Out store hours have moved to closing at 6pm on weekdays, but staying at 5pm on weekends. We are also closed on Wednesdays, at least for a while.
Store
hours currently are 8am-6pm Monday & Tuesday, closed on
Wednesdays, 8am-6pm Thursday & Friday, and 8am-5pm on
Saturday & Sunday.
Pictured up top is Brayson Grant
with a beautiful brown trout he nymphed up Wednesday night.
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.
We received a small batch of the new Diamondback
Gen IV Nymph Rods with carbon grips- the first batch prior to
this was all with traditional cork grips. Carbon grips are very
sensitive, more than cork, as well as quite durable (they won’t
chip like cork can). There is a $25 upcharge for the carbon handle.
We got them in the popular 10’ 7” #2 & #3 rods, and the 10’
#2. We can order the carbon grip in any size rod you want though. We
have very limited quantities on this first batch, so don’t wait if
you want one.
The store is stocked with tons of
books at the moment, both used & new
books. Also, more used rods & reels
came in, we have a LARGE 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. This first batch sold out, but we
have another big batch of them on the way any day now.
Diamondback
Generation IV Euro nymphing rods are available. I know
many of you have been eagerly anticipating them, and 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 with crisp, responsive tips that recover fast with minimal
wobble. The 10’ 7” #1 is a very interesting option for Micro
Leaders, lighter tippet, and lighter flies.
After walking
through the woods, check yourself for ticks-
they are extremely active. I’m picking 1 or more off the dog on a
near daily basis, and also finding them on me regularly when I walk
in the woods or through tall grass.
Saturday morning 6/14/25 Flow Update:
The flow reduction everybody has been waiting for happened on Friday! We never got an email, but it appears they cut the dam release yesterday from 500cfs down to about 350cfs. Riverton USGS gauge is reading 358cfs, and the Still River is adding in 75cfs, giving us a total flow below that and in the Permanent TMA/C&R of 445cs- this is a great fishing & wading level, and it will help keep the river cool further downriver. It will also improve the dry fly fishing, as the lower the flow, the more apt you are to see trout rise. You will likely see the dam release stay about the same for several weeks. Game on!
Friday
morning 6/13/25 Report:
Round
two on updating the report for today, I had it edited and right when
I went to publish it the computer crashed and I lost the edits,
grrrrr. Army Corps cut the flow by about 100cfs on Tuesday, and with
the Still River steadily dropping this puts the total flow at just
over 600cfs (516cfs from the dam in Riverton down to the Rt 20
Hitchcock/Riverton Self Storage bridge, with the Still River adding
in 103cfs a little downstream of that. I’d call this flow
medium-high. Nymphs & streamers have overall been the best, but
there has been some dry fly fishing. In general look for wider pools
& slower water if you want dry fly action, and when they cut the
flow more there will be more rising trout. Colebrook Reservoir is
still in the process of being lowered as it is over 100%. They will
cut it back more any day, but they don’t tell us in advance so I
cannot give you a date. When they cut it back, it will likely go from
a 600cfs release down to a 300-400cfs release. The lower river has
come way down, Unionville USGS gauge is reading 742cfs & dropping
this morning, that’s a very fishable level for the big river down
there. Riverton was 53.5 degrees this morning, it reached 57 degrees
yesterday afternoon. Downstream in the Permanent TMA/Catch &
Release and in New Hartford & Canton has been averaging upper
50’s to mid 60’s. Once they stop pushing water over the dam
spillway in Riverton, water temps will decrease. The water on the
bottom of the lake is significantly colder (upper 40’s) than the
water on the surface.
Hatches remain fairly similar to
what they’ve been, with #16 Sulfurs and assorted Caddis #14-20
(tan, olive\green, black) being the main bugs, but there are other
bugs too (see a few paragraphs down for detailed hatch info). Overall
hatches have mostly been light to moderate this past week. Cooler, cloudy
weekend weather may see better bug activity, especially if they do a flow cut. We should start seeing
smaller #18 Dorothea Sulfur in the lower river and working their way
slowly upstream. The most likely place to find rising trout at
current water levels is the bigger/wider pools. Your bread &
butter techniques lately have been nymphing & streamer fishing.
For nymphs I’d pair something bigger/Junk Fly (Stonefly, Mop,
Prince Nymph, etc.) with something more imitative (Caddis Pupa,
Pheasant Tail/Sulfur type nymph, etc).
Now that we are
coming into milder & warmer weather, don’t neglect terrestrials
such as Ants & Beetles, both can be VERY effective, especially
when there isn’t a good hatch but you have sporadic risers. Air
temps in the upper 60’s and above get terrestrial insects active,
so they will be in play from now through October. You can also blind
fish them over likely water. I’d say #16 Sulfurs mayflies (Invaria)
are the current glamour hatch, on virtually the entire river at this
point. The books say it’s a late afternoon to evening hatch, and it
is, but with the icy cold water coming out of the dam in can also
come off in the mid/late morning and early/mid afternoon. Tailwaters
like the Farmington and Delaware system often have hatches at times
of day and times of the year that deviate quite a bit from standard
hatch charts.
We are in “Crazy Time”, when all sorts
of bugs are hatching, June is a killer month on Farmington with #16 Invaria Sulfurs being the glamour hatch. Look also
for #12-14 Vitreus (looks sorta like a bigger/paler Sulfur, hatch is
mostly upriver now), March Browns #10-12, assorted Caddis #14-20
(tan, olive/green, black, etc.), Light Cahills #12-14. Caddis
typically hatch best on milder days, so with the warming trend here
now expect to see more Caddis (especially in the faster water)- they
typically hatch sometime between mid morning and mid afternoon, and
come back to egg-lay in the eves.
Hatch intensity has
varied from day to day, with light to moderate being typical most of
the time, but there has been some heavy hatching when you are in the
right place at the right time and the weather cooperates. FYI, in
general, most of the hatches get heavier as you go further downriver
as the river picks up increased fertility from the tributaries. It
has also varied a lot depending upon location, with some pools seeing
better bug activity than others, and it’s not 100% predictable
either. Various Caddis are showing up, from a #14-16 tan, to #18
olive/green, #20 black, down to Micro Caddis and other assorted sizes
& colors. Pupa patterns #14-18 nymphed in the fast water work
very well when Caddis are active, and there can be some good dry fly
action during milder eves when they come back to egg-lay in low
light. #12-14 Vitreus hatch in fast water between late afternoon &
dusk, albeit it’s been on the lighter side this year and this hatch
has mostly moved upstream now. #10-12 March Browns are a sporadic one
here/one there kind of bug that hatch in fast water in the afternoons
& evenings. If they rise to these bugs, match with dries- you can
also blind fish big March Brown dries. Also fish nymphs that suggest
them (#10-12 Fox Squirrel, Hare’s Ear, or a specific MB nymph). #14
Pheasant Tails/Frenchies work well for the Vitreus. Evenings are also
seeing a few #12-14 Light Cahills.
Streamers can be a
good option when you don’t have bugs hatching (early AM, cold days,
in between hatches, etc.), if you want to cover a lot of water
quickly, or when you have high and/or dirty water. Make sure to get
them down, experiment with different retrieves, change colors, and
play with different fly sizes & designs (length, bulk/sparseness,
shape, etc.). I usually start with a fast strip his time of year with
water temps mostly in the 50’s to mid 60’s. But if that doesn’t
work, slow it down, change your presentation angle, swing them,
twitch them, fish them on the dangle- experiment based upon the
trout’s reaction (or lack thereof lol). Go smaller if you cannot
get eats on bigger patterns. Also try trailing a nymph or wet
fly/soft hackle about 18” behind a weighted streamer, very
effective for converting follows to eats, and a great way to “nymph”
if you aren’t proficient at nymphing.
Caddis remain a
major hatch and will be present daily straight
through mid fall. They are most active in the faster water: pool
heads, riffles, runs, rapids & pocket water. Trout will gorge on
the pupa surface, hint hint. Vitreus hatch and are active between
late afternoon and dark, and they hatch best when it’s cooler and
cloudy- look for this hatch in the upper river mainly now. They also require high quality water, which we are fortunate
to have on the Farmington River. Various other nymphs from #10-20 are
catching fish. Caddis pupa are working great subsurface in #14-18
(olive/green, tan). You can use specific pupa patterns, Walt’s
Worms, and Sexy Waltz (has flashy rib & hotspot). For Caddis
dries think tan #14-18, olive-green #16-18, and black #20. Seeing
clouds of tiny cream Midges at moments. On crappy, cooler overcast
afternoons, we’ve been seeing #20-24 Blue Winged Olives
(BWO’s/Olives).
The fast water is currently full of
trout, they are literally everywhere. FYI after the CT fisheries
sampled the trout population last September, they estimated the trout
per mile in the Permanent TMA/C&R at 2,800+ fish- that’s a lot!
Tight-line nymphing with one or two weighted nymphs is your best
option to probe faster riffles, runs, rapids & pocket water, but
Indicator nymphing is effective also. Make sure one of your flies is
a pupa-type pattern. Junk Flies such as 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 #14-20 Pheasant Tail or Frenchy (just a hot-spot PT).
FYI, small PT’s work 12 months a year and are a great dropper fly
when you are not sure what to put on. From May through October, if
I’m nymphing, at some point there will definitely be a Caddis pupa
pattern #14-18 on my rig at some point.
In case you
missed it up top, we have gone to a 6pm closing time on weekdays.
Also, we are now CLOSED on Wednesdays at least for a
while, so please plan accordingly.
Caddis
& General Fishing Tips:
We are seeing
multiple different Caddis hatching. 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. And they are not easy to catch by
hand, as they will actively try to avoid your hand, unlike a mayfly.
You can look for them in spiderwebs. Pupa color should match the
adult BODY color. Tan and olive/green are the two most common body
colors, and small black Caddis are very common now and hatch all year
long on the Farmington River. Tan Caddis can be as big as #14, but
also commonly are #16-18. At the moment the subsurface nymphing with
Caddis pupa and other nymphs is the most consistent & predictable
method. I’m still catching trout on Junk Flies at moments, 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 imitate 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 or soft hackle wet 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 9-10 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 April & May rains we are finally full,
and a little over 100%. This means we don’t have to worry about
running out of water in July & August. They will need to get the
lake down to 708’ of elevation by July 1st, the
beginning of hurricane season.
The first Sulfur we
see is the Invaria, they average a #16 and have a yellow body. They
hatch in a variety of water types, mostly in the medium-slow to
medium-fast range. While I think of them as an evening hatch, on the
cold tailwater Farmington River it’s common to see them in the
mornings & afternoons too. You can imitate the nymph with a
Pheasant Tail, or tie up a specific nymph with a yellow/brown body.
Sulfur spinners fall at dusk. 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). They have 2 tails,
hatch in faster water (usually between 4pm & dusk), and the
winged dun emerges from the nymph on the stream bottom and then
swims/rises to the surface- most mayflies emerge in the surface film.
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. March Browns
average #10-12 (can even be a #8 on the lower river) and are
another bug that lives & hatches in fast water. They are a
sporadic, one here, one there type of bug, hatching sporadically in
the afternoons & eves. They are starting up, and we are seeing a
few as far upstream as about Church Pool. FYI 1-2 weeks before they
hatch, they nymphs migrate to the edges of fast water, and many end
up in the drift, creating some good nymph fishing. You can use a
specific March Brown nymph, and also bigger Hare’s Ears & Fox
Squirrels. Unlike the light and sporadic daytime emergence, spinners
fall all at once at dusk over fast water.
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. You are also more apt to get into wild fish when
you fish water that isn’t as busy. Wild fish don’t like being
constantly disturbed by anglers. 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 that have easy access, 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. Expect to work for the high quality bigger holdover &
wild fish. If you get into a pod of 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- that section gets stocked once
per season. Most sections outside that have been stocked 3-4 times
now, with more to come for July 4th and Labor Day. 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:
-Sulfur
#16 (Invaria): entire river, especially mid to upper river, anytime
from mid/late morning through evening, varies from day to day and in
different river sections.
-Assorted Caddis #14-20 (tan,
green/olive, black): major hatch on all of the river, very active mid
mornings to mid afternoons, nymphing with pupa is currently the most
productive tactic for them. They typically egg-lay later in the day
in low light, in the faster water.
-Vitreus #12-14: late
afternoon & eves, fast water, hatch is mainly upper river
now
-March Brown #10-12: light hatch, sporadic fast water bug,
afternoons/eves. Spinners fall over fast water at dusk.
-Light
Cahill #12-14: eves
-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
-Ants & Beetles #14-20
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 Sulfurs, Vitreus,
Blue Winged Olives, small Stoneflies, and more.
-Blue Winged
(Baetis) Olive Nymphs #16-20: all year long
-Caddis Larva (olive
to green) #14-16: lots of these in the river (most other rivers too),
imitates the common Hydrospyche, good all year
-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:
all year, but especially after rain or flow bumps (higher water
knocks them into the drift)
-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,
including plenty of bigger articulated patterns.
***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