We are once again open 7 days a week, current hours are:
8am-5pm Monday & Tuesday, Wednesday 10am-4pm, 8am-5pm Thursday & Friday, and 8am-5pm on Saturday & Sunday.
Pictured up top is a quality Farmington River brown trout landed by John Stratton’s client Niko over this past weekend.
We will have some great in-store sales on Black Friday weekend. On Monday 11/24, we will release a list of what will be on sale on this report, and what sort of discounts will be offered. Trust me, you won’t want to miss this sale!
Joey & I (Torrey) will be doing a presentation on how to catch Great Lakes Steelhead in the Winter at the FRAA meeting this Wednesday 11/19 at 7pm. Learn how to successfully target these fish in December, January & February when water temps drop into the 30's. I used to guide the Salmon River area for Steelhead & Salmon when I was in my 20's. Everyone is welcome, it's free, and it will be just down the street at Legitimus Brewery (in the events backroom). Meeting starts at 7pm, with the presentation starting shortly after that, but come early and eat some free pizza (usually it's available by 6:30pm) and have a locally brewed beer, or get a delicious bite to eat from the food truck out front. They also does a great raffle at every meeting.
Fall
Nymphing Tip:
Small
nymphs are often the key to subsurface success this time of year, and
by small I mean #18’s all the way down to #22-24. Exception would
be Stoneflies #8-10 & Mops. Most nymphs are small to very small
this time of year, especially the Fall batch of Blue Winged Olives
(BWO’s). Overall, small nymphs & larva are by far more numerous
than bigger ones. Some days this makes a huge difference. I know a
guy from central PA that catches an average of 6,000-8,000 trout
every year. Yes, he is retired and fishes a LOT (about 300+ days a
year), but usually only part of each day. And yes, he’s a highly
skilled nympher with excellent water reading skills, and he lives
near the best streams in central PA (2,000 - 4,000+ fish per mile for
some of his streams). If he has a secret, it’s that he mostly
fishes nymphs averaging #18-24 on a Euro Mono rig (FYI he also does
dry flies & dry/dropper). He typically uses a 30’ 4x micro
leader and 6x tippet with 2 flies. He reasons that immature nymphs
are small and grossly outnumber bigger adult nymphs, and it’s hard
to argue with his results.
As
of 9/1/25, the entire upper 21 miles of the Farmington River from the
dam in Riverton downstream to the Rt 177 bridge in Unionville went
Catch & Release
until 6am on the second Saturday in April 2026. If you see anyone
illegally keeping trout, call the 24/7 turn in poachers DEEP hotline
at 860-424-3333.
Even if they cannot send somebody in time, they still log the call
and it helps us get more future enforcement.
Monday
morning
11/17/25
River Report:
Total
flow below the Still River and in the Permanent TMA/Catch &
Release (C&R) is 392cfs
(a medium/normal
water level), with Riverton right below the dam at 264cfs,
and just below that the Still River is adding in 128cfs
&
dropping. They bumped up the dam release at the beginning of last
week, I really like having a decent amount of water in the river
again, and
I’m sure the trout appreciate it too.
We
received just over ½” of rain Saturday night, and
there are more modest shots of rain in the long term forecast.
Riverton water temp is
48
degrees and dropping
this
morning, it peaked yesterday afternoon at 50.5
degrees.
Downstream water temps are currently lower than that, running from
low to high
40’s,
depending upon time of day & weather. Sunny
days will see the biggest water temp increases.
This
morning at 9:30am
water temp
was
42.4
degrees
behind UpCountry, and
it will probably rise into the mid 40’s during the sunny afternoon.
Water
temperatures will continue to slowly decline with long range highs
averaging in the 40’s, and nights mostly in the
low
to mid 30’s.
They began to lower Otis Reservoir in MA in
early November,
and that water has to be added to the dam release in CT. Also, the
Still River flow is
being
augmented by water released from Highland Lake to lower the lake
level there (they do that every Fall, just like at Otis Reservoir).
We should be in good shape in terms of water for a while now. Seems
like we are also back to weekly rain. Still need a good amount of
water to
fill
Colebrook River back
up.
Recent
rainfall is helping.
Grady
recently acquired some reasonably
priced trout-weight bamboo rods,
most are in the $300 range.
They are in the rod rack all the way to the right, in between the
Sage and T & T rods. There are some real values & bargains
here.
Some
good angler reports recently, mostly subsurface, but at moments fish
have been rising (Winter Caddis in the AM, and small Blue Winged
Olives in the afternoons). Streamers are having their moments, and an
egg fly paired up with a nymph has been a consistent producer fished
slow & deep.
Be ready to fish nymphs, streamers, Junk Flies, wets/soft-hackles, or
dry flies.
Watch
out for redds (where trout deposit their eggs in the gravel), there
are still some spawning brown trout, and will be for the rest
of
November. Read several paragraphs
below
for advice for fishing during the spawn. Foliage is virtually
all gone now, the rain & wind took the last of the leaves down.
The
Glamour Hatch in November is small Blue Winged Olives #22-28, they
will hatch well into December in the afternoons. Afternoon hatches of
small to very small Midges are also a possibility.
When
they are not rising, which is the majority of the time, fish
streamers, Junk Flies (Mops, Eggs, Worms, Green Weenies), small
nymphs #18-22, #8-10
Stoneflies, and Caddis
Larva.
Egg
flies get hot from mid/late October through the early Spring. Trout
move around a lot in the Fall due to spawning,
so
they can be in one spot today, and a totally different spot tomorrow.
This
is
prime time for streamer fishing, browns get extra
aggressive
due to the spawn, and when
they are
post-spawn,
trout
are depleted, very hungry, and
on
the hunt for bigger food items. Early & late in the day are the
peak streamer times, and also on overcast days and anytime the water
rises and/or gets off-color. Play with retrieves and fly color. In
general, more aggressive retrieves tend to produce better this time
of year, getting those quick reaction bites. When water temps get
truly chilly (soon),
then you may need to slow your retrieve down and make sure to get
your streamers down deep (use
weight flies, split shot, sink-tips/sinking line, or sinking
leaders).
Euro
nymphing jig streamers and/or dead-drifting them under a strike
indicator can be a deadly way present streamers to lethargic trout in
cold water. It puts the fly right in their face and makes it easier
for them to eat. Twitch
& animate the fly sporadically during the drift.
Some
brown trout
are
still spawning, keep your eyes out for redds, the light colored oval
areas in shallow gravelly riffles where trout drop their eggs.
Avoid
walking through them, and the first 15 feet or so below them as the
eggs will often wash 5-15 feet below the redd.
Favored spawning areas typically include side channels and pool
tailouts, but riffles at pool heads can also have spawners if there
is pea gravel present. The bulk of the spawning on the Farmington
River is typically from about mid October through late November, and
the eggs/fry hatch out in February through early March. The
majority of the trout that are going to spawn have done so already,
but I’ve seen stragglers as last as the second week of January.
Walking on the eggs in this time period will crush and destroy them
and future wild trout. Please also refrain from fishing to spawning
trout on redds, it’s unsporting & unethical. They are stressed
enough already, just let them do their thing and make more wild brown
trout. There are always lots of non-spawning trout to catch, as well
as trout that are still pre-spawn, and soon there will be plenty of
trout that have completed spawning. Some trout will position in the
first deeper water downstream of spawning fish
to
eat loose eggs in the drift.
Don’t
forget about the early to mid morning Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24
that hatch 12 months a year, this hatch is ramping up as the weather
gets chillier. Long leaders 12’+ paired with long/light tippets
(3-6’ and even longer) of 6x-7x (depending upon fly size) will help
present small dry flies properly to our picky trout in flat water. Be
stealthy in your wading, and it doesn’t hurt to dress in drab
clothing. 5x-6x tippet is appropriate for nymphs. Streamer fishing
requires 0x-3x tippet depending upon fly size and the size of the
trout your are targeting. Jigged streamers on a Euro rig typically
match up nicely with 4x-5x.
FYI after the CT fisheries
sampled the trout population in
September 2024, they
estimated the trout per mile in the Permanent TMA/C&R at 2,800+
fish- that’s a lot! And when they sampled the trout recently (early
September 2025), they shocked up a lot of trout and the fish were in
good condition.
****************************************************************
Dries:
***Blue
Winged Olives (BWO’s/Olives) #22-28: This is the November Glamour
Hatch, afternoons & eves, especially during cloudy weather.
Goes
in to December. Rusty spinners also in the same sizes in the late
afternoons.
-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. This hatch ramps up in theWinter
when the weather gets truly cold.
-Midges #20-28:
afternoons/eves
Nymphs:
-Small Nymphs
#18-24: various patterns, most of the bugs are small to tiny this
time of year, with size of the fly often superceding the exact fly
pattern.
-Blue Winged Olive (Baetis/BWO) Nymphs #16-22: all
year long
-Pheasant Tails/Frenchies #12-22: imitates a wide
range of Mayflies including Sulfurs, Isonychia, Vitreus, Blue Winged
Olives, small Stoneflies, and more.
-”Junk Flies” (Eggs,
Mops, Squirmy/San Juan Worms, Green Weenies): Often work when
standard nymphs fail. Especially good on recently stocked trout, and
also during high or dirty water. Egg Flies are deadly from about
mid October through April. Mops are a great “clean-up” fly
after you already fished a run. And worm flies are very good in
higher, off-color water.
-Big Stonefly Nymphs #8-10:
golden/yellow, brown, black, Pat’s
-Caddis Larva (olive to
green) #14-16: tons of these in the river (most other rivers too),
imitates the common Hydrospyche, good all year
-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, even
in low/clear water.
-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, works all year
long
-Midges #18-22 (black, olive): Zebra Midge, Flash Midge,
Red Iris Midge.
Streamers:
Trout
get aggressive on streamers in the fall due to spawning. The
low-light conditions of early & late in the day are prime time
for streamers, as are overcast days and periods of higher and/or
off-color water.
Top
colors have been olive, tan, white, and yellow. A little yellow in a
streamer can trigger brown trout in the fall. Black is good on
recently stocked trout (especially rainbows), during low light (first
& last light), and high and/or 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
-Muddler
Minnow #6-10: and oldie, but a goodie. Most anglers don’t fish this
classic pattern anymore, and that’s a mistake! Quite a versatile
fly that can be floated, skated, dead-drifted, swung, stripped, or
weighted down & nymphed