March/April Updates & Guiding

 Winter still maintains it's grip across Connecticut as I write this, though daily high temperatures this week are creeping up this week. This was a real winter, there's been ice for weeks and weeks. Many of the places I fish are holding onto well over a foot still. That's been extremely refreshing. I've taken a substantial break from open-water fishing. The trout fishing has been poor, both as an apparent result of severe drought mortality last fall and generally poor conditions for fishing through the winter, so it hasn't been hard to forego. Taking advantage of the hardwater has been worthwhile though, and I've been using it to intricately analyze one body of water fairly close to home. The analysis revolves around panfish and bass there, though it holds more than that. Jigging has just been my focus. I'll be on six consecutive days at that location after today, and it has been very engaging and interesting, as well as exceptionally productive in terms of quality panfish. Panfish is something I'd like to guide for more. Though I've got a handful of very dedicated perch clients and have guided for crappie as well, it doesn't make up a lot of my guiding time and I'd like it to for a variety of reasons... highest up being that it's just a lot of fun. And of course there's something to be said for the consistent quality to be had. Panfish over a foot aren't available everywhere, but I've got um. Going into March I plan on making at least two dedicated trophy panfish trips a week, whether I'm guiding for them or not. Last year, I put John Kelly on a fly tackle length record yellow perch, and we're very keen on getting a larger one this spring. But for now, it's still an ice game for at least a bit. 

Garth with a very nice crappie.

Though I do love ice fishing, I'm of course greatly looking forward to this spring. April is already very heavily booked, mostly for carp with a smattering of smallmouth and pike trips in the mix as well. Currently, I've only got the 8th and 29th fully available in April, so if you were looking to book, well, better get on that. March has much more availability, and though a lot of smallmouth and carp fishing will be on the docket the day to day standbys will be trout and salmon throughout the month, both floating and walk & wade, and pike. You can contact me at brwntroutangler@gmail.com to book. On the 22nd I'll be a panelist at the Saltwater Edge "On The Fly" forum. The event starts at 9:00am, at 1376 W. Main Rd. in Middletown, Rhode Island. I'll be talking backwaters and marshes, and highlighting some under targeted species for the fly rod. 

On Patreon, I've built up a very nice backlog of posts and videos so that I'm less likely to get caught a few days behind the way I have sometimes in the past. It also means I can give you all a better idea of what's coming up there in the coming weeks! You've got some guides to weather forecasting for fishing purposes coming up, including a video on fronts and some deep dives on specific frontal setups and the fishing that resulted from them. For the coming weeks the Quick Tip videos will be focused on some easy organization tricks and fly tying material reuse and recycling. There's also a post about dry fly fishing Maryland's Savage River and some ice fishing posts coming up. So stay tuned, and join on Patreon if you want more how-to related content, videos, and stories. I post four times a week there. 

Thank you to my Patrons; Erin, David, John, Elizabeth, Brandon, Christopher, Shawn, Mike, Sara, Franky, Geof, Luke, Noah, Justin, Sean, Tom, Mark, Jake, Chris, Oliver, oddity on Display, Sammy, and Cris & Jennifer, Courtney, Hunter, Gordon, Thomas, Trevor and Eric for making Connecticut Fly Angler possible. If you want to support this blog, look for the Patreon link at the top of the right side-bar in web version.

Another Talk & Late Winter Guiding Season

I've got another presentation coming up at the Middle Haddam Library (2 Knowles Rd. Middle Haddam CT), this one is focused on streamer fishing for trout. More specifically; it's on identifying, understanding and imitating common trout stream and lake baitfish. There is a plethora of available trout-stream based entomology information, from books to videos to articles, but substantially less well thought out baitfish information. As someone who not only studies but actively fishes for the small baitfish species the trout feed on, I've always found the general knowledge base among trout anglers of the species trout eat and how they act to be very lacking. This talk seeks to fill in some of those gaps. 

I've also got another article out in The Fisherman New England edition, March issue, titled Sight Fishing: Fresh For Success. So pick up a copy or subscribe online for that! It'll be far from the last piece of mine published there. 

As we settle into the late winter, early spring season things are looking good for a productive end to the winter salmonid season. My April is booked to the gills, mostly with carp trips, so if you're looking to get a spring trout trip with me this year you should grab a date soon. Or of course, if you want to fill in one of those carp trips as well. That fishing has proven to be one of the more unique and productive experiences I provide clients. Nobody else is doing what I'm doing in regard to small watercraft based freshwater sight fishing in this part of the country. But I'll toot the trout horn too, this has been a good winter despite a very droughty summer last year. Yes, there are some streams producing at a lackluster rate, but I've generally been pleasantly surprised. At the moment I'm offering four types of trips: broodstock salmon (Shetucket River), TMA masterclass (can include daylight mousing and winter night trips as well as the usual winter nymph and streamer methodologies I teach), stillwater streamer fishing, and of course still small streams. March is a lot more open than April will be and I'd definitely like to see some of the prime dates fill up. It's shaping up to be a busy season for me! 

Yes, trout will eat mice in broad daylight... and I can show you! 

Thank you to my Patrons; Erin, David, John, Elizabeth, Brandon, Christopher, Shawn, Mike, Sara, Franky, Geof, Luke, Noah, Justin, Sean, Tom, Mark, Jake, Chris, Oliver, and oddity on Display for making Connecticut Fly Angler possible. If you want to support this blog, look for the Patreon link at the top of the right side-bar in web version.

Night Fishing Seminar (In Person)

 I'll be presenting one of my night fishing seminars starting at 6:00pm on April 10th, at the Middle Haddam Public Library (2 Knowles Rd, Middle Haddam, CT 06456). This will be the first in person presentation I've done since the pandemic! Admission is free.

This seminar will cover the necessities for anyone looking to start or expand their skill-set night fishing trout streams. It covers gear, safety, flies, reading water, and other strategies. It'll run about an hour long. I hope to see some of you there!