Hours:Wednesday 10am-3pm. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 8am-6pm. Weekends remain at 8am-5pm. We will stay on this schedule through the end of the summer. 

We are still looking for one more part-time employee, someone who knows the river well, is experienced and knowledgeable about flyfishing, and has a flexible schedule.

Pictured is Mark M. with with a legit 20" wild Farmington River brown trout, caught recently on a Caddis dry fly while be guided by Derrick of CT Fish Guides. 

We will match most advertised deals and sales from other stores local or on the internet. We want your business, and as your friends and local fly shop please come to us first if we can help. Our business only survives because of your support.

We’ve taken in 4 different book collections recently, we literally have so many used books there is not room on our bookshelves! There are some excellent titles in the recent batches. FYI we also have quite a few autographed books.

We are now a Guideline dealer, They are a Scandinavian company that makes some great rods & reels and more. Zach & Derrrick are both BIG fans of their products. We have Euro, dry fly, and streamers rods from them. We also have Guideline Euro leader butt material in 3x to 5x for making micro leaders (great stuff and it’s inexpensive), plus a cool mini chest pack that you can attach 5 different ways. 

Monday 7/27/26 River Report:

Four days ago we received Steve Culton's brand new book. "Fly Fishing the Farmington River", and it looks fantastic. We have sold over fifty copies so far and may run low by the weekend, but we have plenty more on the way. The book contains detailed information on the river, from the dam in Riverton down to Tariffville Gorge. Seasons, hatches, locations, techniques, suggested fly patterns, plus detailed info from guides & river regulars. Plenty of great pictures too. Steve will be doing a book signing on August 22nd, 11am to 2pm at UpCountry. Bring a copy or buy one on that day.

The Farmington River water height gauges are finally working again on our website. USGS changed the way they provided the information a few months back and nuked our page. Thanks to a web developer we now have have updated water height, cfs, temperature, wind, and weather available to anyone traveling to the river again. The page is actually better than it was before. See it from the Local Conditions page on the menu.

3+ inches of rain received over the past 72 hours. Flows are elevated & dirty but already dropping at 631cfs total flow in the Permanent TMA/Catch & Release- I'd call this level medium-high. Looks like the rain is basically done, with .09" in today's forecast, should be totally over by noonish. If you are out today, it would either be either medium to large streamers, or nymphing with Junk Flies (Mops, Squirmy/San Juan Worms, Egg flies). Black or yellow are both top streamer colors in dirty water. Target the soft water near the banks, out of the heavy main current. Or, you can go to Riverton above the Still River, where the flow remains low and relatively clear at 126cfs and fish the usual flies (mostly dries & small nymphs). I expect the river to drop a lot by Saturday. The extra water is coming from the Still River (505cfs and dropping this morning), and the Still drops like a rock and clears fast once it stops raining. I am guessing that by Saturday the total flow will be somewhere in the 400cfs range, dropping more by Sunday. Looks like we are out of the drought we were in during May & June! We needed this rain, hopefully DEEP will go back to a more historically normal dam release on Monday, in the 200-250cfs range. Other than a lingering dribble this morning, it looks dry straight through Saturday, so the water should drop & clear fast.

Water temps have been fine the past few days (mid 40's to about 64 degrees depending upon when & where you take the temps) from the dam down to New Hartford, but you still need to keep an eye on water temps with the Still River currently high and adding in warmer water (somewhere in the 60's currently, there is no temp gauge on the Still). Fortunately the cloudy weather and cooler temps (days low/mid 70's, nights in the upper 50's to low 60's) has been keeping water temps doable for quite a ways below the dam. As the Still River drops, it will have less of warming effect below it's junction with the Farmington River. On hot sunny days though, it pumps in water that can be 70-80 degrees, diluting the water in the mid to upper 40's from the dam. Typically in the summer the Still only flows at 10-50cfs, so it has minimal warming influence. And even though it's about 500cfs and dropping as I write this, the cooler and cloudy weather is keeping the Still from warming up much. Friday and Saturday will be somewhat sunny with highs in the low 80's though, so use a thermometer and keep an eye on water temps, and move upstream if necessary to find water that is ideally 65 degrees or less.

On Monday, it's very likely you will see DEEP bump the dam release up to 200-250cfs. The target flow for July & August is 250cfs, assuming reservoir levels over a certain height (which we are well above), and normal inflow levels above Colebrook Reservoir and normal rain. We are finishing July at 7+ inches of rain in Otis, MA (a little above Colebrook Reservoir), the current inflow to Colebrook is 295cfs and rising (normal/median is 38cfs), so all parameters should be a "go" for a historically normal water release from the dam. Seems like we are also back to regular rainfall at or above normal amounts. Bodes well for the fall!

Increased flows may reduce the dry fly fishing, but they are certainly good for nymphing and streamer fishing. Today & Friday should be good streamer days, and could produce some BIG brown trout. Make sure to beef up your tippet when targetting bigger trout with mediumt to large streamers, a minimum of 2x, and 0x is more appropriate for the biggest streamers. You can bump your tippet size up a bit when nymphing also, as well as use bigger flies (Stoneflies, Princes) and Junk Flies. 

Quite a few good reports over the past weekend in the low flows, especially for the evening dry fly fishing. Low but cold water leads to a lot of fish rising during hatches. Subsurface, small nymphs #18-22 in the fast water were getting it done- exceptions are big #8-10 Stoneflies in the early to mid mornings, and #10-12 Iso nymphs in the afternoons/eves.

The CT DEEP has been conservative with water releases from the dam this summer, because they want to maintain a bank of cold water to get us through late summer & fall (in case there is a drought, which there was in May & June). The water coming out of the dam was reading 49 degrees this morning at the Route 20 bridge in Riverton, it peaked yesterday at 51+ degrees. The HOBO unit in New Hartford behind UpCountry is reading 63.4 degrees this morning, it peaked yesterday at 63.7 degrees. After cooler nights you can easily fish in the mornings down in New Hartford and even Canton, but you may need to move upriver at least a few miles as you get toward lunchtime and into the afternoon on warmer, sunny days. Ideally try to stay in water below 65 for the best fishing. Make sure you have a thermometer, and use it!

Getting good to excellent dry fly reports, especially from those fishing in the evenings, so don’t leave too early! Later in the day look for Isonychia #10-12, small Blue Winged Olives #20-24, Rusty Spinners in the same sizes, Cahills/Summer Steno’s #12-16, Attenuata #18-20, and egg-laying Caddis #18-22 (tan, black). Sulfurs are basically done in the Permanent TMA/C&R, we continue to see some hatching in Riverton. Morning bugs include Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24, Needhami Duns #22-26, Needhami Spinners #22-26, and Tan Caddis #18. Ants & Beetles are good dries to fish between late morning and early evening when there aren’t too many bugs hatching. Dry/Dropper combinations are working well for many anglers. Try combining an Isonychia Comparadun and a tiny nymph like #18-20 Baetis or a Zebra Midge to catch trout in fast water

Water in the mid 40 degrees is coming out of the dam, which is fantastic for late July. It keeps the river at trout-friendly water temps for a good ways downriver, but if you go far enough below the dam you will eventually run into water temps that are too high to ethically trout fish (over 68 degrees), especially in the afternoons/evenings on hotter sunny days. Sunshine is the #1 driver of water temp increases, followed closely by hot air temps. Mornings after a cool night allow you to fish further downriver, then work your way upstream to stay in cold water as the day progresses and water temps increase. Use your thermometer to guide you on how far up or downriver to fish. Riverton just above the Still River has been ranging from about 46 to 53.5 degrees. 65-68 degrees should be used as a cutoff to move upriver and find cooler water. A good strategy is to start downstream, and work your way upstream as the day progresses, and this will keep you in water under 65 degrees all day long, which will give you the best fishing and minimize stress on the trout. 

Fishing is always more technical in July due to lower flows and months of fishing pressure “educating” the trout, but it can be very good if you know what you are doing. Be stealthy, wear drab clothing, and use 12' or longer leaders with long/light 3-6' plus tippets in the 6x-7x range. July is prime dry fly time, but it is also good for nymphing, streamers can be good at first & last night, and this is a great time of year to go throw bushy Mice after dark. Lower water like we currently have, creates more dry fly fishing as it makes it more efficient for trout to feed on the surface due to slower & shallower flows.

This time of year when you are nymphing, look for fast water, and if it’s in the shade even better. Small nymphs #18-24 can be the difference between a slow day and a great one. 6X tippet helps, but 5x is typically okay if you don’t want to go light. Thinner tippet sinks lightweight flies better, and the greater flexibility lets you flies drift more naturally. Don’t sleep on smaller jig streamers in olive or tan. 

Hatches 

Dries:

-Isonychia #10-12: Fast water bug, usually about 4pm to dark. Can also be on the water in the late mornings/early afternoons sometimes

-Sulfur #18 (Dorothea): Still hatching from about Campground all the way up to the dam in Riverton. Typically and evening bug, but we sometimes will also see them hatch around mid afternoon, especially as you get closer to the dam in colder water.

-Attenuatta #18-20: evenings, often confused with Sulfurs but they are slightly smaller and more of a bright greenish-yellow almost chartreuse color. Hatch is moving upriver, not sure of the downstream limit. 

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

-Beetles & Ants #12-20: great option from late morning to early evenings, especially when bugs are not hatching

-Blue Winged Olives/BWO’s #18-24: afternoon hatch on cloudy days, also on the water in the last hour of daylight in flat pool water. Don’t sleep on #18-22 rusty spinners at dusk.

-Needhami #22-26: mornings, spinners & duns

-Light Cahill/Summer Steno #12-16: 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

Nymphs: 

-Caddis Pupa #14-18 (tan, olive/green)

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

-Pheasant Tails/Frenchies #12-22: imitates a wide range of Mayflies including Sulfurs, Vitreus, Baetis/Blue Winged Olives, Isonychia, small Stoneflies, Hendricksons, and more

-Isonychia Nymph #10-12: 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. 

-Baetis/BWO Nymphs #16-22

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

 -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

 -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.

-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

If you like our fishing report, please consider buying your gear from us. We generally ship the same day, for free anywhere in the country on all but the smallest orders. Our shop can only exist with your patronage.

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

2026 Connecticut fishing licenses are available in store at our front counter.

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