I hit the Farm'y by the RR bridge from about 1:30-4 pm, there were 3 other fellas on the bank when I arrived, and no shad but reports of alewives aplenty. The water was about the same (high) level as yesterday, maybe down a couple of inches, clear, flowing, and with a surface temp of a hair under 60º F.
Before I threw my first cast, the guy next to me landed a middlin' buck with a lamprey attached to it's side. By 2 pm, he landed a nice roe. After 3 pm, another guy C&R a shad, and the alewives made a run for a good half hour. Morons. On. Damn. Near. Every. Cast. I got tired of catching alewives, so I packed it in just before 4 pm.

Terminal tackle: 1/2 oz drail over a leader I adjusted often trying to find a sweet spot: 2'-4', over almost every color and combo of willow I had in my tackle box: silver, gold, copper, and pick a color, any color or combo thereof. The damned alewives love every one; the shad, not so much...

And I shuffled off to Bissell.
On the CT River, there were about a half dozen regulars, most of them actually with their arms in a cast. Reports were that shad were being caught. And, again, as at the Farm'y earlier, a nice shad was landed before I made my first cast. The water was MUCH higher than Monday, coffee colored, choppy with a breeze blustering up from Hartford, and the current was just fair, as I had no problem hitting bottom with a 1/2 oz drail, and a 5-count; lots of snagging weeds, and bumping bottom. On my third cast I hooked what I thought was an alewife, a couple of head-shakes, and an easy reel-in. Until the water got skinny, and then it tried to run deep. SHAD! A decent buck, about 3#. It's been slow this week, as I saw only one more shad landed before I left about 5:30 pm.

Terminal tackle: 1/2 oz drail over 5' flouro leader, and a hammered silver leaf colored w/yellow paint & red reflective tape w/black dot.

I'm telling myself that I'm taking tomorrow off, due to the weather forecast. I'm still bringing my tackle to work, and my rain gear--just in case...

If you've entered the Shad Derby this weekend--GOOD LUCK, and TIGHT LINES!