Connecticut Fishing Report | December 18-30, 2014

Cod and black sea bass pick up steam around Block Island, while giant brown trout are catching a lot of angling attention across Connecticut.

Connecticut Fishing Report

Q, at Rivers End in Old Saybrook, reported that things have been quiet for the most part, as the recent flooding of the Connecticut River has slowed down the usual December bass fishing in the lower stretches. Over in the Housatonic anglers are still finding large concentrations of schoolie striped bass throughout the river, and are finding success with small swimming plugs and soft plastics on light jigs.

Andrew, at Fishin Factory 3 in Middletown, also reported that things have been quiet due to the condition of the Connecticut River, but over the past few days the river is starting to settle back down to fishable levels. This past weekend saw some decent northern pike taken from the marinas and coves from Middletown to Hartford, and that bite will continue to pick up as the water cleans up. The Salmon River has gotten back to fishable levels and anglers are reporting good catches of fresh stockies and larger holdovers. The Connecticut DEEP has started its winter stocking of Seeforellen brown trout, and Andrew is starting to hear a lot of buzz about anglers targeting these monsters in Black Pond. The state has also stocked these European strain trout into Cedar Lake in Chester and Highland Lake in Winsted, and a few specimens actually exceeded the 15-pound mark at stocking time.

Torrey, at Upcountry Sportfishing in Pine Meadow, reported that the wind over the past few days has made it tough for dry fly guys, but the Farmington flow is medium, clear and fishable. Winter Caddis (sz 20-24) is still a top producer for the morning hours, with midges (22-28) producing well in the afternoon. Nymphs, have been the most consistent producer throughout the entirety of the day, and are producing the biggest trout. Decent weather is forecasted for the weekend and the trout should be biting, just remember to keep a slow retrieve as water temps have hit a low mark.

At Fisherman’s World in Norwalk, Rich reports that herring fishing has been pretty good on the western end of the sound. Most of the marinas and tidal rivers are holding some fish, and the Norwalk Harbor has been as good of a spot as any. The Housatonic River striped bass fishery is still going strong, with reports of a few large concentrations of bass around the Shelton area. 99% of these fish appear to be well short of keeper size, but numbers are excellent and finding a few larger fish isn’t out of the question. The Norwalk River and the local TMA’s are recently stocked and producing well for both fly and bait fishermen; while the Saugatuck River will remain open until the end of the month and is producing good numbers of bass, trout and walleye.

Fishing Forecast

We are a few weeks behind last year’s ice fishing schedule, but temperatures are forecast to take a big drop around the new year so it shouldn’t be long now. In the meantime, the CT DEEP continues to produce great opportunities for trout anglers across CT. The seeforellen strain trout will put up a fight unparalleled to just about any inland species, and with them being freshly stocked across CT, this will be a great weekend to go find some.