Farmington River Report: What a difference a day makes

Aug9

I fished twice this week, Tuesday and Wednesday, and the days could not have been more different. On Tuesday, I hosted fly tier extraordinaire Lou DiGena from New Jersey. You may have seen Lou at the Fly Fishing Show, or at the IFTS. The river was up a bit, 406cfs in the PTMA and stained from rain. We started off below the PTMA and found some eaters, me with wet flies and Lou Euronymphing. Because of the stain and cloud cover, we decided to give streamers a shot in a popular pool within the PTMA. That was a total blank. Not knowing if there would be crowds for the evening rise (as it turned out, there were not) we headed to a dry fly mark above the PTMA.

I’ve been fishing this pool for a very long time, and I’m here to tell you that the bug activity and rising fish quotient were among the worst I’ve ever experienced. We kept waiting for a hatch that never really materialized. Lou did well to stick a nice brown sipping in some frog water, and I took another at dark when I suddenly saw a riser, but that was it. On the walk out, there were a few midges in the air, but water that is normally littered with spinners was strangely barren. I did see a few bigger Light Cahills and smaller Summer Steno spinners, but no real biomass like you’d expect.

Wednesday, the weather forecasters blanked. They called for showers and light rain starting at 6pm. The showers started at 1:30pm, and evolved into a steady rain that went on the rest of the day. That didn’t dampen the spirits of Kevin, who was taking a wet fly lesson with me. The water in the PTMA was down 50cfs and had cleaned up considerably. We arrived at the spot to see fish rising, and we connected within a few first casts. A couple more bumps and a juvey Atlantic salmon, and then it was over.

Our next move was to head north and fish the water above Riverton, which was running clear and cool in the mid-50s. We found a long slot that held rising fish, but we strangely couldn’t get them to eat, save for one courtesy swipe. The hatch was BWOs (not surprising given the conditions), about a size 20, and the swallows were going to town on the bugs. We gave it a good effort, then moved even closer to the dam.

We had virtually the entire stretch of river to ourselves. We found a boulder field with some very sexy slots and pockets and waded in. At 162cfs, this is perfect height for this stretch of river. During a wet fly lesson we cover a lot of techniques and tactics; there are a few principles that could be considered core, and critical to success. One of them is that presentation makes a huge difference. The longer you can keep your fly in the strike zone, the better your chances of hooking up. We found a run that had a pod of rising fish — again, small olives was the fly — and I reminded Kevin that if he threw a couple mends as the team of flies moved down and across, he’d give the fish a better look at the flies. On his next cast, this happened. Way to go, Kevin! We hooked two more and then called it a very successful day.

Fly Fishing Gift Ideas for the 2022 Holiday Season

Dec5

If you’re looking for a gift for the fly fisher in your life — even if that’s you! — look no further. Whether you’re buying for yourself (or showing this post to your significant other — hint hint) I got you covered.

A Half-Day Guide Trip/Lesson with Steve Culton. If you’re planning on heading out with me next year, this locks you in at the 2022 rate. I highly recommend the four-hour slot. To purchase, please call 860-918-0228 or email me at swculton@yahoo.com.

**My client Jake with a lovely wild Farmington River brown from last April.**

Classes with the Experts at the January 2023 Marlborough Fly Fishing Show. There are two options. The first is Saturday, January 21 8:30am-11am, Tying and Fishing Wet Flies with Steve Culton. This is mostly a tying class, but we will also cover some fishing aspects. You must pre-register with the Fly Fishing Show. Here’s the link. The second is Sunday, January 22, 8:30am-11am, Presentation Flies For Striped Bass with Steve Culton. This is mostly a tying class, but we will also cover some fishing aspects. You must pre-register with the Fly Fishing Show. Here’s the link. The cost is $90 per session.

Or, for a great stocking stuffer, you can buy Marlborough show tickets in advance direct from the show. Here’s that link. Note that I will also be appearing in Edison, NJ, the last weekend in January on Friday and Saturday, but I do not yet have my schedule.

Happy gift giving, and have a safe and wonderful holiday season.

New menu item: a guide trip checklist

Mar19

As the demand for my guide services increases, I’m trying to figure out how to make things easier for everyone. So I created a “Preparing for Your Guide Trip” checklist/infographic and added it to the menu bar at the top of the homepage: