Category Archives: Fishing Reports

No stripers. Nonetheless, a Good Friday.

Good Friday means it’s time for the traditional, annual currentseams striped basstravaganza. Simon Peter was, after all, a big fisherman. Absent any finned cooperation, one still has the comfort of reacquainting with Ye Olde Striper Emporium. Rust is scraped off the two-handed casting form. And if there’s an EP Carrillo Golossus sending plumes of savory smoke across the water, so much the better.

So, I fished for 90 minutes without a touch. It was a little early in the tide, but in the last half hour I was able to reach the edges of what was a very nice seam along the main current. Water was lightly stained and 47 degrees. Mostly overcast, and only the slightest of breezes. Three other anglers. We all blanked.

Hopefully, this year will be better than last.

 

Farmington River Report 3/16/16: Ah, ah, ah, ah, stayin’ alive.

I had the good fortune to spend several hours in the permanent TMA today, and what the catching lacked in numbers was more than made up for in overall size. Three trout, one mid-teens wild brown, and two high teens Survivor Strain browns. You can always tell when you have a substantial fish on from the head shaking and the sulking along the bottom — and if those fish are stream-born or long-term residents, they come even less quietly.  The water was cool, clear, and running about 480cfs. Midges, early grey stones, and some un-IDed spinners about a 16-18. And, lest we forget, a magnificent Casa Fernandez Toro from Miami.

What the hellgrammite? I fished him out of the water as he was making his way downstream. As General Patton would say, you are one ugly sonuvabitch.

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All my fish today came on the top dropper, a size 14 Hare-and-Copper variant (you can see the fly here). This was my second Survivor Strain and the last fish of the day. No mistaking the takes today, as the indicator went under hard each time.

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Stayin’ alive. You can identify a Survivor Strain brown from its clipped adipose fin.

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Off you go. One of the more satisfying aspects of landing a nice fish is giving it the opportunity to swim away. When next we meet…because I know where you live.

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About that steelhead report from last November…

Yeah, I know. It’s early March. Maybe I was subconsciously trying to forget the worst November since I started this madness. To tell the story in numbers: 5 days, 3 fish. And I felt like I was doing well. Day 1: one touch, one fish landed. Day 2: one touch, one fish landed. Day 3: 0-for-3, including a foul that I broke off. Back up for more abuse two weeks later. Day 4: 0-for-2, including another foul I disengaged. Day 5: one touch, one landed. Here are a few photos to keep you entertained.

I go on a tying binge the few weeks before a trip. Here’s my stash for the second one. You’ll recognize the usual suspects, but I added a few new (for me) patterns into the rotation, including a Montana Stone variant and Barber’s Chartreuse Head Stone.

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 Semi-chrome from day two, my favorite fish from both trips. After blanking the entire morning, I hiked out to find some solitude, and hopefully some action. I came upon several steelhead holding in smaller water, but they had no interest in what I was selling. Not too far away was a location that I’d had success in before, albeit in much higher water. I channeled my inner ninja and crept up on the hole. Third cast. 60 Second Redhead. Life was good.

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A variant of Jimmy Hunnicutt’s Blood on the Waters. This may seem like far too noble a fly to fish under an indicator, but I loved its energy, and I needed a little magic. I’d like to tell you that the fly produced on this occasion, but alas, it is resting comfortably somewhere on the bottom of the Wire Hole as you read this.

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Can you tell who was catching the most fish? Cam was my fishing buddy for the last two days. We both blanked on the first one, but that night, Cam announced that he had a good feeling about tomorrow. What prescience! He landed four fish that second day. And now he’s a real steelheader, having lost his first steelhead (after going 5-for-5 over his previous three trips). 

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Farmington River Report 3/8/16: Enough to keep me interested

I fished multiple locations today above and within the permanent TMA. The purpose of my forays above were to see if I could locate some pods of recent wards of the state. Those efforts were a failure, unless you count one brown, a delicious cigar, 60-degree March sunshine, and not working to be the benchmarks of success. Wait. Hold on a minute here. I may need to recalibrate my thinking…

The fishing today was mostly streamers, save for about a half-hour of nymphing. Nothing on nymphs, but given the water I fished, I wasn’t surprised. The trout have not yet spread out into the faster sections. All my action today came in slower, deeper pools and runs. They liked the Hi-Liter and the Deep Threat in olive/grey. The lone fresh stockee I caught took the Hi-Liter as it was wallowing in the current below me; the other more seasoned residents came on very slow retrieves in fairly deep water, some of it over-head deep. The flow was 480cfs, 40 degree water temperature. Lots of active early grey stones, sz 14-16. Nothing rising to them.

It was mobbed for a Tuesday in early March. If you’re heading out over the next few days, gird your loins. It may look more like a weekend in late April. Perhaps the warmer weather will get the bite going. Every angler I spoke to today reported little to no action. Thanks to those who struck up conversions and introduced themselves. It’s always a pleasure meeting people who read my stuff or follow currentseams.

Is it me or are we missing an R?

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Farmington River Report 2/23/16: Laughter in the rain

For once this winter I guessed right that a lousy weather report would keep most anglers home. I find it generally unbearable when the temperature is in the mid-thirties and it’s raining, but when you’re catching, elements-induced misery somehow slides to the rear.

Winter nymphing on the Farmington this season has been as predictable as Donald Trump’s hair. The fish are in the usual pools, then concentrated within certain sub-areas of those pools. Get your fly into those sub-areas, and you’re an instant expert. Miss them by a few feet, and you’re Baron Von Blankenstein. Today I had a prime spot; the angler across from me did not. We fished the same general area, but I out-caught him 6:1. (This has nothing to do with ability and everything to do with real estate.)

I started with a size 12 BHSHPT on the bottom and a size 18 midge-type on top dropper. They loved the PT. After I lost my rig, I re-tied with a size 14 Hare and Copper and took two more on that. It rained on and off; five minutes into one of the heavier spells the fish put on the feed bag; sadly, it only lasted for about ten minutes. The permanent TMA was running 340cfs, clear, and cold, although I expect the levels and clarity are changing dramatically as I write this.

On the menu today: creamy micro-midges and W/S caddis.

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Farmington River Report 2/10/16: A few extra foot-pounds per second

Maybe if I had applied that measured pressure to my gas pedal, I would have gotten to the river sooner. But here I was, and the prime water — where I got all my fish Tuesday — was on lockdown. (So much for inclement weather and mid-week timing. Bah. I liked winter fishing better when you could expect half-miles of the TMA to yourself.) I decided to make do with points elsewhere in the same run, usually a fair bet. But today that water was the difference between fishing and catching. I fished hard, and I fished well, but whatever was seeing my flies wasn’t eating. Silver linings? There’s something about cigar smoke twisting through snowflakes that brings out the romantic in me. River was 230cfs in the permanent TMA, very lightly stained and cold.

Jack explains the finer points of winter nymphing to Lloyd.

Jack Torrance

Farmington River Report 2/4/16: Ixnay on the Unkskay

There’s a time and a place to be an intrepid explorer, and that time was…Tuesday. Today I wanted to catch some trout. Winter fishing being like buying real estate — location, location, location — I headed for the retail district. Not too crowded, and people willing to share the water (thanks, Zach and friend).

So it wasn’t stupid good, but it was good enough that after 90 minutes I had enough house money to want to go spend it elsewhere. A few notes about the river and fishing:

The permanent TMA was about 400cfs and slightly off-color. The closer you got to the Still, the murkier the water. And it was cold. I’m guessing 34/35 degrees.

Indicator nymphing was the method. The water I fished was neither slow nor deep, but I decided early on to fish two BB shot on my drop shot rig to slow the drift. It seemed to work.

I took several trout in what I would describe as “softer water,” that transition zone between current seam and frog water.

The takes were on the subtle side. No indicator screeching to a halt, or dramatically plummeting to the depths; it was the equivalent of a trout sipping a midge off the surface. It was simply no longer there. Hook set downstream, and off we go.

All my fish today had an intact adipose and were in the 12″-15″ class. I fished a size 12 (2x short) SHBHPT on bottom, and a size 16 (2x short) new midge emerger/nymph thingy I made up last night on the dropper. I am mildly depressed to report that there was no interest in the new fly. But I’m confident that some day there will be.

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See you Saturday!

 

 

 

Farmington River Report 2/2/16: Blankety-blank

I’ll make a long story short: I blanked today. In keeping with the time-honored tradition of making excuses, I spent most of the day out of the permanent TMA, fishing in spots I don’t usually fish in the winter. Serves me right for wanting to explore and avoid the crowds. So while the catching stunk, the fishing was extraordinary. Mostly nymphing, but I tried streamers as well. I know I was getting deep enough, as several rigs and flies were donated to the river gods. We’ll get ’em next time. Rain on the way. That’s good, because I don’t like the river at this height (205cfs/305cfs).

I know where you live. I just didn’t visit today.

DCIM100GOPROG0020591.

 

Farmington River Report 1/26/16: Avoiding crowds — and fish

Where there’s one trout, there’s probably a bunch more. That’s a fair statement for winter fishing on the Farmington, and one that Torrey Collins reiterated to me as I walked out the door of UpCountry. But you could also say the same for winter trout fishers. And today I wanted to avoid crowds. If there were any fish in that bargain, I would embrace it as a bonus.

I’ve been fairly stubborn about Spot A this winter. I know there’s a healthy population of trout, but I’ve only hit them in the mood to eat once. I spent ninety obstinate minutes bouncing nymphs along the bottom (I had too many false positives to count) and swinging/stripping streamers before I decided enough.

Spot B was a what-the-heck roll of the dice. I don’t like it in lower water (230 cfs, 35 degrees in the permanent TMA) but you don’t know if you don’t go. Ten minutes was all I gave it. Blanked.

The run in Spot C is deep and moving at a good walking pace. The yarn went under with the speed and depth that indicates a substantial fish has committed to your fly. Or you’ve found a fly-eating rock. Bottom 1, Steve 0, and I set about re-tying my rig. Thirty minutes later, another blank.

And that’s when you realize that solitude is nice, but you should probably just deal with whoever’s there and go fishing where the willing-to-eat fish are. Third cast, the indicator goes under and the bottom fights back.

Clearly, this calls for a second cigar.

Down periscope. A nice kype beginning to form on this some-teen inch brown that took a size 12 (2x short) SHBHPT, the day’s clear favorite (they showed no interest in eggs or SH Zebra Midges).

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The Last Blast of 2015

Any year that I get to fish over a hundred days is by definition a good one. So be it with 2015.

There are far worse ways to close out a fishing season than by walking a small stream, alone with your thoughts and a Oliva V Melanio. An ideal day for a winter outing, with temperatures in the low 40s, gray skies, and enough snow to make things pretty without gumming up the walk. I fished downstream with a bushy dry, and I added a tiny BHSHPT dropper off the hook bend halfway through the session. I found a half dozen small wild brookies willing to slash at the dry, but the only one I brought to net took the nymph dropper.

Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown.

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Then I got greedy. A half hour after leaving Ye Olde Brook Trout Emporium, I was wading into the bracing waters of the Farmington River. For some time now I’d had it in my mind to fish a certain stretch with streamers (I’d never done so in the winter). Bingo. Three bumps, and although there were no hook sets, I know where they live. Fished the full-sink line and some Deep Threats.

And so, on to 2016. If you’re new to currentseams, thanks for subscribing, and welcome. I have quite a few appearances and classes scheduled this winter, and I’ll post those soon. Hope to see you at one or more of them. And of course, if our paths cross on the river, please come say hi.