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Northeast Fishing Report 5/29/26
Hello Compleat Angler Friends! Memorial Day left us wet, cold, and miserable. Thankfully, spring is back this week, and along with it, the bite. Fishing in the Sound suffered from the temperature slump, pushing striped bass deep to escape the gloom. As things warm up, they should start moving back close to shore. There is no shortage of bait around, so it's just about being in the right place at the right time (and tide.) Sadly, there has been a shortage of juvenile striped bass mixed in with the larger fish, which doesn’t bode well for this year’s recruitment. Hopefully we will see increased schoolies numbers as the season trickles on, but for right now, we only have big fish to play with.
Trout fishing was buoyed by the change in weather, with more water and cooler temperatures helping to kick off some hatches and spread out wild fish.
Read on for more…
Connecticut
Local Rivers
Flows are down from where they were earlier this week in our local freestones, with the Saugatuck at 26.8 CFS, which is a bit closer to average from where things were earlier in the month. Caddis and BWO’s are now the predominant hatch. Stocked and wild trout are consistently rising to afternoon hatches, and sizes #14-#18 BWO patterns have been the ticket for rising browns and brook trout. I think the increased water levels have fired up our rivers, so as long as you can get to a spot without too many people (a tall order, I know), you should be able to scare up a trout.
Dry Fly Hatches:
Nymphs:
General Mayfly Attractor 14-18
Streamers:
Krystal Bugger (Black, Chartreuse, Brown, Olive, White, Burnt Orange) 6-12
Naugatuck River
The Naugatuck has dropped considerably down to 226 CFS. The East Branch, Mid Sections, and Lower Section of the Naugatuck have been stocked in the last month. With warmer weather this week as well as the recent rain, streamers and dry flies should start to pull in some nice fish. Try targeting pools and pocket water along the banks, as well as deeper water at the end of riffles or shallower runs.
Farmington River
Hatches and water conditions are changing. Caddis have been consistent, and anglers are still seeing Tan Caddis #16-18 in the mornings through about early afternoon. They don’t always rise, but subsurface with pupa type patterns will catch you fish. There are also small black Caddis in #20-22, most people don’t notice them because they are hard to see. Some #10-12 March Browns in the afternoons/eves, not a lot, one here/one there kinda deal. Starting to see an evening Sulfur hatch, not heavy, but fishable. #16’s (Invaria Sulfur), at least as far upstream as Church Pool, and likely above that. It’s more developed/heavier in Canton and downstream. Look for #20-22 Blue Winged Olives (BWO’s) on cloudy afternoons. Even where they are not hatching, Sulfur nymphs can be effective. Overall, the last couple hours of daylight is your best chance for risers, but if you move around and look closely, you can find a few risers. Stay stuck in one pool with a “dry fly or die” mentality and it could be a long day if you aren’t mobile.
Vitreus are most active on cooler, overcast, and even wet days, and tend to hatch between late afternoon and evening. They are a fast water bug, close cousin to the Quill Gordon. The winged dun emerges at the stream bottom from the nymphal shuck, and then swims to the surface fully winged. Females have a pinkish-orange cast to their abdomens due to eggs, males are more of a dull yellow, kinda like a bigger Sulfur. March Browns are also a fast water bug, they tend to hatch one here, one there, sporadically between late morning and evening, with spinner falls at dusk. Caddis are most active from about mid morning through early/mid afternoon, and come back later in the day to egg-lay over faster water in the eves. FYI, hatch times in Riverton in the 2 miles right below the dam can vary considerably from “normal” due to the abnormally cold water.
Trout do not always rise to hatches, and this seems to surprise some experienced anglers, which amuses me because it’s always been the case on every river I’ve fished in my life. Be prepared to go subsurface with nymphs & pupa. I’ve caught many thousands of trout over the years nymphing Caddis pupa in the fast water from May to October, even November. Caddis pupa are like candy to big trout. Wet flies & soft hackles are also good options if you don’t want to nymph. And don’t rule out streamers, especially early & late in the day, and on rainy days and/or during high or off-color water.
Water levels are lower than normal for late May, looking more like July conditions at just under 200cfs total flow- I’d call this medium-low. Riverton is 95cfs below the dam (normal would be 246cfs), and the Still River is adding in 103cfs (normal would be 114cfs) and dropping a little below the Rt 20 bridge (Hitchcock/Self-Storage). Normal total flow for today’s date would be 360cfs. The state (DEEP) is being conservative with asking for additional water from the dam due to lower than normal inflow into the reservoir, and fear of protracted droughts like we had the last 2 years in the summer & fall. We are about normal for total rainfall in 2026 in our area, but we finished 2025 in a 6-8” deficit, and I don’t think the water table ever fully recovered. Pray for consistent rain this summer, we need it. 200cfs makes the river very wadeable, and when you have bugs on the water it increases your chances of rising fish. Keep your leaders longer (12” plus), and use long tippets(3-6+ feet) in the 5x-7x range, depending upon dry fly size. This will both help prevent spooking the trout, as well as give a longer & better drag-free float.
Unionville USGS gauge is reading a low 321cfs, normal/median flow would be 531cfs. Riverton water temp was 45 degrees at 8am this morning, it peaked at 51.5 yesterday.
Dry Fly Hatches:
Nymphs:
General Mayfly Attractor 14-18
Streamers:
Krystal Bugger (Black, Brown, Olive, White, Burnt Orange) 6-12
Larger Articulated Streamers on a sinking/sink tip line
Housatonic River
The Housatonic River at Falls Village is reading 526 CFS. March Browns, Cahills and Sulfurs have been getting hammered by big holdovers in the river. They are eagerly taking dries most days. Big holdover Rainbows and Browns have been taking flies throughout the river, and the cooler weather definitely fired up the bite, especially now that there is some more water in the river. Streamers will certainly start to be more effective with higher flows after the wet spell this weekend, so keep a variety of offerings in the bag just in case.
Dry Fly Hatches:
Nymphs:
General Mayfly Attractor 14-18
Streamers:
Krystal Bugger (Black, Brown, Olive, White, Burnt Orange) 6-12
Larger Articulated Streamers on a sinking/sink tip line
New York
Salmon River
No report for this week. Low activity and no reported catches.
Catskills
We had sun this morning but should see a few more clouds as the day goes on. Caddis are still a good bet midday and into the evening. March Browns, Gray Fox, Cahills, Green Drakes, and Sulphurs. Nymphing has been the best bet during the mid afternoon sun but blind casting the bigger bugs could pay off. Dry dropper rigs can also be effective this time of year. The release from Cannonsville is 450 CFS. There is another chance of a stray shower today but total rainfall should be negligible. Yesterday’s rain shower was very brief and soaked into the ground.
Today will be 73 degrees and partly cloudy in the morning with increasing clouds in the afternoon. Wind will be 10 – 15 mph from the Northwest.
CT Saltwater
With last week’s bad weather in the rearview mirror, the bite should hopefully improve in the Sound as the water temps rise. Despite the tougher conditions, anglers are still making things happen, even if they need to get creative. We have had a fair amount of customers come into the shop looking for sinking line and the “biggest flies you carry”. A majority of the fish are hanging in 20-25 feet of water, but they should start coming closer to shore as we pass the upcoming full moon. Larger fish are scattered throughout the Western and Eastern Sound, but we still have yet to see a good push of schoolies. While having bigger, better fish around is fun, don’t be fooled. This doesn’t bode well for the recruitment numbers coming out of the Hudson and Chesapeake. While the bulk of the migration is nowhere near over, it is not a good sign that we have yet to see younger fish in the mix. Hopefully that changes in the next few months.