Connecticut River – An Excellent Recreational Resource
By Bob Gregorski

The Connecticut River offers almost unlimited recreational opportunities. The first 20 years of my life were spent in Enfield, Connecticut. I was born a few hundred yards from the Connecticut River and got to know it and several of its tributaries well. As a young lad, I shot at targets with slingshots and BB guns. I had a DAISY Red Ryder lever action and a DAISY pump action guns. My dad, brother Mitch, outdoor buddy Stash and I fished for carp, suckers, pike, shad, trout, eels, bullheads and panfish along the east bank of the river in several locations. The river and its riparian environs was an excellent recreational resource year-round.

When I was in my early teens, I did my target shooting and hunting with a .22 rifle and 410 shotgun. Dad, Mitch and I spent many hours hunting along Connecticut River canal in Suffield and Windsor Locks on the west side of the river. The areas had excellent habitat for ducks, geese, pheasants, rabbits, squirrels and grouse. The canal area was an excellent location to catch American shad during their spring migration. I fished mostly on the east banks of the river at/near the Enfield Dam.

In June, some of us young, ardent shad anglers would spend time wading the river near the dam on the east side pulling up hundreds of lures (beads, sinkers, spoons, flies and bare hooks) that were lodged beneath rocks. At that time of year, the river ran low and clear. We wore old sneakers to protect our feet from hooks, a shoulder pack to hold our findings and a sharp knife with which to cut the “lures” free. Occasionally, we would have a large sturgeon, carp or pike swim between our legs and find fishing rods, reels and nets. Those were bonuses!
June and July were excellent times to fish for carp at the dam. A piece of partially boiled potato or several kernels of sweet corn laced on a hook was devoured by carp the ranged from 5 to 25 pounds. Once hooked, they would break water and put up a good fight in the river current. Often there were spectators who would take the carp home for dinner. I practiced Catch & Release if there were no takers. Through out my high school years, I fished the river for shad in the spring, for bullheads and eels in the summer and hunted along the river in fall and winter.

Now the river and its coves from Enfield to Old Saybrook have excellent fisheries for carp, striped bass, pike, catfish (channels, whites and bullheads), eels, sunfish, walleye, white perch, yellow perch, calico, smallmouth and largemouth bass. The state record white catfish (12.75 lbs.) and American shad (9.33 lbs.) were caught in the river. The trophy size fish that are caught each year include: striped bass over 25 pounds, bluefish over 15 pounds, northern pike over 12 pounds, common carp over 10 pounds, channel catfish over 10 pounds and largemouth bass over 8 pounds.

There are reference books about when and where to fish the river, its coves and tributaries. In recent years, BASS tournaments have been held on the river. Fishing guide services are available. For at least the last 20 years, I have fished the river and some of its coves and tributaries for striped bass, shad, bluefish, pike, black bass and sunfish. And, plan to continue as long as possible.

Boating, kayaking, canoeing and camping are popular spring, summer and fall sports on the river. Bird watchers observe bald eagles from December through March, osprey in the spring and summer, many species of waterfowl year round. “The Connecticut River is an extraordinary resource. It provides water for drinking, irrigation and industry. It generates power and is a natural route of transportation. It provides us with food and has potential for providing much more. And the river offers almost unlimited recreational opportunities.” That is quoted from the preface of The Complete Boating Guide to the Connecticut River. The guide covers Connecticut in five sections starting at Enfield and ending at Old Saybrook. Excellent information is given about Boating Facilities and Services, places to see and references to detailed maps and charts. “The Complete Boating Guide to the Connecticut River” is an excellent resource the covers New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut. The Connecticut Boater’s Guide 2008 is an excellent boating resource. It’s free from the DEP.

Choice of colors Forest green or Safari tan.

Can be purchased at monthly meeting

Our Connecticut Trout Unlimited council has launched a website aimed at helping bring our chapters together statewide. The web site has a large amount of information and links to each chapter in the state. Take a look, it is well worth it.

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