Fly Fishing a Blue Line for WILD Brookies 

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Thanks so much for watching! And I agree, there’s something truly special about these wild, little jewels. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy chasing big browns on the Farmington, too, but these small streams pull me back again and again.

I ended up getting a TFO Signature II 3wt, which comes in at 7’ 6”. I’ve enjoyed it thus far. The next two vids that will be coming out were recorded back in December with that new 3wt.

Ah well, don’t flatter me too much now.😂 Really though, thanks for the kind words. As far as targeting fish in these small streams, there’s definitely a learning curve, but I think most fly anglers can get the hang of small stream brookie fishing in a single season and have a pretty solid foundation. And it’s so damn fun that an angler can’t help but get sucked into it more and more. From there, we learn a little bit more every time we’re on the water.

That’s a Bassdash vest, available pretty damn cheap from Amazon. I think it was $30 or $40; not American-made at that price point, of course. Took me a long, long time to retire my more traditional vest, but nylon vests are 1) more adjustable, 2) a bit less stuffy when it’s hot, and 3) they don’t absorb nearly as much water in the case that you find yourself out in the rain while fishing, and they also dry out far quicker. More traditional fabric vests absorb rain FAST and feel like they weigh a ton in no time… then they take forever dry. The Bassdash has worked pretty damn well for me over the last year, roughly. I like it. And at its price, it’s a great value. All things considered, it gets a 4/5 from me. My complaints are minor, really. The smaller pockets on the far right and left sides (just above the hips) aren’t very useful, especially with how the zippers are configured. It’s like they’re engineered to dump stuff out accidentally. I’ve also found that the overall configuration makes it challenging to find a truly good spot to tether my tippet spool holder. Either it hangs too low and gets tangled in my line occasionally, or it hangs high (preferred) but obstructs access to one of the other zippers. But again, these are small complaints given the great overall value That said, now that I’ve fully embraced nylon vests, I’m thinking of moving to the Fishpond Gore Range Tech Pack this upcoming spring. Very similar overall, but I suspect slightly more thought out pocket placement. (I should note, since folks are sometimes skeptical about this stuff, that neither of the companies mentioned know I exist, much less sponsor me haha.)

Truly, I could probably write an entire essay on this topic. And maybe at some point I’ll make a video where I just discuss how I rig dry-droppers and the thought process behind it. I’ve tried to explain this all in comments on past videos, and it ends up getting way, way too long. The short answer is that I’m choosing a dropper tippet length that I believe will get my nymph in roughly the lower third of the water column in the majority of the drifts I’ll fish on the water I’m fishing that day. Too much longer, and my nymph is dragging or snagging on the bottom too often. Too much shorter than that, and I’m missing fish that either aren’t looking up or are otherwise unwilling to move vertically much from their lie. Average water depth, average water speed and nymph size/weight all factor into the right tippet length beneath the dry to achieve that depth. And, of course, I’m always thinking in averages with these things. Small streams are very dynamic. There will be shallow riffles, deeper pools, runs of intermediate depth… there will be fast flowing riffles and slow flowing pools. The aim is just to try and strike the best compromise that will maximize the rig’s versatility in the majority of that water. If I’m fishing a small stream with an average depth of maybe 10” which isn’t flowing at a particularly fast clip, a 12”-14” tippet beneath my dry may work perfect. If the average depth is 12” and the stream is flowing at a good clip, 24” may fit the bill.

Generally, I always use a net. In my experience, attempting to release the fish without a net too often ends up being a sloppy exercise in which the fish is flailing at the end of the line while the angler attempts to pop the hook free, which sometimes happens quickly and other times is more involved than it might seem (even with barbless). It all depends on exactly how the fish is hooked, really, which is unpredictable. In contrast, a net allows me get full control of the fish immediately after the fight concludes, which is better overall, in my opinion. There are those that think that netting a fish is injurious to it somehow, which might be the case if you’re using an old string-mesh type net (which can strip the slime coat) or if it’s being held up in the air for extended periods in the net. Outside of those scenarios, though, I don’t really see a case to be made against nets, and in fact, they’re often the more controlled way to unhook and release a fish.

Wild trout streams are all over the place, honestly. Oftentimes, they’re hidden in plain sight: the little brook that passes through a culvert under a random backroad… the stream that runs in a shallow gorge through a neighborhood. It really comes down to just giving them a go and seeing what you find. At least one great way to get a feel for our wild trout streams is to start by fishing some of Connecticut’s designated Wild Trout Management Areas (WTMAs). These are easy to find in the state guide and have verified wild trout populations. Those waters will give you an idea of how ordinary wild trout streams can look and hep build confidence and enthusiasm to prospect new, unlisted streams.