River guide · Massachusetts

Fly Fishing the Swift River

The most technically demanding tailwater in New England, the Swift flows year-round from Quabbin Reservoir with crystalline water and educated trout that regularly run 16–22 inches, a small-fly, fine-tippet proving ground unlike anything else in the Northeast.

10 shops nearby

See fly shops ↓

When to fish

Year-round

Best months: year-round

Best

Midges — cream and blood midge: year-round, dominant in winter. Blue-winged Olive / Baetis: April and October.

Today's conditions

Where to fish

Along the Swift River

Deerfield2 shopsPalmer1 shop

New Salem1 shopEast Hartford1 shop

The catch-and-release section begins just below Winsor Dam on State Rd 9 in Belchertown; an unpaved road follows the river below the dam with walk-in access; the flies-only zone runs from the dam downstream to the State Hwy 9 bridge.

The water

Tailwater

Key hatches

Midge
Grannom
Blue Quill
Light Cahill
March Brown

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 Swift River, with hook sizes and local timing notes.
Hatch · hook	J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N
Midge(midges)hook #18–22year-round, dominant in winter	January	February	March	April	May	June	July	August	September	October	November
Grannom(caddis)hook #18–22				April	May
Blue Quill(mayflies)hook #16					May	June
Light Cahill(mayflies)hook #14					May	June	July	August
March Brown(mayflies)hook #10–12					May	June
Sulphur(mayflies)hook #16late June–August evenings					May	June	July
Tan Caddis(caddis)hook #12–14					May	June	July
Yellow Drake(mayflies)hook #12						June	July