On fishing and the cold

 Good morning all,

I'm up at stupid o'clock again, dreaming of fishing.  4 am seems to be the witching hour for me - where I wake up and think about what kind of fishing is possible for that day.  The ice hasn't settled on the lakes and ponds up here yet, but it is way too cold for kayak fishing.  I could still wade the Farmington, potentially, with neoprene everything and some chutzpah.  It's windy and the google home told me it feels like 20 degrees with the wind chill, which also tells me my fly rod will be nigh unto useless.  So spin it is, maybe a big mouse with a bobber.  

It's also flood stage in all the rivers flowing into the Farmington, though because of the dam(s) at hog's back and Colebrook river lake, I think the Farmington is still within its banks.  Does anyone have any experience fishing flood waters?  If so, please comment what I should try.  Maybe some neon colored egg sacs and some mouse patterns (I imagine these are frequent in a flood river, as the mice get washed from their burrows).  I have a spot where the two rivers come together that I want to try, one flooded and one not, so fish can choose their temperature/thermocline and their food supply that is washing in.  I'll add pictures of the fish to the post, if I catch any, and pictures of the wildlife even if I don't.

At any rate, happy fishing, tight lines and I hope you all have a great day!

~Mark

Kayak fishing

 Good morning,

I know it's not technically fly fishing, but I realized that I get the same kind of zen from fishing in my kayak.  Whether it's casting for stripers and blues, albies, or dropping and jigging for fluke, porgies and sea bass, just being out in nature is refreshing.  This morning I woke up sore and tired from it, but it was all the way worth it.  

There is a certain brotherhood among fishermen as well.  The guys I go with have become real friends to me, in a time when I really needed some of those.  For instance, one of them came to my house to show me how to fillet a fish.  When my truck broke on the way to the water, they were understanding and helpful in their advice.  My parents came and got me, but if they weren't able to, I could have depended on my fishing buddies to pick me up.

At any rate, I didn't have a great day of catching yesterday, but it was a beautiful day on the water, well worth the driving and the pain in the butt of getting my kayak transported and the organization before and after.  

Hope you all have a great day!

~Mark

4/7 Spin fishing

I think I'm growing as a fisherman.  I used to only use Phoebes, and usually on opening day, unless I was fly fishing with a friend or in Maine or NH fly fishing.  I am trying to impress my daughter, I think - she gets such joy from catching a fish or netting one, so I am trying harder for her sake.  I switched from a Phoebe to a Mepps spinner (like a rooster tail but with no hair and a pink butt) and caught a beautiful 14" brown this morning.  I love sharing this with my daughter and watching how excited she gets to go fishing or see nature for the first time.  It's made me read about effective fishing, dig worms, investigate powerbait, and tie flies in the first time in a long time.

Maybe this is what parenthood is supposed to be - rediscovering things that we love through the eyes of a child and falling in love with them all over again.  I am really enjoying it and I hope I keep getting to do it.  I remember how excited I used to get on opening day when my dad and I would go, and I suppose I know now that that energy was contagious for my dad.

Hope you all have a good day, and happy fishing!

Mark

Sentimental attachment to a fishing rod

Hi all,

Yesterday someone stole my favorite spin fishing rod.  It was always my dad's second favorite, and became my favorite when he passed it to me.  It was straight, flexible, and the tip was just sensitive enough to feel any hit.  I've caught trout on it that would have won the Riverton Derby if I caught them in the Farmington.  I thought it would be safe at the Colebrook River Lake in the back of my truck, with a few trucks of fellow fishermen and walkers. 

It was an antique (I think) of unknown origin, so I can't even replace it.  It's the brown and white one in the picture below, with steel ferrules and two metal cylinders to hold the reel to the cork handle.  I always wanted to have that part replaced so the reel couldn't come off so easily.  I'm irrationally attached to the rod.  It's not better than a new one in any way that I can think of, but it's gone with my father and I to countless opening days, and caught even more trout.  Those memories seem imbued in the cork of the handle, the frozen fingers trying to clamp the two reel holder cylinders together.  I've cared for it for at least 10 years now, making sure never to shut it in a car door or leave it bent for storage. 

Anyway, if anyone knows more about the rod or how I can try to replace it, please leave a comment.  I'd like the same rod blank to start building new memories with.

Good link for trout fishing CT

I found this to be very informational, so I'm sharing the link here:
http://connecticutoutdoorsman.freeservers.com/RIVERTROUT.html

4/4 and 4/5 Fishing and tying

Good morning all,

Yesterday I had the chance to do some fishing with a friend of mine, Mike.  It's been too long since we hung out and shared our love of coffee, beer, guitars/music and fishing.  We only had the chance to fish because of social distancing, but the other stuff was implied.  We fished the farmington, above the bridge in Riverton, up closer to Hog's back, and finished at People's, where there was a great hatch that had fish rising, but we couldn't match it.  I tried a bead head wooly bugger tied under a deer hair caddis/muddler to no avail, and Mike tried several emergent flies and mayfly patterns to no avail.  It got me motivated to tie something that might have worked, an elk hair caddis/muddler that was weighted with no hackle.  I think the next time we go, I will put this about 18 inches below a deer hair caddis (elk hair but with deer hair because that's what I have), size 18 with some Gink to make it float.  That way I have a #14 emerger that is low, and a #18 that is floating to try to fool the trout. 

Mike had some success above the bridge with a squirmy pink worm fly, and I struck out with my spinning rod, then struck out with my muddler dry fly with a yellow and brown maribou streamer about 18 inches below it.  I wasn't quick enough to get a picture of the rainbow, but I'd guess about 14 inches and not stocked by the coloring. 

4/2/2020 fishing

Good morning all,

I'm grateful this morning to have a place to fish and a governor who recognized that opening day was a bad idea because of Covid-19.  I'm also grateful to my mother for getting licenses for myself and my 18 year old stepson, my dad and Frank for teaching me to fish, and the weather for cooperating.

After no success waking the 18 year old, I tried the 8 year old and she snapped awake excited to fish at about 5:30, an hour before sunrise.  We tried our favorite spot and weren't successful for the first hour or so, with Phoebes or her orange trout balls under a bobber.  Then we switched locations and I took turns casting her rod and mine, while she was able to reel the Phoebes properly.  I got about 2 casts to her one, and finally successfully caught one.  She was nervous about reeling it in (I offered), so I pulled it in and she netted it.

It turned out to be a Brown trout, somewhere between 14 and 16 inches, and not stocked.   You can judge from the pictures, I didn't have a tape.  It was tail hooked and we released it at Abby's behest. I thought it was a stick at the bottom of the river at first!  We caught it at about 7:15 am, while the world was still frozen at about 35 degrees.  It was across a narrow, deep (maybe 6 ft) section of river, 3/4 of the way across and in some riffles.


Have a great day all, and I hope you find something to do outside with your families,
~Mark
Exerpt from:
http://www.eregulations.com/connecticut/fishing/rivers-streams/
Farmington River Regulations, in case anybody's interested:

FARMINGTON RIVER (West Branch and Mainstem), Hartland-Barkhamsted-New Hartford-Canton-Burlington-Farmington-Avon-Simsbury-Bloomfield-East Granby-Windsor (T)

GPHCZ

Intermittent sections from Goodwin Dam to RT 4 (Farmington Center). Then from Tariffville Memorial Park (Simsbury) through the Tariffville Gorge (Bloomfield). Then from mouth of tailrace canal below Rainbow Dam to confluence with Connecticut River.

Farmington River Trout
Management Area X

From Goodwin dam (Hartland) downstream tothe intersection of Hogback Road and Route 20 in Hartland, as indicated by signs posted by DEEP.

• Season: Open year-round.
• Trout & salmon stamp required to fish.
• Trout:
  • Catch and Release Only from September 1 to 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April.
  • Daily creel limit—2, 12″ minimum length from 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April to August 31.

From the intersection of Hogback Road and Route 20 in Hartland, as indicated by signs posted by DEEP downstream to the gas pipeline crossing approximately four-tenths miles downstream of the confluence with the Still River in Barkhamsted, as indicated by signs posted by DEEP. THIS AREA IS CLOSED TO ALL FISHING FROM THE FIRST DAY OF APRIL TO 6:00 AM 2ND SATURDAY IN APRIL:

• Season: Open 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday April–last day March.
• Trout:
  • Catch and Release Only from September 1 to 6:00 a.m. last day March.
  • Daily creel limit—2, 12″ minimum length from 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April to August 31.

From the gas pipeline crossing approximately four-tenths miles downstream of the confluence with the Still River in Barkhamsted, as indicated by signs posted by DEEP, to the old footbridge abutments approximately 1.4 miles downstream of the confluence with the Still River (Barkhamsted):

• Season: Open year-round.
• Trout & salmon stamp required to fish.
• Trout:
  • Catch and Release Only from September 1 to 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April.
  • Daily creel limit—2, 12″ minimum length from 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April to August 31.

From the old footbridge abutments (Barkhamsted) downstream to the Route 219 bridge (New Hartford). This area includes all of the former West Branch Farmington River Trout Management Area:

• Season: Open year-round.
• Methods: Barbless hooks only
• Trout: Catch and Release Only.

From the Route 219 bridge (New Hartford) downstream to the route 177 Bridge (Unionville):

• Season: Open year-round.
• Trout & salmon stamp required to fish.
• Trout:
  • Catch and Release Only from September 1 to 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April.
  • Daily creel limit—2, 12″ minimum length from 6:00 a.m. 2nd Saturday in April to August 31.

Lower Farmington River

Farmington to Windsor; From Route 177 bridge in Unionville Center downstream to Rainbow Reservoir.

• Trout: Daily creel limit—5, 9″ Minimum length.