Upper Connecticut River Fishing Report: 6/14

Our strange weather continues this spring / early summer. Periods of sunshine, followed by clouds and good amounts of rain have been the norm up here lately, so it’s been a good idea to have the sunblock and rain gear handy, just in case …

It’s also been unseasonably chilly (I’m refraining from using “cold”, but at times it has been that too) lately, which is hardly a deterrent to hard core anglers, but it seems as though the fair weather fishermen are taking a break until things warm up. It wasn’t as busy this week on the Trophy Stretch from reports that we heard, but there’s still some fish to be had out there.

Smaller is better sometimes, and that seems to be the case on the Trophy Stretch at present. Nymphs, particularly in the 16 – 20 hook size, are probably still your best bet here, as the trout and salmon are staying down feeding on nymphs and emergers, eschewing the dry flies that are coming off. Very few fish have been rising lately, even though the hatches of may flies and caddis have been solid.

Recommended Nymphs: TB Flashback Pheasant Tail (12), BH Prince, BH Gold Ribbed Hare’s Ear, Caddis Pupa, Goomie Worm, San Juan Worm, UV Glitter Soft Hackle Olive, Flashback Baetis Olive, Hatching Pupa, Gill Nymph (16), Chuck’s BWO Swing Fly (14 & 16), Angus’s Red & Black, UV Midge (18), UV Wire Body Midge (20), BH UV2 Halo Flash Midge (18).

Now, there’s plenty of other nymph / emerger tandems that you could run, but the flies above are a good place to start. Also, with the moderate flow on the Trophy Stretch, and the amount of pressure that the fish have gotten to this point in the season, 5X leader and tippet is a must, and you might even want to go to the dreaded 6X …

If you’re a streamer guy like me (1X, thank you), there’s still good times to be had. Yours truly had a good session on Tuesday afternoon to the south of Pittsburg. Four browns came to my net, and I had a few other hits. All of the action was on one of Chuck Degray’s UV Olive Soft Hackle Streamer on a moderate sink tip, established now as perhaps my favorite summer streamer.

We have a fair amount of sculpins, in addition to the other bait fish (fall fish, suckers, smelt, etc.) that call the Connecticut River home, so it seems to be a good attractor most of the time. In reality, carrying an assortment of Chuck’s Soft Hackle Streamers – Gray, White, Yellow, Black (he calls this one the “Morticia” – great name), and his Brown/Yellow combo is a good idea in case things get slow on one of them. Vary your presentation and make sure you’re getting down to where the fish are and you should have a good day. They “swim” really well …

Back Lake Update:

Not much to report yet. We anticipate that the Hexagenia Hatch might be a week or two off from what it normally is, so plan on the last week of June and the first week or so of July to enjoy the best time on Back Lake. Our Brown Drake hatch precedes the Hex hatch, and we haven’t seen them yet, so we’re a little behind schedule there. We’ll just have to wait patiently …