Farmington, 12/15/07: Will it ever stop?

[Dave]

Aaron and I fished the Farmington from dawn till dusk today. We arrived early, and it was only 12 degrees F ! Highs were expected only into the low 20's, at most. We were surprised with the amount of snow while driving into CT, they received much more than either NJ or NYC. We had a few moments of sunshine, but they were brief and fleeting. I think everyone was enjoying their Saturdays inside sleeping. . .as we only saw 4 other anglers the entire day. I'm sure glad we weren't sleeping!

We hit all the popular "holes" and some of Aaron's lesser known favorite spots along the river, and it was incredible the whole day. A few lulls here or there for a few minutes (for me), but fish were caught all day. We tallied up the final count to be a bit over 100 fish today! I caught around 25-30, and Aaron had an easy 80 (!!!). We had multiple double hook-ups. A few of the biggest fish reached the 18-19'' mark, and on the average they ranged from 13-16'', and also quite a few fish in the 10-12'' range. Lots of very healthy and beautiful browns (with stunning yellow on their bellies), and some rainbows too. Egg patterns produced very well as expected, midges, and. . . . (get ready). . .Aaron found a new SECRET WEAPON (another one), and it yielded Phenomenal results! Believe me, I saw it in action, and so did the video camera, and it is truly a weapon that the fish need to be concerned about ;D! We got a lot of good footage today to add to the collection. I believe a Farmington production should be out sometime soon possibly. We even have some exciting footage of "treking through the snow to get to the 'magic' spot", where as you'll see, it's not so easy to get to the fishing spots without a few falls, slips, trips, scrapes, etc. The good news was, I didn't break another rod today

There was insect activity subsurface and on top. In the slower water, we witnessed quite a few rising trout throughout the day.

It was really a spectacular day out, and I got the advantage of having the geography and landscape of the Farmington River explained and showed to me. The Farmington is an outstanding river, with so, so many fish. . .in fact, "the last time I remember that many fish was on a hot and muggy August night". . . Thanks again Aaron, it was another day for the books!

[Troutbum from Griswold]

Great day Dave! Sounds like it was a mirror day to the one Aaron and I had. Yeah, the Farmington is an awesome fishery and I am so glad I have it in my state and a short ride to the river. I love the Housy and that too is a great river. I love both for what they bring to the table but I am a little bias towards the Farmington. Glad you got a chance to learn the river. Like any river, over time, the more you fish it, the more you learn it's in and outs. Where the drop offs are, the deepest spots, shelfs, structure, runs, riffles, pools, etc. Glad you had a killer day on a killer river man ;D

www.firsthatchflyfishing.com

[AaronJasper]

Yeah it was a great day yesterday... but I have one complaint. Where are the bigger fish? Still no twenty incher. I would venture to say that the smaller ones are too aggressive and beat the larger ones to your offering.

However, there were only five fishermen there yesterday and we were two of them. I will take 12 degrees and frozen guides to have the solitude that we did yesterday.

One other side note. You have to give praise to a river where you have the option of dry fly fishing nearly everyday of the year. There were plenty of fish rising in every area that we fished yesterday.

[Troutbum from Griswold]

No doubt Aaron. I LOVE to nymph, as you know. You the same. There has to be a good hatch going in order for me to switch over to dries. However, it is hard to resist a bazillion rising fish in the winter mornings when the winter caddis hatch is kicking. I have had a ton of great days of catching fish with nothing but dries. Caddis pupa and adults in the am and midges in the late am through afternoon. Steller fishery, bottom line

[NJTROUT]

I haven't fished with Aaron in a long long time but I would hate to see it if he has a "new" secret weapon... We used to go to the Flat Brook every weekend and he would kill me walking up and down that stream until we nearly passed out. I can see he has progressed from the neoprene wader days of old.

[Nymphmeister]

Aaron walks around so much when fishing I sometimes have the urge to nail at least one of his feet to the ground.

[JUICE]

I second that, I think Aaron's nickname should either be:

A. Aaron "shot out of a canon" Jasper

or

B. Aaron "turbo" Jasper

Man never stops moving.

[Nymphmeister]

That's because when he stops moving, he becomes unconscious. I vote for Turbo, the other one is too long. Either that or "Fast Aaron".

[Fascist Killer]

I know how to slow Aaron down... Xanax! They're his kryptonite. Of course, you're casting goes to shit.

[Troutbum from Griswold]

He might be leaning up against a tree drooling with a half smile on his face but at least we would know where he is