. Downstream water temps are
higher, averaging mid 50’s to low 60’s 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
1,010cfs and going down, historical median flow for today is 591cfs-
definitely fishable now, albeit a bit on the high side. Lake
McDonough is currently full to the brim and spilling water over the
dam and into the East Branch, not sure what the cfs is but it’s a
good amount and is making the flow higher/faster from there and down.
The East Branch comes in about 3/8 of a mile below UpCountry, a few
hundred yards downstream from Michael Angelo’s
Restaurant.
Fished Thursday from about noon to dark, and it was quite productive in every spot I hit, both inside the Permanent TMA and also outside of it. Plenty of fish holding in surprisingly fast water. Caught a mix of stocked, holdover & wild brown trout, along with a bunch of rainbows (most were 14-16"), and a surprising number of good sized stocked brook trout (several that were easily 14" and fat). No 20 inchers, but plenty of good size fish that fought quite hard in the fast water, fish of the day was a 17" brown (either a wild or holdover, not sure, leaning toward a holdover Survivor Strain that was stocked as a Yearling) that ripped me downriver on a small Caddis pupa type pattern. Best flies were Caddis Pupa, Walt's Worms, Pheasant Tails, and Mops. The Mop fly was hot late in the day. They always seem to pull some bigger rainbows. I avoided the crowds and found some empty runs to ply my craft. Quite a few spots I wanted to fish already had anglers in them, so rather than crowd them I kept moving and found plenty of vacant water.
Conditions are looking good for this weekend.
Caddis are all up & down the entire river and are the main hatch.
They are by far the most active in the faster water. Hendrickson
hatch is done, although you may see spinner falls in Riverton (above
the Still River) for a little bit more. We are starting to see a few
Vitreus, but not enough to call it a full blown hatch yet. It’s
more downriver, but some as high up as Campground. But they are
eating the nymphs subsurface- try a Pheasant Tail or a Frenchy a #14.
FYI Vitreus hatch and are active between late afternoon and dark.
Various nymphs from #14-20 are catching fish. Caddis pupa are working
great subsurface in #14-18. The main Caddis is still about a #18
green/olive body with grayish wings. Pupa are working in both
green/olive & tan. You can use specific pupa patterns, Walt’s
Worms, and Sexy Waltz (has flashy rib & hotspot). For dries think
olive/green in #16-18, and there are also some Black Caddis #18-20,
and a few bigger tan ones in #14-16. Seeing clouds of tiny cream
Midges at moments.
The fast water is currently full of
trout, they are everywhere. Tight-line nymphing with a pair of
weighted nymphs is your best option to probe faster riffles, runs,
rapids & pocket water. Make sure one of them is a pupa-type
pattern. Junk Flies like Mops (also Eggs & Worms) are still very
effective at moments, especially on the stocked fish that aren’t
totally dialed in on real bugs yet. Also hard to go wrong with a
#14-18 Pheasant Tail or Frenchy (just a hot-spot PT).
In
case you missed it up top, we are going to 6pm closing time on
weekdays starting this Monday, 5/12. Also, we will be CLOSED
on Wednesdays at least for a while, so please plan
accordingly.
Caddis are the main hatch overall, more than
one species, with the most common being an olive/green bodied one in
#16-18. FYI, all Caddis look tan while flying in the air, you have to
get one in hand and flip them over to determine the true body color.
Pupa color should match the adult BODY color. Olive/green & tan
are the two most common body colors, and small black Caddis are
common all year long. We are seeing a few Tan Caddis, they will pick
up in a week or two. At the moment the subsurface nymphing with
Caddis pupa and other nymphs is by far the most consistent &
predictable method. I’m still catching a lot of trout on Junk Flies
though, so make sure to have some Mops, Eggs, Worms & Weenies.
Junk typically either works great, or not at all. Pair them up with a
more natural, imitative nymph. Caddis are a great bug to fish with
wet flies/soft-hackles too, and that’s a fun method. You will find
the best Caddis action where the water is broken and has some
current. If you have fish breaking on the surface during a Caddis
emergence, a Dry-Dropper rig works well. Run a pupa 12-18” under a
buoyant Caddis dry. 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. They are at their best early & late in the
day, on cloudy days, and during higher flows. Make sure to cover lots
of water, play with streamer color/patterns, and vary your retrieves.
Try tan, olive, white, yellow, black, or combinations thereof.
Kudos
to CT DEEP for their wise management of the water in Colebrook
Reservoir since they took that over around June of 2024. They
were dealt a crappy hand in terms of weather (and by that I mean an
incredibly dry 9-0 months in a row), but they did the right thing and
ran the dam release low so they could fill the reservoir back up,
instead of running the flow according to historical norms that are no
longer relevant due to changing weather/climate. After the recent
rains we are finally full, last I knew we were at about 711’
elevation, 708’ is considered 100%/full. This means we don’t have
to worry about running out of water in July & August. At some
point soon though, they will need to increase the dam release to get
the reservoir down below 708’.
Vitreus often get
labeled as a bigger Sulfur (#12-16, averaging a 14), but they are
close cousins to the Quill Gordon (same Epeorus family of bugs) with
2 tails, hatching in faster water, and the winged dun emerges from
the nymph on the stream bottom and then swims/rises to the surface.
The eggs inside the females give a distinctly pinkish-orange cast to
their abdomen, and some people call them a Pink Lady or Pink Cahill.
Pale Evening Dun is another common name for them.
Don’t
be afraid to explore and fish new water to get away from the crowds,
there are literally fish EVERYWHERE, including all the water in
between the pools. 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 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.
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 of good reports from smiling anglers.
Dry fly fishermen have come into their time now, with Caddis bringing
trout to the surface at moments. Nymphs & streamers have been
producing most of the fish you see in this report. 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
Permanent TMA/C&R was stocked in mid April with a lot of brown
trout of various sizes. Most sections outside that have been stocked
3-4 times now, with more to come. 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:
-Caddis
#16-20 (green/olive, black, tan): main hatch on all of the river now,
very active in the mornings/afternoons, nymphing with pupa is
currently the most productive tactic for them. They often egg-lay
later in the day in low light, in the faster water, and they can be
active in the afternoons too.
-Rusty Spinner #12-14: imitates
Hendrickson spinners, only in Riverton above the Still River,
afternoon hatch is done and spinner falls are almost over.
-Vitreus
#12-14: Seeing a few, not a full blown hatch yet, heavier downstream
but a few up as far as Campground or so.
-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:
-Assorted
Caddis Pupa #14-20 in various colors (olive/green, tan). Use specific
pupa, Walt’s Worms, and Sexy Waltz.
-Pheasant Tails/Frenchies
#12-20: imitates a wide range of Mayflies including Blue Winged
Olives, Vitreus, small Stoneflies, and more. #14 will pass as a
Vitreus nymph.
-Blue Winged (Baetis) Olive Nymphs #16-20: all
year long
-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, Vitreus, small Stoneflies, and more
-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.
-Cased Caddis #10-16
-Winter/Summer Caddis Larva #18
(yellow)- also imitates Black Caddis larva & some Midge
larva
-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