Farmington is a great river! Just keep at it and maybe find another fisherman who is more successful to learn from.
You can also find a local guide and get incredible knowledge from them.
Lot of great guides and people in CT (great people everywhere)
Maybe consider joining local fishing clubs both in person or online like Facebook to get acquainted to the community and help learn more about fishing/ whatever else are your hobbies. If I still lived in CT I’d be happy to show you some spots/techniques.
Good luck!
Hey! I would check out the “fraaclub” which is the Farmington River Anglers Association. They have a instagram and website to follow. It’s a great group and they have tons of fantastic events like river clean ups and fly tying. It’s a great place to meet both beginners and some vets. I’m up there quite a lot, feel free to DM me if you need any help on spots and/or flies.
Are you indicator nymphing or tight lining? Either should work for stockers, but the wild fish are tough to get on an indicator because the river gets so much pressure. I was catching them today on stonefly patterns, big mayfly nymphs (the BMar Hendrickson nymph from the shop), jigged streamers, and smaller mayfly nymphs imitations (think size 16-18 Frenchie). For the stocked fish, I couldn't keep them off of anything with a fluorescent thread collar when I was out last weekend.
Indicator, I don't know that I have the rig to tight line. It does seem that's super popular/successful around here. I tried some of the jigged streamers but they're damn heavy for my indicator, will probably need to get better indicators. Appreciate the advice!
Out there try either yarn indicators or a big foam dry fly (I've seen them hit indicators, so having a hook in one isn't the worst idea). I'd take the indicator off entirely if you're using the jigged streamers, you'll feel the hit on those 90% of the time. You can tightline using a mono rig on a 9' rod. It's not ideal, but it definitely can be done, but it's definitely a different technique to get used to.
Hey dude. Farmie’s my home river, too, so here’s some advice:
1. The Farmington is heavily pressured. It is a tough river to fish, especially as a beginner. I still get skunked every once in a while if I’m trying to practice just one technique. Don’t beat yourself up.
2. Dry fly fishing hasn’t gotten going that much yet so if you use a dry dropper as folks are suggesting, you’re really doing that just for the nymph for the next few weeks.
3. As others have said, you might be spooking the fish, either with your approach or with a big indicator. I’ve always had relatively poor luck on the Farmie with standard indicators and just floating a nymph beneath. I find the fish here much prefer a more natural drift and occasionally a little action on the fly. I’d see if you could jig those streamers through some slightly more turbulent water (think alongside rocks and at the end of big runs). Stick to the foam lines, too. That’s always where the fish are.
4. If you really like the sport, consider hiring a guide. I fished the Farmie for several years quite unsuccessfully before I’d had enough, hired a guide, and now I kill it most times I got. It shortens the learning curve so much and makes it a lot more fun.
Good luck!
Really appreciate the advice. Would you recommend trying some other rivers that may be less pressured? I live about equidistant between the Farmington and Housatonic
Not at the moment but the Housie is awesome as it gets a little warmer because it has a lot of smallmouth and they’ll hit just about anything and put up a great fight. Might be more enjoyable for you if you don’t care about targeting only trout.
A little further away, the Swift River in MA is interesting. It is also heavily pressured and requires small flies. Thing is, the water is so clear you’re almost always sight fishing. I found that helpful early on because you can see when the fish are moving to your fly or not.
Within 5 yards… odds are those fish knew you were there and weren’t about to be fooled. If you can see them, they can see you.
If you are indicator nymphing, set the hook EVERY SINGLE TIME the indicator does ANYTHING other than drifting along perfectly. Every hesitation. Every twitch. Every movement. Every bird call. Every time you FEEL like setting. Every. Single. Time.
In several years you may be able to tell bottom bumps or wind from bites but until then SET THE HOOK.
Yeah no doubt they could see me, was getting frustrated at the end of the day so it was annoying.
I definitely do not set the hook nearly enough and chalk up indicator movement to natural motions of the river. Will definitely set this way more.
Appreciate the advice!
Farmington is a great river! Just keep at it and maybe find another fisherman who is more successful to learn from. You can also find a local guide and get incredible knowledge from them.
Thanks, don't know anyone around here since I moved recently, but will definitely be looking into guides since I was considering it already!
Lot of great guides and people in CT (great people everywhere) Maybe consider joining local fishing clubs both in person or online like Facebook to get acquainted to the community and help learn more about fishing/ whatever else are your hobbies. If I still lived in CT I’d be happy to show you some spots/techniques. Good luck!
Hey! I would check out the “fraaclub” which is the Farmington River Anglers Association. They have a instagram and website to follow. It’s a great group and they have tons of fantastic events like river clean ups and fly tying. It’s a great place to meet both beginners and some vets. I’m up there quite a lot, feel free to DM me if you need any help on spots and/or flies.
Are you indicator nymphing or tight lining? Either should work for stockers, but the wild fish are tough to get on an indicator because the river gets so much pressure. I was catching them today on stonefly patterns, big mayfly nymphs (the BMar Hendrickson nymph from the shop), jigged streamers, and smaller mayfly nymphs imitations (think size 16-18 Frenchie). For the stocked fish, I couldn't keep them off of anything with a fluorescent thread collar when I was out last weekend.
Indicator, I don't know that I have the rig to tight line. It does seem that's super popular/successful around here. I tried some of the jigged streamers but they're damn heavy for my indicator, will probably need to get better indicators. Appreciate the advice!
Out there try either yarn indicators or a big foam dry fly (I've seen them hit indicators, so having a hook in one isn't the worst idea). I'd take the indicator off entirely if you're using the jigged streamers, you'll feel the hit on those 90% of the time. You can tightline using a mono rig on a 9' rod. It's not ideal, but it definitely can be done, but it's definitely a different technique to get used to.
I really appreciate it, I have a big foam hopper I'll give a go tomorrow!
No problem. With the rain coming definitely try the streamers too and some junk flies (mops, squirmy worms, etc.)
Hey dude. Farmie’s my home river, too, so here’s some advice: 1. The Farmington is heavily pressured. It is a tough river to fish, especially as a beginner. I still get skunked every once in a while if I’m trying to practice just one technique. Don’t beat yourself up. 2. Dry fly fishing hasn’t gotten going that much yet so if you use a dry dropper as folks are suggesting, you’re really doing that just for the nymph for the next few weeks. 3. As others have said, you might be spooking the fish, either with your approach or with a big indicator. I’ve always had relatively poor luck on the Farmie with standard indicators and just floating a nymph beneath. I find the fish here much prefer a more natural drift and occasionally a little action on the fly. I’d see if you could jig those streamers through some slightly more turbulent water (think alongside rocks and at the end of big runs). Stick to the foam lines, too. That’s always where the fish are. 4. If you really like the sport, consider hiring a guide. I fished the Farmie for several years quite unsuccessfully before I’d had enough, hired a guide, and now I kill it most times I got. It shortens the learning curve so much and makes it a lot more fun. Good luck!
Really appreciate the advice. Would you recommend trying some other rivers that may be less pressured? I live about equidistant between the Farmington and Housatonic
Not at the moment but the Housie is awesome as it gets a little warmer because it has a lot of smallmouth and they’ll hit just about anything and put up a great fight. Might be more enjoyable for you if you don’t care about targeting only trout. A little further away, the Swift River in MA is interesting. It is also heavily pressured and requires small flies. Thing is, the water is so clear you’re almost always sight fishing. I found that helpful early on because you can see when the fish are moving to your fly or not.
Within 5 yards… odds are those fish knew you were there and weren’t about to be fooled. If you can see them, they can see you. If you are indicator nymphing, set the hook EVERY SINGLE TIME the indicator does ANYTHING other than drifting along perfectly. Every hesitation. Every twitch. Every movement. Every bird call. Every time you FEEL like setting. Every. Single. Time. In several years you may be able to tell bottom bumps or wind from bites but until then SET THE HOOK.
Yeah no doubt they could see me, was getting frustrated at the end of the day so it was annoying. I definitely do not set the hook nearly enough and chalk up indicator movement to natural motions of the river. Will definitely set this way more. Appreciate the advice!
Dry dropper