We are open 7 days a week, current hours are:
8am-6pm
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday. Wednesday
10am-3pm,
Saturday & Sunday 8am-5pm
We
are still looking for one more part-time employee, someone who knows
the river well, is knowledgeable about flyfishing, and has a flexible
schedule.
Pictured
up top is Derrick
of CT Fishguides with a 20” Farmington River brown trout, one of
several large trout he caught this week, the man is dialed!
Current
Sale Items:
-Sage
Sonic fly rods 25% off
-Scott G Series fly rods 25% off
-Simms
G3 Waders 20% 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.
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, new low profile single foot guides, and
one snake guide (right next to the tip top), you also get
dramatically less tip wrapping with micro leaders.
We are now a Guideline dealer, They are a Scandanavian company that makes some great rods & reels and more. Zach & Derrrick are both BIG fans of their products. We have Euro, dry fly, and streamers rods from them. We also have Guideline Euro leader butt material in 3x to 5x for making micro leaders, plus a cool mini chest pack that you can attach 5 different ways.
Monday
Morning 6/8/26
River
Report:
Hours:
Wednesday 10am-3pm.
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 8am-6pm. Weekends remain at
8am-5pm. We will stay on this schedule through the end of the
summer.
As
I write this Monday morning, conditions look great: medium/normal
flows (total flow downstream of the Still River is about 270cfs this
morning), cold water, and pleasant/normal weather through mid-week.
Even when it gets hot, the water is coming out of the dam in the mid
40’s and keeps the river at trout-friendly temps for many miles
below that. Getting a diversity of bugs now, depending on how far
below the dam you are, it’s “Bug Soup” time. The major players
on most of the river are still assorted Caddis #16-22, #16 Sulfurs
(Invaria), and #12-14 Vitreus (Pink Lady/Cahill, Orange Sulfur).
Caddis are most common in the #16-18 tan variety, but we are seeing
olive/green, black, and gray ones too, all the way down to size 22.
There are some #14 Cahills around in the evenings, and also #20-22
Blue Winged Olives (BWO’s/Olives). Downriver in Collinsville/Canton
you may see smaller #18 Sulfurs (Dorothea), and #8-12 Isonychia, both
hatches are starting up and will steadily work their way upriver.
As you get
closer to the dam and the water gets icy
cold, hatches can happen
at weird times of the day, often earlier in
the day than the books
say. Warmer water downstream means the hatches start there first and
make their way upriver. Be prepared to also fish subsurface- just
because there are hatches is no guarantee of dry fly fishing &
rising trout. But…. we are into the peak dry fly time of year, with
evenings being prime time for surface action. #10-12 March
Browns continue to trickle off in the afternoons & eves, it’s a
one here, one there kinda bug that
hatches in faster water-
this hatch is moving
upstream and getting near the end.
Cloudy afternoons have seen #20-22 Blue Winged Olives (BWO’s)
hatching, trout gently sipping them off the surface in
the flat water. They don’t
hatch well on bright sunny days. We are getting toward that time of
year where the best shot at good dry fly action tends to shift more
toward the evenings, with
some exceptions.
Cooler/cloudy days can see the bugs hatch earlier, and hot/sunny days
can push the bugs even closer to dusk.
Caddis are the
main hatch in the mornings; they return in the low light of evenings
to mate & egg-lay over the riffles. Vitreus
are a fast water bug, normally hatching between 4pm and dusk. Sulfurs
are typically between 7pm and dark, but closer to the dam they often
hatch in early/mid afternoon. Cahills are an evening bug. And
Isonychia normally are on the water between late afternoon through
dusk, but I’ve sometimes seen them hatch as early as late morning.
Most mayfly spinnner falls in June occur in the last hour of
daylight, typically mating in the air and falling over the riffles
and pocket water, with many floating down into the pools. Vitreus
(also known as Pink
Ladies, Pink Cahills, and Ornange Sulfurs) are
are a clinger mayfly that
are close cousins to the Quill Gordon (both are Epeorus and have 2
tails). They are most
active on cooler, overcast, and even wet days, and tend to hatch
between late afternoon and evening when shadows start hitting the
water. The winged dun emerges at the stream bottom from the nymphal
shuck, and then swims to the surface fully winged, which
can make soft hackles & wet flies very effective during an
emergence. Females have a
pinkish-orange cast to their abdomens due to eggs, males are more of
a dull creamy yellow,
kinda like a paler, bigger
Sulfur. Caddis are most active from about mid morning through
early/mid afternoon, and come back later in the day to egg-lay over
faster water in the eves. We
are seeing at least 4-5 varieties of Caddis currently, in different
sizes & colors. Hatch
times in Riverton in the 2 miles right below the dam can vary
considerably from “normal” due to the abnormally cold water.
Trout do not always rise to hatches, and this seems to
surprise some experienced anglers, which amuses me because it’s
always been the case on every river I’ve fished in my life. Be
prepared to go subsurface with nymphs & pupa. I’ve caught many
thousands of trout over the years nymphing Caddis pupa in the fast
water from May to October, even November. Caddis pupa are like candy
to big trout. Wet flies & soft hackles are also good options if
you don’t want to nymph, I recommend fishing 2 or even 3 at a time,
on tag end droppers. And don’t rule out streamers, especially early
& late in the day, and on rainy days and/or during high or
off-color water.
Riverton is 225cfs
below the Hogback Reservoir, with the Still River is adding in 45cfs
a little below the Rt 20 bridge. FYI the state has overall been
conservative with water releases this year to maintain a good pool of
cold water for summer distribution. We could use more rain,
other local rivers & streams that depend upon rainfall are
unusually low for early June, and we need rain to keep the reservoirs
full. Riverton water temp was 44.5 degrees at 8am this
morning, it peaked at about 49 yesterday. Behind UpCountry it was
51.2 degrees at 8am this morning, it peaked yesterday afternoon at
58. Look for lower water temps now that they are releasing more cold
water.
There
are miles of trout-filled water both above and below the 6.2 mile
year round Catch & Release area. Don’t limit yourself to only
fishing that section, that’s a mistake. There are 4 miles of TMA
above that up to the dam, and another 10 miles of TMA below that down
to the Rt 177 Unionville bridge, and it’s all great water with lots
of trout: stocked, holdover & wild. There is a decent amount of
trout water even below that. The lower river is good until the water
gets too warm, usually around mid to late June, and then it picks up
again in September when things cool down.
Subsurface
flies that are working include #14-20 Caddis patterns (pupa,
larva),Pheasant Tails/Frenchies #14-22,
#8-10 Stonefly nymphs (mornings), Blue Winged Olive nymphs
#16-22, flashy Perdigons #16-22, Rainbow Warrior #16-18, Junk
Flies (Mops, Squirmies, Eggs) can
work when the trout aren’t
responding to traditional or more imitative nymphs. Also, remember
there are always
lots of smaller bugs in the river, so things like #18-22 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.
*******************************************************************************
Dries:
-Sulfur
#16 (Invaria): Typically hatch between
7pm and dark, but closer to the dam often hatch in early/mid
afternoons
-Tan
Caddis #16-18: hatching
about mid morning through early/mid afternoon, egg-laying in the low
light of evenings,
faster water.
Olive/green #18 Caddis can be in the mix too.
-Vitreus #12-16:
late afternoon through eves, faster
water. Also know as Pink Ladies/Cahills & Orange Sulfurs. Females
have brightly colored abdomens due to eggs, males are more of a dull
creamy yellow.
-Blue
Winged Olives/BWO’s #20-22: afternoon hatch on cloudy days,
also on the water in the last hour of daylight in flat pool
water
-Assorted
small Caddis #18-22: black, olive/green, gray/brown
-Light
Cahill #14: evenings
-Isonychia #8-12: starting downriver in Collinsville/Unionville, fast water bug, late afternoon through evenings
-Sulfur
#18 (Dorothea): starting downriver in Collinsville/Unionville,
evening hatch
-March
Brown #10-12: sporadic fast water hatch, near
the end and moving upriver
-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:
Nymphs:
-Tan
Caddis Pupa #14-18
-Sulfur Nymphs #14-18: 14’s imitate
Vitreus, smaller ones imitate Invaria & Dorothea
-Pheasant
Tails/Frenchies #14-22: imitates a wide range of Mayflies including
Sulfurs, Vitreus, Baetis/Blue Winged Olives, Isonychia, small
Stoneflies, Hendricksons, and more
-March Brown #10-12: can also
use big Hare's Ears & Fox Squirrel Nymphs
-Baetis/BWO Nymphs
#16-22
-Caddis Larva (olive to green) #14-16: tons of these in
the river, good all year
-”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.
-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. Best in early to mid mornings.
-Midges #18-22
(black, olive, red): Zebra Midge, Flash Midge, Red Iris Midge,
etc.
-Attractor Nymphs #14-20: 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)
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 or off-color is a great time to
use a streamer.
Top colors currently are olive, 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.
-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