CTFishTalk.com: Farmington River - Farmington 04/14 - Connecticut River Reports ( CT River Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Okay, yes, I know, I know, the Farmington River is closed to fishing from the Route 177 bridge in Unionville to the Rainbow Dam. And, no, I never wet a line in the river. I just didn't want to waste the rest of a beautiful day and decided to check out the quarry pond that's across the river from Tunxis Mead Park. I've been dying to try out my new Feel Free Camel Kayak Trolley, anyway, so I rolled El Habañero down the trail to the river:

The trolley worked great (i.e., Breakneck Pond, here I come!). After I stowed it in El Habañero's rear bulkhead through the small hatch, I launched into the river. The water level is really low. There was a crew team practicing upriver from where I launched, on the wider part of the river. I paddled across the river to the little channel that leads from the river to the pond and WHOA!, I saw that it's gone! Shocked

I guess that Dunning's Sand & Gravel didn't want anyone to paddle into the quarry pond, anymore. Although I understand that it's Dunning's' prerogative to keep people out of the pond, I can't help but regret the loss of such a nice local place to paddle and fish. Crying or Very sad

I wonder whether a permit was required to dam up the pond and separate it from the river. And, if so, I wonder whether Dunning's had one. Hmmm. . . if only I knew someone who knew someone who worked in the DEEP's dam division. Wink

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SeaDog1 · Joined: 21 Dec 2009 Posts: 2629

Hi Phil,

PM me with all the details you can + Exact location or nearest landmarks.
Any map you have of the area would also be helpful.
I'll call my contact at DEEP to see what's up!

SeaDog1

Danfish · Joined: 11 Apr 2012 Posts: 2

If you go further up river from there you can put your kayak or boat in the other pond dunning owns, its right near where the river opens wide, not sure if it's legal but I used to live on new Britain ave and fish it all the time.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

If you have to portage, you might be trespassing on private property. The land surrounding the ponds doesn't appear to be posted "No Trespassing", but neither is my yard and I don't want people dragging their boats through it. Wink

I'd like to give Dunning's the same consideration that I expect from the public. I'd confirm the public access before heading back there.
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CT_BASSman · Joined: 23 May 2011 Posts: 349

Was this the spot that you showed me last year when I met you up there Phil?

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Yeap.
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CT_BASSman · Joined: 23 May 2011 Posts: 349

Wow that sucks, that was a pretty damn good spot!

slim2043 · Joined: 11 Apr 2011 Posts: 446 Location: Plainville CT

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CTfirefighter · Joined: 17 Apr 2011 Posts: 41

i,m sure you could check into it but i,m also pretty
sure a company like Dunnings isnt about to throw a dam up without
the proper permits

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Yeap, CTfirefighter, I was just needling Dunning's a little bit. Wink

It can and should be able to do what it wants with its property, even if it's disappointing to ME. Laughing

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Sandman1917 · Joined: 25 Jul 2012 Posts: 1

To all of you reading this post regarding the repair of the spillway on the Dunning site. I am the president of Dunning Sand & Gravel and I take a lot of pride on what we do and do it responsibly. The original Dyke and spillway was constructed over ten years ago at the request of DEP in order to minimize the silt transfer from out mining operation to the Farmington River. They did however want a spillway at the end so that it would serve as conpensatory storage during high water events giving the water a controlled location to enter and exit. That spillway was heavily damaged in the past year from heavy water flows and we were not able to do the repairs until this spring when the water levels were at their lowest. I was not trying to limit recreational access, rather, we were trying to keep the water quality in the Farmington river at its best. If someone is interested in gaining access to fish during off peak times please feel free to contact me. I am a fan of recreational water sports as well as fishing. Our family has always been involved in conservation including the Donation of Dunning Lake at Winding Trails as well as the below cost sale of 8 Acres of Land sold to the Lake Guarda Lake association in Burlington.

Sincerely,
Benjamin Dunning

DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

Thanks for the background info on this project. You have a nice place to fish there! I'm glad to hear you are open to allowing access during off peak times. I may have to take you up on that offer in the near future.

Derek

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Mr. Dunning

It was not my intention to disparage you or your company in any way, or cause any offense. I hope that came through in what I wrote. Thank you for the information regarding the dam. It was nice to hear from a landowner for once. I really appreciate it.

Philip Co
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MarkO · Joined: 12 Nov 2007 Posts: 330

Wow, a rare bird in this day and age. Thank you for granting access to people who enjoy the outdoors!

Rookie · Joined: 08 May 2007 Posts: 487 Location: Milford Ct

2 years since i found that place, which is when it was on fire, but since then its gone to really bad fishing. I suspect its because when i found it, the dam was broken and open to the river.

I even got the skunk there last week, and today...... one fish. Ended up going to the other one and caught a few.

Anyone find similar results?
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