A few courtesy bumps. Thank you for playing.

Sep14

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?

300 Followers Contest Swag

Sep13

I’ve already posted the striper flies that Grand Prize winner Ray Hamilton chose. Here are the trout streamers won by our 2nd and 3rd place contestants:

(starting from the left row, bottom to top) Culton’s Hi-Liter, German’s White Nightmare, Culton’s Deep Threat (brown/orange), Culton’s Deep threat (grey/olive) Culton’s Mickey Finn Soft Hackle, Galloup’s Zoo Cougar. One of each for both of you.

I hope to have these out tomorrow. Tight lines, gents.

Tip of the week: black crickets

Sep12

The last two times I’ve cut the lawn (today included) I’ve noticed an abundance of black crickets milling about. I would think a black cricket fished dry or wet would draw a lot of attention if it were drifted or swung along a grassy bank.

Something like this: braid or dubbed body. palmered soft hackle, deer hair wing/caddis-style head, only all black. Size 8-12.

The Stripers Forever Release A Breeder Club

Sep9

The Stripers Forever Release A Breeder Club encourages anglers to practice catch-and-release for striped bass of breeding age and size. To become a member, you need to catch and release a striped bass of at least 36″ (about a 20-pound fish) and provide a photo or a witness.

While club membership admittedly walks the line of narcissism, I am pleased to say I’m now a two-time member. But, let’s give credit where credit is due: this year I was simply in the right place at the right time. Still, I’ll take it. There is precious little in fishing that matches the brutish power of a twenty-pound ocean-going bass in four feet of water.

I’ve been certified.

Today’s word is: “shoulders.” Can you say “shoulders?” Sure. I knew you could. This isn’t the winning fish, but it’s still a good one.

Stripers Forever is a non-profit, internet-based conservation organization that advocates for the conservation and responsible stewardship of wild striped bass along the Atlantic Coast. They seek game fish status for wild striped bass on the Atlantic Coast. You can find out more about Stripers Forever and the Release A Breeder Club here.

DEEP Farmington River Sampling scheduled for September 9, 10, 11

Sep6

This comes from Neal Hagstrom of the DEEP:

Just a heads up for everyone. The DEEP will be sampling the River Sept 9-11th. We will be working from Barkhamsted downstream.

On the 9th Hogback Road, around the Campground, and possibly the drive-in Pool.

On the 10th Halford’s Run, and the Greenwoods – the big brood stock collections at the Wood Shop that pm.

On the 11th Ovation and above Satan’s Kingdom. We hope to get flows restored mid-day on the 11th.

This assumes that mother nature cooperates and no rain limits our work. Angler’s cooperation on clearing the river during these activities is greatly appreciated because your safety is a primary concern and people in the water affect the efficiency of our operation.

As always, all broodstock will be returned to the river in early December after they complete their recovery from spawning.

If there are questions I can be reached at the Marlborough Fisheries Office 860-424-4179

Neal

In case you are unaware, the MDC draws down the flow from the Hogback dam in early September so DEEP and volunteer crews can take their fish census and gather brood stock browns for their Survivor Strain program. As Neal mentioned, it is best to stay clear of the crews while they are working. That doesn’t mean you can’t go fishing elsewhere on the river. However, given the recent stretch of unusually hot weather and a forecast that calls for more of the same, I would suggest that it might be prudent to give the trout a break.

If you’ve never been on a sampling, it’s a fascinating experience. Anyone can volunteer by contacting the DEEP.

Tip of the week: visit the river while the water is way down. Note where the truly deeper holes are. Bank that information for future withdrawals.

A brood stock brown that was captured and bred in fall, 2012, (red elastomer left eye) then returned to the river in December of that year. I caught her in April of 2013. I wonder how many of her kids I’ve crossed paths with?

Currentseams Three Hundred Followers Contest Winners

Sep4

First Place: Ray Hamilton

Second Place: Rick Perrault

Third Place: Max Kantor

Congratulations! One of the possible prizes is the six striper soft-hackles I tied for my upcoming American Angler article. Ray gets first dibs on them. If he doesn’t want them, Rick gets next dibs, etc. If no one wants them, I will fish them myself. So there. Winners, please email me (swculton at yahoo) and let me know what you’d like. Your other options are a selection of trout streamers, trout wets, or steelhead flies. I also need your mailing addresses. Please don’t post those here.

I would like to thank everyone who entered. Your comments were both insightful and helpful. Best of all, they were just plain nice. It was truly gratifying to hear from so many people, and I feel like I got to know each one of you a little better.

A middle-of-the-night fishing trip toast to the winners. Wait — a toast to everyone. Thank you for your readership and support.

Why I love the Survivor Strain program

Sep3

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.

Fall appearances, articles, and other currentseams-y stuff

Sep1

Hard to believe it’s September. Especially with this heat. We need rain, we need cool, and we need it soon.

In the meantime, here’s what’s on the fall calendar. As you can see, we have lots of “The Little Things” options all over southern New England. You don’t need to be a TU member to attend, so stop by and say hi.

“The Little Things” Presentation to TU Narragansett 225, Wednesday, September 30, Elks lodge, Coventry, RI. For directions and times, visit narragansett.tu.org.

“The Little Things” Presentation to TU Mianus, Tuesday, October 13, Waveny Mansion, New Canaan, CT. For directions and times, visit mianustu.org.

“The Little Things” Presentation to TU Farmington Valley, Thursday, October 15, (I believe it’s at the Whinstone Tavern at Stanley Golf Course, New Britain, CT). For directions and times, visit fvtu.org.

On the writing front, I’m told that my steelhead piece will be in the fall issue of The Drake. I’ll let you know if that’s the case, and I don’t mind saying that I think this is one of the better (not to mention funny) concept stories I’ve written. Look for a feature on striper soft-hackles in the next issue of American Angler. And, as I look over at my writing projects list, I see seven items. I suppose I’d better lock myself in my lonely writer’s garret and hop to it.

Only two more days till the 300 Followers contest closes! If you haven’t already, no better time to enter than now. And wow, just like that we’re up to 320.

Here’s to a tremendous fall season for everyone. (Fish included.)

Douglas Thompson talks. The American Fisheries Society listens — and responds.

Aug31

“The Cost of Trout Fishing,” a recent op-ed piece by Douglas Thompson in the New York Times (Thompson 2015), included several inaccurate statements and fundamental misunderstandings of fisheries management and aquaculture.

Those words are taken from an article recently published by the AFS. Here’s a pdf of the entire article. Note a source citing some of our own DEEP folks.

AFS Responds to an Op-ed in the New York Times 2015-2

A beautiful winter Survivor Strain brown. Thanks, DEEP, for your excellent work on the Farmington River.

The Squirrel and Ginger Caddis Emerger tying video

Aug28

When it comes to soft-hackles, feathers get all the juice. That’s perfectly understandable. But certain furs – like fox squirrel – make excellent hackling material. The results are often deliciously buggy.

Such is the case with the Squirrel and Ginger caddis emerger. This humble creation is something I made up a few summers ago. I took the Ginger Caddis Larva fuzzy nymph and swapped out the standard wet fly hook for a scud hook. Added a flashy rib. And replaced the rabbit fur thorax with a hackle of fox squirrel.

The first time I fished this fly was on a brilliant July day that was devoid of hatch activity or rising fish. The sun was high, the air was steamy, and felt a little foolish for making the drive to the Farmington. Until I started hooking fish after fish on this little caddis emerger. It was the middle fly in a team of three, and the trout stated in no uncertain terms that this was their favorite.

The Squirrel and Ginger is a fine introduction to fur-hackled flies. It is fairly easy to tie. Best of all, it’s a wet fly you can have confidence in.