Farmington River Fishing Guides and Conditions, Connecticut

About the Farmington River

The Farmington is the trout river in Connecticut and one of the best in the Northeast. The West Branch below Hogback Dam at Riverton runs cold all summer on bottom releases from the Colebrook and Barkhamsted reservoirs, and the river from there down through Peoples State Forest, New Hartford, Collinsville and Unionville is a long, varied, heavily fished and genuinely excellent trout fishery. The Tariffville gorge at the bottom adds a stretch of ledge and pocket water below the confluence with the main stem.

Brown trout are the fish. The river holds a strong wild brown population alongside the well-known Survivor Strain program, and fish that have been in the river for several seasons behave like wild fish and are fished for accordingly. Rainbows fill in, brook trout come out of the tributaries, and smallmouth take the warmer lower water. The hatches are excellent and long-running, from Hendricksons and caddis in spring through sulphurs, cahills and the summer evening dry-fly fishing that the river is known for, into olives and midges in the cold months.

The Tariffville gauge reads the bottom of the system and reflects both the West Branch release and the main-stem inflow. Release changes at Hogback set the character of the upper river: moderate flows are ideal for wading the permanent catch-and-release water at Peoples Forest, high summer releases push wading anglers to the edges, and low winter flows make the fish very spooky. Read the number, and remember the upper river can be fishing well while the lower river is high and off-color from a tributary.

Riverton, New Hartford, Collinsville and Simsbury are the bases, with fly shops and guides. The permanent catch-and-release reach is the most fished water in the state.

Access

Hogback Dam and Riverton: the top of the West Branch tailwater.
Peoples State Forest: the permanent catch-and-release water, the best-known reach.
Whittemore and Church Pool: classic named pools with parking.
New Hartford and Satans Kingdom: mid-river access and tubing traffic in summer.
Collinsville and Unionville: lower West Branch and main-stem access.
Tariffville Gorge: ledge and pocket water at the gauge reach.
Rainbow Dam: the bottom of the river above the Connecticut.

Seasons

Open year-round on much of the river, with a true winter fishery.
April and May: Hendricksons, caddis and the heaviest hatches of the year.
June through August: cold releases and famous evening dry-fly fishing; expect tubers at Satans Kingdom.
September through March: olives, midges, streamers and wild browns with almost no company.