CTFishTalk.com: Farmington River - Windsor to Connecticut River 09/11 - Connecticut River Reports ( CT River Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

DirtyDawg10 (aka Derek) and I decided to check out the lower Farmington River today. Here's a map of the areas we explored:

We arranged to meet at the boat launch ramp behind Bart's Drive-In on Pleasant Street in Windsor at 6:00 AM. I arrived early, at about 5:40 AM. I had planned to stop at Walmart on the way there to pick up some braided line for a new rod and reel I picked up at Cabela's yesterday, but I forgot to stop until it was too late. As a result, I had only one setup with a black War Eagle spinnerbait tied on. When I launched from the ramp in my little sink (i.e., sit inside kayak), it was cold, dark and misty, but there was also almost no wind. I paddled across the river from the ramp and pitched my spinnerbait to the bank as I drifted downriver from below the railroad bridge to the Route 159 bridge. I didn't get any hits. When I reached the Route 159 bridge, I headed across the river to the weedbed on the opposite bank, which sits out of the main flow of the river. The weeds were a little too thick for my spinnerbait. By this time, it was about 6:10 AM and I spotted Derek on the ramp as the sky began to lighten.

Since neither of us had ever been on this stretch of the river, we decided to explore upriver toward Rainbow Dam. However, since the dam is drawn down right now, the river is flowing pretty strongly. We had to work pretty hard to make our way upriver. Keep in mind that Derek paddles an inflatable sink and my sink is only eight feet long, so we're Slow and Slower out there (I'm Slow and Derek's Slower, in case you were wondering Cool

). We did much more paddling than fishing and neither of us got so much as a nibble. I continued to throw my spinnerbait, and Derek was throwing a crankbait and a wacky Senko, I think. We could tell that the river was a couple of feet higher than normal, because we spotted fishing rod prop sticks in the water about three feet from the shore. We made it about 1/2 mile up the river before we decided to turn around. I tied on my little white Yo-Zuri crankbait for the trip back downriver. As we passed the ramp and the Route 159 bridge, we continued to strike out. We drifted over a sandbar in some very shallow water just downriver from the bridge and continued on for about 2/3 mile. When we sighted some faster moving riffles in the water, I called DV (Hey, Derek!) for some advice about where to find some fish. He suggested approaching the river from a boat launch ramp on the Connecticut River in South Windsor. Since we didn't know how far the mouth of the river was from where we were and I didn't want to have to call my wife to rescue us from a one-way river cruise, again, we decided to head back to the ramp. It was a tough paddle. By the time I got back to the Route 159 bridge, I saw that I was pretty far upriver from Derek. I pitched my crankbait at the bridge pilings a couple of times and when I looked back, it looked like he hadn't moved at all. He was paddling like a hamster on a wheel! Very Happy

I yelled back to him to double-time it and he slowly made it up to the bridge. After we got off the water, Derek followed me in his car to South Windsor. We didn't know where we were going, but my GPS directed us over the Connecticut on the Route 291 bridge. Through blind luck, we drove directly to the boat launch ramp in Linear Park, which is on the E bank of the Connecticut, directly across from the S branch of the mouth of the Farmington:

There was a fairly brisk NNW wind, so we decided to head across the Connecticut to the mouth of the Farmington after we launched. I threw my crankbait in to troll it and finally hooked up with a fish. It was a strong, 15 inch, 1 pound 6 ounce, river smallie! Whoo hoo! I think that Derek got a photo. At this point, a couple of fishermen pulled up to the ramp in an outboard aluminum V-hull. They said they had caught only a couple of little smallies, the biggest of which was 15 inches. They pitched buzzbaits at some laydowns just downriver from the ramp before they got off the water, but we didn't see them get anything. In the meantime, I caught another little smallie, a 13 incher, also on the trolled crankbait. After a few casts at the laydowns, we headed across the Connecticut to the Farmington. I was amazed at how shallow the Connecticut is. We could have waded across the center of it, where there's a wide sandbar only 18 inches under the crystal clear water. We paddled up the mouth of the Farmington, where I hooked up with another smallie. Unlike the previous two, which hit the crankbait when I trolled it upstream about 30 feet from the bank, I pulled this one off a laydown by casting the crankbait toward it and swimming it upriver. It spit the hook at the boat when I yelled to Derek and held it up next to the boat for him to see. It was probably about 16 inches long. We paddled up to the N branch of the mouth of the river, which is very shallow.

Derek said, "I wonder how close we got to here from the other side." It turns out that we were only about 1,500 feet upriver from there when we turned around! After we reentered the Connecticut, we paddled across to the E bank and Derek finally landed a little 11 inch smallie with a white Yo-Zuri crankbait, similar to mine. We worked down the bank until it became a wide beach and headed back across the river to the W bank, off the long island formed by the two branches of the mouth of the Farmington and the Connecticut. We saw a few large smallies in the water, probably around 18 inches long. Derek hooked up with one that caught some air after it spit the hook, just to rub it in. By this time, it was about 1:00 PM and we had to go. As we approached the ramp, we paddled over a school of large fish swimming north on the bottom. Whatever they were, they were not interested in our crankbaits or Derek's wacky Senko. Does anyone have any idea what they might have been?

Anyway, it was an absolutely gorgeous day out on the water. I can't understand why we were the only two boats out on the water for most of the time we were there.
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DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

Nice report Phil. That was one hell of a paddle up the Farmington with the added flow from the Rainbow drawdown. My boat (as Phil pointed out) is not the swiftest vessel on the water...instead of cutting through the water it is more like a bulldozer. It was a great day to be on the water though. I can't believe how close we were when we turned around...lol

I had a horrible time catching fish yesterday. I was throwing a square bill crankbait, a black/red spinner and then switched out the spinner for a wacky senko. After watching Phil having luck with his crankbait and pulling in a few smallies I stubbornly decided to change my crankbait. I switched it up to a white yo-zuri minnow and finally began to get some hits. Unfortunately I didn't tie it on until we were making the loop around the lower Farmington and back onto the CT river. I had my first hit on the E bank of the CT from a small fish...I was psyched because I was going to avoid the skunk and just then the damn thing leaped and threw the hook. A few hundred feet down the river I landed my first and only smallie (just 11") and finally got the skunk off my back. This one was sitting in between a laydown and the shore and luckily it was small and I had braid on because I had to haul it over the log to get it. Then I had 2 more fish hit the crankbait. The first was a small one that leaped and threw the hook and the second was a good sized smallie that threw the hook then jumped out of the water and flipped me off Very Happy

The trebles on the yo-zuri were on the small side and I'm thinking that was part of the problem I had losing fish. I see posts from some of you that you change out your trebles...I'm assuming it is to catch more fish...and I'm wondering if you could give me any suggestions. I don't want to lose so many fish next time. Maybe you could also explain why you switch out hooks. Thanks for any help you can give.

Oh...and here's the pic of Phil and his 15" smallie...

SkeeterJim · Joined: 08 May 2007 Posts: 2219 Location: Newington, CT

Awesome report guys, sounds like both of you had a good work-out especially Derek! Wink

Jim
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Flipper · Joined: 21 May 2010 Posts: 347 Location: Enfield

I change hooks on crankbaits to larger ones for the exact reason you mentioned. I think most crankbaits come with undersized hooks that have a small gap which makes hookups more difficult. If you are going to change some out, try putting a red one in the front, and one with hair/feathers in the back.
The fish you guys saw were probably white suckers or small carp. They are the only river fish I know that sit on the bottom and won't eat a lure.
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DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

SJ - I definitely got a workout in but it was all worth it to be out on the water on a day like that.

Flipper - Thanks for the tips. I'm going to have to try swapping a few trebles out and see how it works out. I haven't had as much of a problem losing fish with the stock hooks that come on the Bomber cranks.

Fishface · Joined: 02 Jan 2008 Posts: 308 Location: New Britain

Sorry I couldn't make it. Car is at the garage, getting ready for this weekend. Good report is it worth to go again?

Tim

DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

If I had to do it again I would probably head straight to the CT river location. I might not be getting out there this weekend too much going on unfortunately.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Well, as of right now, the lower Farmington River, no, the upper Connecticut River, yes. River smallies are a blast.
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dave_376 · Joined: 25 May 2007 Posts: 171

some crankbaits come with better hooks than others....it they are too small, not sharp, weak, or old I change them....i use Mustad triple grips but gammy also makes the EWG treble hook which is similar.. i try to avoid a round bend hook when i can

DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

Thanks for the added info Dave. I checked out the rear treble on the lure I was using Saturday and one of the 3 hooks was straightened out. I'm thinking it was probably from one of the fish that got off.