Unlike the majority of central and southern New England, we have been fortunate to receive rain at the right times of the season, as the Connecticut Lakes and Connecticut River are in good shape as fall approaches. We received somewhere around 4 inches of rain just this past week, so there’s plenty of water in our system, meaning that more water will need to be released from the lakes to achieve the desired lake levels this fall.
It’s a balmy 56 degrees and rainy today at Back Lake, and while this is not typically weather that summer vacationers look for when they’re escaping to the north country, it is just what the doctor ordered for our lakes and rivers. Over an inch of rain has fallen between last night and this morning, and more importantly, the cooler weather should help the water temps moderate in the Trophy Stretch and brook trout ponds.
That was the temperature on the Connecticut River’s Trophy Stretch yesterday morning, taken by NH Fishing Guide Mickey Cunliffe. Simply put, that water’s too hot to safely catch and release trout and salmon, and it’s irresponsible to fish water in these conditions if you’re an angler. Fishing and releasing fish in water over 62 degrees is dangerous to trout and salmon.