Fly Fishing the Farmington River

A bottom-draw tailwater below Goodwin Dam that rivals western rivers in fish density, the Farmington is Connecticut's most productive trout fishery and draws dry-fly anglers to its legendary Hendrickson and sulphur hatches just an hour from Hartford.

10 shops nearby

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When to fish

April–October

Best months: April–October

Best
Off-peak

Hendrickson: late April–mid-May. Grannom / Little Black Caddis: April–May.

Today's conditions

Where to fish

Along the Farmington River

Farmington1 shopBloomfield1 shop

Cornwall1 shopEast Hartford1 shop

The upper Trout Management Area (TMA) runs ~3.5 miles from above the Route 318 Bridge downstream to the Route 219 Bridge in New Hartford; a lower TMA is accessible via Route 177. Numerous pull-offs and trail segments parallel the best trout water throughout.

The water

Tailwater

Key hatches

Blue Quill
Blue-Winged Olive
Hendrickson
Alderfly
Brown Drake

Hatch calendar

Conditions

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6-day forecast

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Forecast from the National Weather Service ↗

Hatch calendar

Months each hatch is active on the Farmington River, with hook sizes and local timing notes.
Hatch · hook	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O
Blue Quill(mayflies)hook #16–18	March	April
Blue-winged Olive(mayflies)hook #18–22spring and fall		April	May	June	July	August	September	October
Hendrickson(mayflies)hook #12–14late April–mid-May		April	May
Alderfly(other insects)hook #12			May	June
Brown Drake(mayflies)hook #8			May	June
Eastern Green Drake(mayflies)hook #8–10			May	June
Gray Fox(mayflies)hook #12–14			May
Green Caddis(caddis)hook #14–18			May
March Brown(mayflies)hook #10			May	June	July
Sulphur(mayflies)hook #16mid-May–June			May	June
Tan Caddis(caddis)hook #16–20			May
Black Caddis(caddis)hook #18–20				June	July
Light Cahill(mayflies)hook #12–14				June	July	August
Slate Drake(mayflies)hook #12				June	July	August	September	October
Trico(mayflies)hook #18–24July–August				June	July
White Fly(mayflies)hook #12–14						August