Flows Up at the Farmington

Flows were up when I today went to the Farmington. As that river has been in drought conditions the past few years, I don’t think I’ve ever fished it when it was high. Today, the combined flow was 570 cfs. The water was a decent 42 °F. It took a while to locate the fish.

And, it was a great change of pace from the very low flows of the past. The reservoir that feeds into the Farmington, miraculously, is now full. So, the flows are up a bit to lower the reservoir’s water levels. The currents are fast. Thankfully, I didn’t fall in, but nearly did so a few times. I’m an aggressive wader.

I stayed mostly in the permanent TMA zone, which hasn’t been stocked. I broke the tip of my 3-wt. Euro rod, and it is away for repairs. So, brought my 2-wt. Euro instead. I definitely felt under-gunned, as I’ll explain.

Action was predictably non-existent at dawn, but picked up around 10 am. I think I’m a little rusty, as I went 3-for-7. That’s not a bad average for me, but, I always think about the ones that got away. One blood knot failed after a good-sized brown surged, a fish popped off just as I was about to net it amidst very fast current, and, for some reason that only the trout know, two hook sets didn’t stick.

Still, I was grateful to land three fish, two of which fought spectacularly. One was a 15″ brown with perfect fins, and so, I think it’s wild. Side pressure was the key to avoid having the fast current sweep the fish down-river. I would have taken better pictures of the brown, but, it literally jumped out of the net.

The other was a 15″ rainbow, and, it was incredibly fat. I was miles away from the newly-stocked areas, and so, I am guessing this is a holdover. It fought like crazy. It surged over and over, and the 2-wt. really took a beating.

After a while, I got tired of chasing the fish down-river, and I didn’t want to slip and fall. So, I pinched the line to keep the fish from taking off and just clamped down on it with a lot of side pressure.  There was that brief “oh no” period when everything seemed to freeze. The fish in the fast current, and I near the bank, hoping the fish would relent. A nose-to-nose stand off. Thankfully, the knots and 5x fluorocarbon tippet held. Eventually, the fish faltered and I pulled it in.

Best flies of the day were stoneflies: Devin’s Biot Stone and the Euro Golden Stone.

I hit the road at 1 pm, grateful to be outside and to have a family that understands that I at times really, really need to fish.

Happy Easter, everyone!

 

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9 thoughts on “Flows Up at the Farmington

  1. Good report Jo! I was out on the Squanny today and did pretty well with nymphs and buggers. The flows are somewhat up and the water is still cold but the fish were cooperating after a little work.

    1. Nice! Roughly, where on the Squannacook are you? I read online that MassWildlife stocked, but as it’s a long river, I’m not sure where their spots are.

  2. I saw an agresive wader go under and almost drown at the Farmington last week . Thank God for the guy who went in and dragged him out . Be careful !!!

  3. Even though they spook fish, I use felt with tungsten studs and a wading staff (ski pole). Makes a big difference in high cold flows!
    BTW, I believe your 3wt is a Sage. Any idea why it broke and I would like to hear how Sage treats you. Just curious!

    1. Fly caught in a branch. Tried to yank it off but the fly rod tip broke. Probably a weakness that started when a tungsten nymph smacked the rod at some point.

      Have sent it to Sage and we’ll see how long it takes! $60 fee, including shipping. I hear it may take 6 weeks.

    2. Looks like a 3.5 week turnaround. Just got word that they’re to ship back the rod.

      It was 1 week to get there via the Fedex Ground label they provided, same with the return trip, and a little over a week for them to process the rod. Now, this was a quick fix. I broke the rod tip and they’re probably just sending out a replacement section without any extra work.

      Still, I’m happy. The $70 total fee is a lot cheaper than buying a new fly rod! And, I love my 11′ 3-wt. Sage ESN….

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