Store Hours:
We are open 7 days a week, current hours are:
8am-6pm
Monday & Tuesday, Wednesday
10am-3pm,
8am-6pm
Thursday & Friday, and 8am-5pm on Saturday &
Sunday.
*****We
are looking for one more
part-time
employee, someone who knows the river well and and is knowledgeable
about flyfishing*****
Pictured
up top is Donovan
with his first trout on a fly rod, a golden rainbow, and then he
caught two more trout after that while fishing with his dad!
Parenting done right. Now he wants to sell his gaming equipment to
buy fishing stuff.
We
have the brand spanking new Simms
Flyweight Waders
in
stock now, check ‘em out. Super lightweight and fold into their own
pouch for easy carrying.
Perfect for traveling when you need to
pack light.
Current
Sale Items:
-Thomas
& Thomas Contact II Euro rods $499 (were $895): all sizes are
completely sold out. The all new Contact III+ is available now in the
store.
-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 while they last, we are almost out of
them.
***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.
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.
The
new Thomas
& Thomas Contact III+ Euro rods are now available.
We are happy to accept various trade ins toward the III+ to make them
more affordable, and you can also trade in your Contact II. They have
two different tips, including a solid one that enables you to more
easily cast lighter flies, cushion lighter tippet, fish thin Micro
Leaders, and it also 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 greater accuracy. 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 (3" longer). If you
break a rod tip on these, T&T has an expedited repair program for
the Contact III+ series that should have you back on the water with a
new tip in a week, instead of the usual 6-8 weeks. Between the
improved damping/recovery and one snake guide (right next to the tip
top), you also get dramatically less tip wrapping with micro
leaders.
Thursday
Morning
4/30/26
River
Report:
*****We
are looking for one more
part-time
employee, someone who knows the river and is knowledgeable about
flyfishing*****
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/Salmon Stamp, you need it to fish the
Farmington River and any other river that is a TMA (Trout Management
Area).
We
currently have almost all models of the Thomas & Thomas Contact
III+ rods in stock,
with the exception of the 4 weight, we just received our third batch
of them. They are sweet! I (Torrey) now have spent several days
fishing the 11’ 5” #3 and the 10’ 9” #2, loved them both,
happy to describe how they fish if you stop by the store.
Starting
today, weekday
store hours extend one hour later to 6pm, except for Wednesday
(10am-3pm).
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday will be 8am-6pm. Weekends
remain at 8am-5pm. We will stay on this schedule through the end of
the summer.
This
may be the last week you will see the Hendrickson hatch in the
Permanent TMA, it’s steadily working it’s way upriver. Keep
moving upstream to stay with the hatch, the last place it happens is
the two miles of river below the dam and above the Still River in
Riverton. We’ve seen
some good evening
spinner falls, and spinners normally keep falling for a good 5-7 days
after the hatch ends in a given section, so
you can find them miles downstream of the bottom end of the
Hendrickson hatch. Mild
sunny days have seen some good to excellent afternoon hatches. Cool &
cloudy days are bad for the Hendrickson hatch, but good for Blue
Winged Olives. Peak Hendrickson hatch is probably from about the
middle of the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release (C&R) up to about
the Still River (Pipeline,
Lyman Rock). You will find spinner falls well downstream of that.
Usually
when the hatch is ending in the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release
(C&R), it’s just getting going in Riverton. The spinner fall
can go 5-7 days after the afternoon
hatch ends. When they
fall, it can bring
large wild brown trout to the surface. Spinner falls require mild air
temps, minimal wind, and no rain. All
things being equal, I prefer to dry fly fish during the spinner fall
because virtually all the food is on the surface, while during the
afternoon hatch many trout just feed underwater on the nymphs and
don’t rise. It is
usually less crowded during spinner falls- many angler come out at
noon or 1pm to fish the afternoon hatch and then leave at 4-5pm.
Spinners also tend to bring some of the largest trout to the surface
to feed because spinners are helpless when they fall to the water,
they cannot fly away, and all the big trout need to do is gently sip
them in. Spinner rises are subtle, they tend to be either a very
gentle sip, or sometimes the trout will slowly porpoise on them.
During the afternoon hatch the rises can range from gentle to
aggressive. Make sure to have some emergers during the hatch, trout
(especially bigger ones) often will only eat emergers. Emergers
cannot fly away, they are still in the process of getting out of the
nymphal shuck and breaking through the surface tension. A winged dun
riding of top of the water can fly away at any second, which makes
emergers far easier to capture.
Current
total flow below the Still
River and in the Permanent TMA/C&R
this
morning is 257cfs.
Riverton from the dam to the Rt 20 bridge (Hitchcock/Riverton Self
Storage) is 154cfs,
and a little below that the Still River is adding in 103cfs.
Riverton water temp is
43
degrees this morning,
it peaked yesterday at 46.5.
Behind UpCountry it is 44.7
degrees this morning, it peaked Wednesday afternoon at just over 51
degrees. Unionville USGS gauge is reading 409cs,
making the lower river very fishable & wadeable.
Hendrickson
run #12-14, females tend to be slightly bigger and lighter in color
(tannish), and males are smaller and more brownish. Spinners are
rusty brown, and the females have prominent bright yellow egg sacks
at the end of their abdomen. The spinners mate in the air over the
riffles and pocket water. The nymphs get active subsurface 2-3 hours
before the main event, and can give you some great nymphing in
the faster water, and if
your a “nympho” like me, you can even fish them during the hatch
and do well. The lower the water, they more apt your are to see
rising fish. We have a good supply of BMAR Hendrickson nymphs in
stock. If trout are not rising, fish subsurface, I guarantee the fish
are eating, just not always on the surface where you want them to be.
Typically the hatch comes off between mid to late afternoon, starting
around 2-2:30pm,
and going for 1-2+
hours. Hatch times are not
set in stone, and can sometimes occur earlier. Spinner falls
(egg-laying) can happen anytime from mid morning to dusk over the
riffles, even though the books say it’s an evening event (which
it often is). Spinners
will only fall when it’s mild out, dry, with minimal wind. If it’s
cold or windy you may see them in the air, but they fly back into the
trees and often fall the next day in mid to late morning, before the
Hendrickson fishermen arrive in the afternoon. Make sure to have
Hendrickson nymphs, emergers, duns, and spinners to cover all of your
bases.
Regardles of hatching activity and rising fish or
lack thereof, good nymphers have been whacking fish. Don’t sleep on
Junk Flies (Mops, Squirmies, Eggs), at moments it’s been lights out
on them when the trout aren’t responding to traditional or more
imitative nymphs. Also there are lots of smaller bugs in the river,
so things like #18-20 Pheasant Tails, smaller Hare’s Ears, and
Walt’s Worms can be very productive. If you are nymphing and not
catching fish, you are doing something wrong! Move and cover water,
change your weight, change your depth, experiment with different
flies, change sizes, etc. Going smaller often helps.
Other
bugs we are seeing include small assorted Caddis #18-22 (gray/brown,
black), and also a few #16-18
Baetis/Blue Winged Olive (BWO) hatches- BWO’s are almost over and
mostly upriver.
Cloudy/cooler afternoons
are seeing some smaller BWO’s in the #20-22 range.
There are good numbers of wild fish in the faster water now, due to
rising water temps and more bugs.
The Permanent TMA/Catch
& Release (C&R) was stocked on 4/13 with a large number of
trout, predominately browns, including 1,000 larger Two Year Olds
that average 14-18” and are quite fat. Above & below the
Permanent TMA/C&R has been stocked 3 times now, with lots more
fish to come. Fishing is getting very good. Be prepared to fish
subsurface. Trout are always feeding subsurface this time of year,
even when you don’t see risers or bugs. Hope to fish dries, but be
prepared to go underwater- just because there’s a hatch does not
always mean the trout will feed on the surface. Especially if the
water is cold or high.
FYI there is a new state record
rainbow, caught on the Farmington, it weighed 16.47#, 31” with a 21
¼” girth. This was stocked by the state for the Riverton Derby.
Colebrook Reservoir is full after being low for many
months due to the drought in the second half of 2026. The reservoir
height/elevation has come up about 40+ feet since early March, from
about 670 feet up to 710.99
feet of elevation, “full” would be considered to be 716’ this
time of year, and once it goes over that the Army Corps will dump
extra water to get it below that.
Subsurface
flies that are working
include BMAR Hendrickson nymphs #12-14, Pheasant Tails/Frenchies
#12-20,
Caddis larva (cased & regular), #8-10 Stonefly nymphs, smaller
Walt’s Worms, Blue Winged Olive nymphs #16-20,
flashy Perdigons #16-20, Rainbow Warrior #16-18, Junk Flies (Eggs,
Mops, Worms, Green Weenies), various streamers (Woolly Bugger,
Zuddlers, etc.). In the mornings (roughly 7am to 10am’ish) you may
find some trout rising to Winter Caddis, and during cloudy
afternoons, there may be a few trout rising to small
BWO’s. Some days there can be a good streamer bite. Top colors this
time of year are white, olive, tan, and black. If
you are streamer fishing, the more water you cover the more trout you
will catch. Play also with fly color & retrieves, it can make a
big difference.
Hendricksons
are the current glamour hatch. Milder/sunny days are best of all for
Hendo hatches. We’ve been seeing smaller Caddis #18-22, gray/brown
ones & black ones. Some small
Blue Winged Olives #20-22
are hatching on cloudy/cooler afternoons. Midges are
a daily
occurrence.
*******************************************************************************
Dries:
-Hendrickson
#12-14: full-blown hatch, best from about Church Pool to
Pipeline/Lyman Rock (stay below the Still River currently for the
hatch, Riverton gets the hatch last due to the colder water).
Mid/late afternoon hatch, best on milder/sunny afternoons.
-Assorted
Caddis #18-22 (gray/brown, black)
-Blue Winged Olives/BWO’s
#20-22: afternoon hatch on cloudy, cooler days
-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:
-BMAR
Hendrickson Nymph #14
-Pheasant Tails/Frenchies #12-20: imitates
a wide range of Mayflies including Hendricksons, Baetis/Blue Winged
Olives, Sulfurs, Isonychia, Vitreus, small Stoneflies, and
more
-Baetis/BWO Nymphs #16-22
-Caddis Larva (olive to
green) #14-16: tons of these in the river, good all year
-Cased
Caddis #10-14: above average pattern in the early season, especially
when flows are up (high water knocks them into the drift, they mostly
live in slower water near the stream edges).
-”Junk Flies”
(Eggs, Mops, Squirmy/San Juan Worms, Green Weenies): Often work when
standard nymphs fail, especially when there are not many
hatches. Also great in higher and/or off-color water, and on
recently stocked fish.
-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. Good choice when flows are up. Some days when
trout won’t move for a small nymph, it takes a bigger bite of food
to get an eat. Often catches larger than average fish.
Experiment!
-Small Nymphs #18-22: various patterns, many bugs
are small to tiny, 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.
-Attractor Nymphs #10-20: such
as Sexy Waltz, Rainbow Warriors, Frenchies, Prince, Triple Threat,
flashy Perdigons, etc. Some 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, one of the only bugs that is active &
hatching in the Winter.
Streamers:
Streamers
are 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. Also, anytime flows are higher is a great time to use a
streamer.
Top colors currently are olive, black, tan. A
little yellow paired with another color (olive, tan, etc.) in a
streamer can trigger brown trout. Black can be very 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. Can also be fished under an indicator, or
stripped/swung like a regular streamer. Great to use as a clean-up
fly after you nymph a run. White has been a top color, and olive and
tan are both very good.
-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 good fly
-Muddler Minnow
#6-10: an oldie but a goodie, still VERY effective