Category Archives: Fishing Reports

A Back-Country Brookie Adventure

Due to the prolonged drought, I have been keeping my distance from my precious small streams. But, my patience extends only so far. So with the recent cooler weather, I decided to head out. As expected, the water was low, clear, and cold. I find that in lower flows, topwater flies are the best producers. Of course, you can find subsurface action in the deeper plunge pools, but the vast majority of my action came on dries: Elk Hair Caddis, Improved Sofa Pillow, Ausable Bombers, etc.

I pricked dozens and landed quite a few. Most of the fish were smaller (<5″) but there were a few more substantial char in the mix. Even though the summer was dry and hot, nature finds a way. In one small, glassy pool I call “The Incubator,” I witnessed a burgeoning population of young-of-year brook trout. My guess is that thousands of generations have come of age there — something wondrous to ponder while you’re sitting streamside blowing smoke rings from your Aging Room corona gorda.

Some days I’m in full camera geek mode, actively seeking out shots. Other days, like this one, I’m far less motivated. Still, when incidental magic occurs, you take advantage. I had just squatted down into position at the head of a run when I looked down at the rock at my feet. From the chaos of falling leaves comes order. Have a nice day.

Have a nice day

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One of the best fish of the day, probably 7″-8″, about to make a dash for the depths. He took an Ausable Bomber.

Brookie on the bottom

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Dark char. I am fascinated by how brookies change colors to match their surroundings. On one limestone stream I fish, the fish have a lighter background cast to their flanks. This guy came from a deeply shaded pool. His head is almost black.

Dark Char

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Paul was out hiking and shooting, and asked if I wouldn’t mind posing for him. I found fish on the dry from the head of the plunge to the submerged rock halfway down the run. Surprisingly nothing subsurface. It’s a gorgeous shot, even if the model doesn’t quite reach the level of the beauty of his surroundings.

Fishing waterfall

Farmington River Report: still low and slow

Dave took my Wet Flies 101 class today in the form of a private lesson. We fished two runs in the permanent TMA (170 cfs) and then we bounced around above Riverton (110cfs). The TMA was a blank, but we found some fish willing to jump on after we headed north.

Dave did a great job moving around in an effort to find fish (something I can’t emphasize enough when wet fly fishing). We brought a gorgeous wild brookie to net, and played tug-of-war with something more substantial that decided to skedaddle before we could land it.

What great day to be fishing as we had vast stretches of water all to ourselves.

Heads up! Incoming char.

Dave S Brookie

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Dave covering water with his team of three wets.

Dave S Swinging

Farmington River Report: A little bit of this, a little bit of that

Since I couldn’t make up my mind yesterday whether to stay home and work or go fishing, I decided to do both. Fishing first. A man must, after all, set his priorities.

The first hour I did a little exploring on the lower river. This was a section I’d never fished before. It was either impressively deep or painfully shallow. Lots of holes and oxygenated riffles and other things trout like. I’m filing this spot away for future reference.

In the course of my travels, I came across old friend BRK TRT. Alan was casting to some delicate risers in some slow-moving water. We chatted about small streams for a bit (if you haven’t, check out Alan’s site Smallstreamreflections), then I went off to swing some streamers and do a little nymphing. The sun was warm. The air crisp. The river cool.

It most definitely did not suck.

A recent ward of the state that found an olive Zoo Cougar (fished with a floating line and a BB shot at the head of the fly) to his liking. Not bad for a hatchery brown. His spots almost look airbrushed.

Stocked Farmy brown

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Alan declares his passion in no uncertain terms.

BRK TRT

Farmington River Report: Low and slow

That would describe both the river and the fishing. I was on the water yesterday from 9am-2pm. I skipped the permanent TMA and visited the Lower River and some water up in New Hartford and then Riverton way.

Nymphed in five locations. Blank. A mix of deep runs and swift riffles. Tried big (sz 8 stonefly in a run whose stream side rocks were covered with shucks) and small (tiny SHPTs) and in-between. I did catch a very nice stick.

It wasn’t until I switched over to a bright yellow streamer that I saw any action. And even that was spotty as I blanked in two of the three pools I fished.

Current conditions: water is 135cfs in the permanent TMA and barely 200 in the lower river. The water was slightly off-color yesterday, although it felt cold enough everywhere I went.

If you have plans to head out this weekend, this report should not discourage you; I was very likely fishing at the wrong time (middle of the day, bright sun, hot air, low flows) and simply had bad luck with the nymphing. The trout should be gathered in the deeper pools and faster, oxygenated water. I did see some fish rising in some classic dry fly water, but I was too lazy to switch out leaders. Caddis, midges, and a few stray Light Cahill-type mayflies.

If I had to do it all over again, I would have swung wets — and followed my own advice about crickets. 🙂

Not yesterday. 

Icy guide

A few courtesy bumps. Thank you for playing.

The t-shirt would read, “I slogged all over the Farmington River for three hours in the dark, and all I got was a handful of small hits.”

Maybe it was the weather change. Maybe it was the slight stain in the water from the rains. Maybe the DEEP pulled all the big fish out for breeding. Maybe it just wasn’t my night.

After outings like this, I tell myself this is the price you pay for those off-the-charts nights where you get two dozen bumps and three or four quality fish.

Truthfully, it was worth it alone for starting off in the rain and finishing under starlight, watching my smoke rings drift off into the cool blackness of the night.

Wherefore art thou?

Big wild brown hen 8-2015

Why I love the Survivor Strain program

Not every big fish in the Farmington is wild. Here is a Survivor Strain brown from a recent outing. Large, well-developed fins, clipped adipose, and some distinctive haloing around the lower spots. I wonder what else is in that belly? The fish’s attack was textbook big brown: hit, hit, then the take. You read so many reports of people catching 18″ trout on the Farmington that I suspect a good percentage of those fish are actually short of 18, what with it being such a nice, round default number. But I can tell you with certainty that this fish was at least 18″, measured against my landing net, which I’m pleased to report had some difficulty accommodating the catch.

Farmington Survivor Strain brown

Tag Team Nymphing

I’ve been teaching Rob how to fly fish, and Friday afternoon we met for a quick indicator nymphing lesson. Even though Rob is completely new to the fly game, he landed a juvenile Atlantic salmon his first time out. Friday was our second session, and it was slow going. There wasn’t much (if any) visible hatch activity, and the water was slightly stained from the day’s earlier rains. Rob did great job casting, mending, and presenting.

Everyone learns differently, and after an hour Rob said he wanted to watch me fish. We were targeting a riffle that dumps into some deeper water, and as the two-fly rig completed the dead-drift phase, the flies began to swing up. The indicator went under, and I handed the rod off to Rob, who landed this fine wild brown.

Some substantial shoulders on this wild Farmington brown. You can just make out the faint parr remnants, and those haloed spots speak volumes about how lovely these fish can be. Taken on the bottom fly of a two-fly rig, a size 14 olive Iron Lotus.

wild Farmington River brown

Farmington River Report: I have 20. Do I hear 21?

Some fish are gifts. Others are earned.

I got a little of both on this one. Earned by putting in my time for the past six weeks, then slogging through woods and water for thirty minutes on a steamy water-pouring-down-your-face August night, dodging beavers and raccoons and who knows what else just to get to this bloody out-of-the-way spot. Then, gifted with a sharp tug just five minutes into the fishing.

Battle details: taken in water moving at a good walking pace. The hit came as the dead drift transitioned to the swing. Two sharp tugs, then hook set (it has been reaffirmed this summer that the big ones rarely miss if you let them finish the job). Once hooked, the fish sounded as is the habit of larger trout. The interior dimensions of my net are 17×13: It took multiple attempts to net him, including one botched swipe where aluminum rim collided with spotted flank in a manner it probably ought not. The fly was an olive over black Master Splinter foam-backed mouse.

For some reason, the walk out seemed quicker.

Farmington River Report: The rewards of putting in your time

After more blanks and (relatively speaking) dinks than I’d care to mention, finally a really good night. Hit four spots and found hungry fish in three of them. I had more bumps than I could count. Four fish to net, three in the upper teens, and the fourth just in at 20″.

This buck was hiding under a tree, waiting to ambush. Taken on the dead drift.

Brown Buck 8-15

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A substantial hen that crushed the fly on the swing.

Brown Hen 8-2015

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Saving the best for last. She whacked the fly on the swing, then followed up, but no hook set. Two casts later, I started to strip at the end of the swing. Ker-POW! I had a little trouble fitting her in the net.

Big wild brown hen 8-2015

Farmington River Mini Report 7/29/15: If only the fishing were this hot

You know it’s hot when you’re standing up to your waist in sixty-degree water and there’s sweat streaming down your face — and it’s only 10am.

I fished from 9am to 1pm today. My focus was on prospecting for bigger trout by nymphing the fast water. No bigguns’, but I did get into an assortment of lovely wild browns, one in the mid teens. I used the drop shot rig under a yarn indicator, with a size 14 olive Iron Lotus on the bottom and a size 16 soft-hackled Pheasant Tail as the top dropper. I adjusted between one and two BB shot, depending on the depth of the water and the speed of the current.

Now that is one impressive tail. Full adipose, nice little kype — this buck is a surely a wild thang. Taken on the SHPT. Why I like indicator nymphing: the indicator never went under with this guy. It was the slightest of takes, almost imperceptible. The indicator just suddenly slowed and twitched. Remember, it doesn’t cost anything to set the hook.

Wild Farmy Brown 7/29/15

Maybe it was the heat. Maybe it was the full sun. Maybe it was the lack of hatch activity. But I blanked in three runs today that I was certain held fish. The other three I hit all produced. Go figure — I did better outside of the permanent TMA. The river was surprisingly busy for a mid-weekday.

If you are heading out in this heat, please don’t forget to hydrate. And while the water is still plenty cold, let’s do our best to get those fish in and released quickly.

A jewel of a mid-summer Farmington brown. I can’t decide what I like better: the halos around the spots, the golden belly, or the parr mark remnants.

Wild Farmy Brown 2 7/29/15