Flying Ants have been everywhere over the last few weeks. Look for another "hatch" of them over the next couple of days as they will usually emerge from the ground on the first hot, humid evening after the rain. 

New Fall Hours:

Monday - Friday 8 AM - 5 PM, Saturday & Sunday 8AM - 5PM

News:

UpCountry is receiving daily shipments of fly tying supplies, getting ready for the Fall/Winter tying season. Recent arrivals have come from Fulling Mill, MFC, Hareline, Wapsi, Loon, Solarez, and others.

Just arrived, the brand new highly anticipated Hardy Tactus fly rods designed by world champion Howard Croston for Euro nymphing & technical dry fly fishing. The nymphing rods include a 10' 8" #0/2, 10' 2" #2, 11' 2" #2, and 10' 8" #3. They have a powerful butt section for fighting bigger fish, and a include two tips: one standard tubular/hollow for a traditional feel and more power, and a nano carbon solid tip for lighter work with micro leaders, light flies, and better bite detection. The new series is lighter in hand and has a noticeably crisper recovery. The dry fly rods are either 9' 2" or 9' 9", both lengths offered in #3 and #4 The shorter length has a lower swing weight and is slightly better for accuracy, while the 9' 9" models give offer extra reach and better mending capabilities. While optimised for dry fly fishing, the 9' 9" lengths also function as hybrid nymphing and wet fly rods.

This week we are taking an additional 10% off on all of our used & clearance rods. Valid 9/17 through 9/23. Offer is for in-store customers only and includes much more than we list on our website.

Look on our website and in our store for the brand new Guideline Fario premium fly reels. 

Steve Culton's brand new book "Fly Fishing the Farmington River" is out now, and it is fantastic. The book contains detailed information on the river, from the Hogback Dam in Riverton down to Tariffville Gorge. There is an updated hatch chart, new fishing locations, specific techniques and strategies for the Farmington, suggested fly patterns, plus detailed info from guides & river regulars. We have of plenty of  in stock available in the shop and in our online store here: Book

For more fish photos, store announcements and river news visit our Facebook page.

River Report:

Fishing this past Saturday was excellent.  Large Stoneflies #8-10 were working well in the first few hours of the day. Trico Spinners #22-26 were on the water from Campground to Riverton, though the trout are getting extremly picky about eating them with only perfect drifts and long leaders getting trout to the net. Isonychia #12-14, were out in the afternoon with the trout in the fast water eating the ones that drifted by, plus anglers reporting that blind fishing them was also effective.

Blue Winged Olives #18-24 & Hebe's/Yellow Quills #16-18, were working on the upper river from Peoples State Forest to Riverton in the mid to late afternoon. Late evning brought more Blue Wing Olives throughout the Farmington along with Summer Steno's/Light Cahills #12-14 at last light.

Sunday brought rain and along with it good action on streamers and nymphs.

We have received a little over half an inch of rain in the last 24 hours. Total flow in the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release is 225cfs this morning. The ground around the Farmington has been dry enough to absorb most of the rainwater so the river remains a normal medium/low level. Look for the water to be slightly off color today, completly clearing by Tuesday.

Water temps are ranging from the mid 50's in the morning in Riverton, to the low/mid 60's in the afternoon in Canton. Because we've maintained cold water temps, bug activity and fishing have both been well above average. Because the Farmington River is a cold tailwater, you will often see "evening hatches" in the mornings & afternoons. Bugs don't read hatch books lol.

Nymphing remains a consistent producer when trout aren't rising. A lot of the best fishing currently is in riffly water with a bit of current and some chop to it, whether you are fishing nymphs or dry flies. Many bugs live and hatch in faster water, and the evening egg-laying/spinner falls occurs where the riffles are. Smaller, heavy jig streamers fished slow & deep are a great fly to fish after you are done nymphing a run, often producing a bonus fish or two or three. Junk Flies (Mops, Eggs, Worms) are also good "clean up batter" flies. 

Make sure you have Flying Ants with you. There have been a mix of sizes from #16's to #24's. Typically a mid/late afternoon to evening deal. Match the size, or you may be highly frustrated. Trout love ants and will often key on them to exclusion of anything else. The ideal scenario for flying ants is a warm/humid day with a little rain the day before to get them to do a mating swarm.

September often means using smaller nymphs in the #18-22 range- this can be the difference between a very slow outing and a banner day. Most nymphs are small to very small in late summer/early fall. A good strategy at our current flows is to use a heavier #16-18 nymph at the bottom of your rig, and a smaller lighter pattern on a dropper 18-24" above. On your top dropper, you can even use an unweighted fly, a brass bead nymph, or a soft hackle/wet fly if your anchor fly on point is heavy enough to get your rig down.

Two nymphs that break the rules of smaller flies are Isonychia #12-14 in the afternoon & evening, and Stoneflies (black, brown or yellow) #8-10 in the mornings. Look for areas of faster current with rocks and structure, plus places where the water is slowing into the heads of pools. Focus on deeper slots, which you can locate by the darker looking water. Look for water shaded by trees and hills, keeping an eye on the angle of the sun on bright days. Position yourself so you are not throwing a shadow on the water you are fishing- the low sun angle in the fall throws long shadows that can spook trout if they go over a trout.

Euro style nymphing and high stick method is working well in faster water. Traditional indicator nymphing is better in slower water, when fishing at distance, or on really windy days.

Hatches: 

Dries: 

- Isonychia #10-14: Fast water bug, usually hatches mid-afternoon to dark. Even if you don't see any hatching and no trout are rising, you can successfully blind-fish these in riffly water that you would normally nymph. Hatch usually goes at least into November on our river, but the bugs get smaller over time.

- Blue Winged Olives/BWO’s #18-24: afternoon hatch on cloudy days and later in the day when the sun goes off the water on days with blue skies.

- Hebe #16-18 (Little Yellow Quill): a dull yellow Sulfur-type mayfly we see in August/September in the late afternoon & evenings. 

- Assorted Caddis (tan, olive/green #16-20, black, gray #18-22) 

- Tricos #22-26: the main event for this morning hatch is the spinner fall, which normally happens when the air temps hit 68 degrees. Mostly upriver and near the end of the hatch now.

- Hoppers, Crickets, Beetles & Ants #12-20: great option from late morning to late afternoon.

- Yellow Sally #12-18: A smaller Stonefly that lives in fast water, looks like a miniature Golden Stone. Trout have been eating them on the surface at dusk.

- Light Cahill/Summer Steno #12-14: evenings

- 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: 365 days a year, underrated and overlooked by many anglers. 

Nymphs:

- Caddis Pupa #16-18 (tan, olive, green)

- Caddis Larva (olive, green, tan cream) #14-16: tons of these in the river, good all year

- Pheasant Tails/Frenchies #12-22: imitates a wide range of Mayflies including Hebe's (Yellow Quill), Baetis/Blue Winged Olives, Isonychia, and small Stoneflies.

- Walt's Worm #14-20: great general purpose nymph that suggests many different bugs, especially Caddis on this river. 

- Isonychia Nymph #10-14: dead-drift, swing, twitch, and even strip them in. They are great swimmers, and some days trout prefer different presentations- you won't know until you experiment. Use B-MAR Isonichia, large Prince Nymphs & Pheasant Tails to represent them. 

- Baetis/BWO Nymphs #16-22

- Yellow Sally #14-18: small Stonefly that looks like a miniature Golden Stone. Lives under rocks in fast water. Active & hatching in September here. 

- Junk Flies (Eggs, Mops, Squirmy/San Juan Worms, Green Weenies): Often work when standard nymphs fail, especially when there aren’t many hatches.

 - Large Stonefly Nymphs #8-10: golden/yellow, brown, black, Stoneflies 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 morning during summer. Look for the empty shucks on top of rocks where they crawl out to emerge in fast water.

 - Midges #18-22 (black, olive, red): Zebra Midge, Flash Midge, Red Iris Midge, etc.

Streamers:

-Periods of higher/dirty water are a great time to fish big streamers and target big trout. Also early & late in the day during periods of low light. They are a good clean-up fly to try before right before you leave a spot. 

-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 #4-6: olive, brown, white, black, yellow-

-Articulated Streamers 4-6" long: various patterns to target the biggest trout in the river

-Muddler Minnow #6-10: and old classic that is still deadly

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UpCountry Sportfishing is always looking for good used fly fishing gear for cash and trade. This is how we get those great items you list on our website and you see on our racks. We buy fly rods, fly reels, quality classic bamboo, and fly tying equipment etc. Bring in your old items and we can help turn them into something new. We give more for trade ins than anywhere else. Call ahead for an appointment.