Skip to content
Home » Your Streams & Waters » Fly Fishing On The Hoosic River In Massachusetts

Fly Fishing On The Hoosic River In Massachusetts

Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.

We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.

Type of Stream
Freestone/Tailwater

Species
Brown Trout (stocked with holdovers)
Rainbow (stocked with holdovers)

Size
Medium

Location
Western Massachusetts

Nearest Towns
Chester Harbor
North Adams

Season
Year-round

Access:
Good

USGS Stream Flow Data:
Near Adams
Near Williamsontown


Non-Resident License
State of Massachusetts

Fishing License Article – Everything you need to know: Click Here

Fishing License Article – Everything you need to know: Click Here

Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 & 12 ft., 5 or 6X, Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X

Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X

Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Superb Five or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.

Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:

Email us  at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.



Copyright 2013 James Marsh





Hoosic River Fishing Report – 11/10/24
The stream is flowing well below a normal level and the water is clear. Good hatches continue to take place.

Stream Conditions: Rate: 15.5 cfs
Level: 5.65 ft
Afternoon Water Temperature: 60
Clarity: clear
USGS Real-Time Stream Flow Data Near Adams

Rate: 52.9 ft. Ht: 5.28 ft
Afternoon Water Temperature: 60
Clarity: clear

Stream Flow Data Near Williamsontown (data abv)

7 Day Weather Forecast:

NORTH ADAMS WEATHER

Recommended Trout Flies:

Brown Sculpin and White Belly Sculpin and Articulated streamers, size 6/4
Black Matuka and Olive Matuka Sculpin, size 4/6
Blue-winged Olives: size 16, 18 nymph, emergers, duns and spinners
Aquatic Worms, size 12, pink, red, and others
Midges: Cream and Red (Blood) midges sizes 20/22, larva, pupa and adult. Our larva and pupa midge flies, pre-rigged in tandem, are very popular here. You can fish them under a strike indicator keeping the larva fly near the bottom. https://perfectflystore.com/product/pre-rigged-tandem-midge-larva-pupa-tippet

Green Sedge Caddis, size 16/14, larva, pupa and adults

Gray Drakes, 10/12, nymphs and spinners

Great Autumn Brown Sedge, size 10, pupa and adults

Perfect Flies are designed and tied to to imitate and behave like the natural foods the trout rely on to survive as much as possible. The more your fly looks like and moves through and on the surface of the water like the real things, the higher your odds of success.

Fly Fishing The Hoosic River Massachusetts: The main part of the Hoosic River comes from flood control areas in the town of North Adams. The Hoosic river is a tributary of the Hudson River and flows into it in New York.The area of North Adams is a highly developed area that is between Adams and Williamstown. State road #2 parallels the river. The opposite side of the river is followed closely by Massachusetts Avenue. The Ashton Avenue Bridge provides access for anglers fly fishing the Hoosic River along this main stretch of water.The river is stocked by the state with both rainbows and brown trout. The main stem of the river has a good population of stream-born or wild brown trout. The river originates from two separate sources – the South Branch and North Branch. The main stem has a reputation of being polluted and this cuts down on the fishing, even though it is catch and release.The South Branch is easily accessed. It originates in Lanesboro and flows into Cheshire Reservoir in Cheshire. Its tailwater flows through Adams. The North Branch is a freestone stream that originates in Clarksburg and flows together with the South Branch at North Adams. The best part of the South Branch to fish is the water below Chester Reservoir. You can fish from an old railroad bed that follows the river up and downstream from the Church Street Bridge in Chestire. There are some riffles and pools but much of the water is smooth and flows over a relatively flat area. It changes gradually to riffles, runs and pools when it gets near Cheshire Harbor. The North Branch flows from Vermont into Massachusetts. State road #8 follows along the stream. From Williamstown downstream, the river is larger. Access is available at the Bridges Pond Fish and Wildlife Access Area. This river appears to be far from a trout stream in many places but it has great potential if the problems with the overall quality of the area could be solved. Fly fishing the Hoosic River could be greatly improved.The Hoosic is a river with a huge diversity of water types, insects and flows. The fishing methods, techniques and strategies varies greatly depending on where you are fishing the river. The best way to approach it is with an open mind and remaining very flexible. This river is a tailwater for certain. It’s a series of five dams in located in the state of Massachusetts that control the flow of water. The river actually starts at Haramon Reservoir in Vermont, flows through a section of Massachusetts and eventually into the Connecticut River. There are two “catch and release” areas that are generally the best areas to fish. Although the river is heavily stocked by the state, there are some wild brown and brook trout to be found in its waters. The holdover fish can run rather large. Browns are occasionally caught over twenty inches long. Rainbows probably average around twelve inches but can get as large as 18 inches and even larger.