We are 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 is a colored-up holdover brown trout by Steve Hogan’s client Steven, landed yesterday around lunchtime.
Current Sale Items:
-Thomas & Thomas Contact II Euro rods $535 (were $895): 10’9” #4 is the only size still available, others are all sold out
-Scott G Series fly rods $660 (30% off, were $945)
-Thomas & Thomas Lotic fiberglass rods $450 (were $695)
-Sage Sonic fly rods 25% off
-Scott G Series fly rods 25% off
-Simms G3 Waders 20% off
-Simms Confluence Waders 35% off
-Scientific Angler Amplitude Smooth Trout fly lines 20% off
-All Airflo fly lines are 40% off
***Sales apply only to in-stock merchandise and can be bought in-store, or on the website & shipped to your door - call with any questions***
Gift
Certificates are available and can be sent by mail or bought on our
website.
Between
the 40% off sale and our trade-in program,
those of you who have lusted after a T&T Contact II Euro rod but
are on a tight budget should be able to finally afford one. Next
year's Contact III+ (arriving mid to late February 2026) will bring a
new gold standard to the industry, but the Contact II is the
current best and will elevate your game. Bring the rods & reels
that are gathering dust in your closet and trade them for something
that will make your Christmas special.
We
will match most
advertised deals
from other stores local or on the internet if we have the item in
stock. We want your business, and as your friends and local fly shop
please come to us first if we can help. Our business only survives
because of your support.
We
are now accepting pre-orders for the first batch of Thomas &
Thomas Contact III+ Euro rods that will be available starting
sometime around mid February/early March.
UpCountry will be one of the first stores in the country to receive
these rods limited to an initial run of 500 nationwide, so get in
line by giving us a call now, a $100 deposit will reserve a rod for
you. T&T brought these rods to us recently, and we were blown
away. They have two different tips, including a solid one that
enables you to more easily cast lighter flies, cushion lighter
tippet, and makes it harder for smaller fish to throw the hook. The
Contact III+ is made of a new material that’s twice as strong, and
recovers noticeably faster/crisper. This will translate into more
casting distance, more accuracy, and greater sensitivity. With the
included second tip, it's like getting two rods in one. Lengths
remain the same at 10' & 10'9" with the exception of the new
11’ 5“ 3wt. If you break a rod tip on these, T&T has an
expedited repair program that should have you back on the water with
a new tip inside of a week or so.
Friday
Morning 1/23/26
River
Report:
Don’t
forget to get a 2026 CT fishing license, you will need a new one as
of January 1st. You
can get a license here at UpCountry, on the CT DEEP website, or you
can get one in person at most town halls. Don’t forget to also
purchase the $5 Trout Stamp, you need it to fish the Farmington
River.
We now have FRAA Banquet tickets available for
purchase in the store via cash or check, but not credit/debit cards.
Date is Saturday March 7th, cost is $60 per ticket.
Weather
has been all over the place this week, but Thursday was beautiful
with sunshine and highs well into the 40’s. Hope some of you got to
take advantage of this window of opportunity, because
the bottom falls out of the barometer starting tonight (zero
degrees!!). Sunday looks
brutal with 15” of snow in the forecast, with the possibility of
20” on the upper end by Monday! Wow. We may close early on
Sunday, so please call the store at 860-488-7311 before you make the drive in.
Slush is now going to
become an issue with mostly single digit lows in the Ten Day
Forecast. The upper river closer to the dam and above the Still River
stays slush-free no matter how cold it gets, but from the Still River
& below it can be a totally different set of conditions. The dam
keeps the upper river slightly above freezing, but as you move away
from the dam the water chills during cold snaps, plus the incoming
tributaries often dump in slushy, below 32 degree water. Normally in
the Winter, on a sunny day if
there is morning slush, it
typically clears out by
lunchtime or so, but it’s going to be so damn cold it may not clear
out. Great week to tie flies & restock. FYI we just received a
sizeable Fulling Mill order, including flies, missing hook sizes,
tungsten beads, and their cool new CDC dubbing.
Water
level is medium and at
319cfs
for a
total flow in
the Permanent TMA/
Catch
& Release (C&R).
Riverton is medium at 177cfs,
and the Still River is adding in 142cfs
below that. The historical median/normal total flow for today is
353cfs,
so we are basically normal
at the moment. Riverton
water temp this morning is about
35 degrees, it peaked
yesterday afternoon at 37
plus degrees. Behind
UpCountry (11 miles below the dam) the water temp is 31.4
degrees this morning, it peaked at 33.1
degrees yesterday afternoon- slush
is present in New Hartford this morning, but I’d expect it to clear
out by noonish with the sunshine and a predicted high of 31.
Unionville USGS streamflow is 363cfs,
historical normal/median flow is 571cfs.
Joey
& I have been working on some fly tying orders- Fulling Mill
arrived Thursday, and we
will shortly be placing orders with Wapsi, Hareline, and Nature’s
Spirit.
Slow &
deep in the pools with nymphs & streamers is normally the name of
the game in January. Strikes can be VERY subtle, so set the hook on
anything. Remember, “hook sets are free”. The best subsurface
fishing lately has been somewhere between 10am and 3pm’ish most
days (it can vary though). But… don’t totally rule out dry flies,
especially the Winter Caddis hatch in the early to mid mornings
(typically between 7am-10am, but can be earlier or later). Midges are
also a possibility during mild afternoons, a little sunshine really
helps.
If you catch a Winter bite window when the trout
decide to actively feed, double digit catches are sometimes possible
for skilled anglers who know the river well. Trout are done spawning
and they are hungry.
Lately the best time overall seems to be mid/late morning to mid/late
afternoon, when water temps rise and are at their highest. It’s
also the most pleasant time of day to be outside. Some days it can be
earlier than this though, especially if you have milder
night/morning. Nymphing has been the most consistent method, with
various nymphs #16-20 getting it done, as well as Junk Flies
(Squirmies, Eggs, Mops). We often pair a Junk Fly with a more
imitative smaller nymph, it’s a good Winter combo. Jigged streamers
fished slow & deep are also a good choice, white has been an
above average streamer color this Winter. Water temps are cold
(30’s), so focus on presenting your nymphs & streamers slow and
deep.
Small
nymphs are sometimes the key to subsurface success in the Winter, and
by small I mean #18’s all the way down to #22-24. Exception could
be Stoneflies #8-10 & Mops. Most nymphs are small to very
small right now, with some exceptions. Both Midges and Winter
Caddis are small, and most other nymphs/larva are immature and still
small in early Winter. Some days fly size can make a big
difference. Nymphing is typically the ticket in the Winter,
with fish coming to flies like Egg patterns #14-18, and #14-22
nymphs such as Pheasant Tails/Frenchies and Walt’s Worms. Other
good Winter nymphs include Midges #18-22 (black, olive, red), small
flashy Perdigons, Rainbow Warrior #16-18, Prince #10-14, Caddis
Larva, Mops, and nymphs with pink beads (PT’s, Walt’s, Hare’s
Ears, etc.).
Some
days there can be a good streamer bite. Trout are done spawning now,
and they lose weight during the process. They are looking to bulk up
afterwards, which can make streamers a tempting choice for them in
January. Cold water temps means you typically need to slow down your
streamer presentations and get them deep. The easier you make it for
the trout to eat, the more strikes you will get on
streamers. Steamers fished under an Indicator can sometimes get
you a big Winter brown trout. Dead-drift them, but also occasionally
twitch/pop your indicator to give your streamer a little movement.
When water temps are in the 30’s (now), look for most
of the trout in Winter lies. That means deeper, slower water like
pools, softer runs, and deeper moderate riffles. Be aware that during
afternoons when the water temps bump up a little, trout will commonly
move into the riffles and into the current to feed at the pool heads.
There are often bite windows in the Winter, when all of a sudden
after slow fishing, the trout feed actively subsurface for 1-3 hours,
so be patient & persistent. Colder water means less bug activity
and less feeding by the trout, so expect to work for trout this time
of year. Trout normally will only move inches for your fly in icy
cold water. Having said that, I’ve had some surprisingly productive
days in the Winter. Fish will pod up in groups, and if you can locate
the pod and catch a bite window, you can do well. Keep your
expectations reasonable though. Work the water more thoroughly with
extra casts, because in the Winter trout normally won’t move far at
all for your fly. Slow & deep for your nymphs and streamers, and
set the hook on anything, even just gut instinct.
If you
are headed out fishing in the Winter, in general there is no need to
get out there at the crack of dawn. Give the water a few hours to
warm up one or two degrees, that’s all it takes to get the trout
feeding. The exception would be the Winter Caddis hatch, which goes
on all Winter in the early to mid mornings (7am to 10pm would be
typical, but it can vary). Sometimes also, you can get a mid-morning
streamer bite before the nymph fishing turns on. Other than that, I
wouldn’t venture out before 10am, and I’d expect the best fishing
to be late morning through mid/late afternoon, when water temps rise
and are at their highest for the day. Sunny days are best of all,
they warm the water up more than overcast weather. The general rule
of thumb with trout is, fish at the time of day when air temps are
the most comfortable for you, and it’s 90% accurate. The exception
to warm days being best of all is when there is a decent amount of
snow on the ground. Warm sunny days can melt the snow and send ice
water into the river, dropping water temps by lunchtime and totally
shutting down the afternoon bite. Sunny days with highs in the 30’s
or less are better when we have significant snow cover on the ground.
Midges are
the afternoon hatch now. Early
to mid mornings, Winter
Caddis
#18-24 is the bug.
*******************************************************************************
Dries:
-Summer/Winter
Caddis #18-24: hatch is typically early to mid morning. Trout focus
on the pupa first, and then as the morning progresses they normally
switch to the winged adults when they return to egg-lay. Try both
twitching & dead-drifting your fly, trout often key on movement
with this bug.
-Midges #20-28: afternoon hatch, especially on
sunny/milder days. Sometimes brings trout to the surface. If not, go
subsurface with Midge pupa & larva.
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 superseding the exact
fly pattern.
-Midges #18-22 (black, olive, red): Zebra Midge,
Flash Midge, Red Iris Midge, etc.
-Blue Winged Olive
(Baetis/BWO) Nymphs #16-22: all year long
-Pheasant
Tails/Frenchies #14-22: 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 in the Winter when there are not many hatches. Also
great in higher and/or off-color water.
-Big Stonefly Nymphs
#8-10: golden/yellow, brown, black, Pat’s. Big Stones are a
mouthful that can be hard for trout to pass up, and there are a
surprising amount of them in the river. Some days in the Winter when
trout won’t move for a small nymph, it takes a bigger bite of food
to get an eat. Experiment!
-Caddis Larva (olive to green)
#14-16: tons of these in the river, good all year, especially in the
Winter.
-Attractor Nymphs #10-20: such as Sexy Waltz, Rainbow
Warriors, Frenchies, Prince, Triple Threat, etc. Some Winter days
trout ignore natural/drab nymphs but will eat gaudy attractors.
-Winter/Summer Caddis Larva #18 (yellow)- also imitates Black
Caddis larva & some Midge larva, works all year long, and one of
the only bugs that is active & hatching in the Winter.
Streamers:
This
time of year, brown trout are hungry after the spawn and looking to
put weight back on. 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. Streamers are also a great
“clean-up” fly to fish after you have thoroughly nymphed a run,
and often will produce a bigger fish than the nymphs did.
Top
colors have been white, olive, tan, and yellow. A little yellow
paired with another color (olive, tan, etc.) in a streamer can
trigger brown trout. Black can be good on recently stocked trout
(especially rainbows), during low light (dawn/dusk), and high and/or
dirty water.
-Jig 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 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