New Hampshire · Mountain freestone

The Saco

White Mountains water — a cold, clear freestone through the heart of the Whites, best up high where the trout are.

The Saco pours out of Crawford Notch and runs clear and cold through the White Mountains before it broadens and warms downstream. The trout fishing lives in the upper river and its tributaries — pocket water, plunge pools, and freestone runs holding wild and stocked brookies and rainbows. It's mountain fishing: read the pockets, keep a low profile, and fish where the water stays cold.

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The water

About The Saco

The Saco pours out of Crawford Notch and runs clear and cold through the White Mountains before it broadens and warms downstream. The trout fishing lives in the upper river and its tributaries — pocket water, plunge pools, and freestone runs holding wild and stocked brookies and rainbows. It's mountain fishing: read the pockets, keep a low profile, and fish where the water stays cold.

Wild brook trout in the mountain water, stocked rainbows and brookies in the main river; the upper river and tribs fish best. General New Hampshire trout regulations apply on the main river; a New Hampshire license is required. The upper river and tributaries fish best in summer — confirm current NH Fish and Game regulations.

A cold mountain river, it holds its temperature up high through the summer, but the clear water and tight pocket quarters reward a low, careful approach. 9 ft to 4X–5X for pocket-water dries and dry-droppers. Barbless, wet hands, quick release — and fish the cold water, not the warm lower river, in summer.

Regulations & Stamp

General New Hampshire trout regulations apply on the main river; a New Hampshire license is required. The upper river and tributaries fish best in summer — confirm current NH Fish and Game regulations.

Crawford Notch to Conway

Fishing spots — compiled from guide reports & r/flyfishing (some locations approximate)

Crawford NotchThe Saco's cold headwaters spilling out of Crawford Notch — small, clear pocket water. Compiled from guide reports & r/flyfishing.Get directions
BartlettFreestone runs and pools around Bartlett; West Side Road and Route 302 parallel the river. Compiled from guide reports & r/flyfishing.Get directions
Humphrey's LedgeA classic wade access on West Side Road below the ledges. Compiled from guide reports & r/flyfishing.Get directions
FFO Section, ConwayThe fly-fishing-only water from Lucy Brook to Artist Falls Brook — the Saco's most-cited trout stretch, big browns and Gray Drakes. Compiled from guide reports & r/flyfishing.Get directions
Conway Covered BridgeWade access at the Conway covered bridge; riffles and pools through the valley. Compiled from guide reports & r/flyfishing.Get directions

This week on the water

River Report

The current read on the water, with live flow and water temperature from the USGS gauge that frames the fishery, over the historical range for the date.

River Report

September 25, 2026

Saco is fishing well for September — flows are near normal and the bugs are on schedule.

Saco is reading about 138 cfs at the Conway, NH gauge this week — within the typical range for the date. That's about as good as the reading gets for the date — the fish are where they should be and willing to move for a well-presented fly. As a cold mountain river it holds its temperature up high through the summer, but the clear water and tight quarters reward a low, careful approach.

September on the water: Cooling water and aggressive brookies before the spawn; attractors and small streamers. Right now that means Royal Wulff, Elk Hair Caddis, Woolly Bugger, and Prince Nymph — carry a couple of sizes of each and let what's actually on the water pick the fly.

The read: It's a good week to be out — mornings and evenings will fish best as the light comes off the water. Water temperature matters more than the calendar in September — if it climbs into the high 60s, give the trout a rest and come back when it cools. Always confirm the current NH Fish and Game regulations before you go.

Compiled from the USGS gauge at Conway, NH and regional hatch timing — a read on the water, not a substitute for your own eyes on it.

— Homewater Fly Co.

Conditions & Access

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The box for this water

The Saco Box

The proven patterns for the Saco, curated into one box — the confidence flies and the ones that match this water's hatches, hand-tied and ready to fish in a Day Tripper fly box. Buy the box and save versus picking them one at a time.

$65.95$71.687 patterns · in a Day Tripper fly box

Save $5.73 vs. buying à la carte

Curated for the Saco. Hand-tied flies, shipped direct.

What's in the box

StimulatorSize 10 · 3-packHigh-floating attractor for pocket water.
Elk Hair CaddisSize 14 · 3-packThe searching summer dry — riffles and pocket water.
Pheasant TailSize 10 · 3-packThe year-round confidence nymph.
Hare's EarSize 16 · 3-packThe buggy all-purpose searching nymph.
Parachute AdamsSize 14 · 3-packThe everywhere mayfly dry.
Prince NymphSize 16 · 3-packA flashy attractor nymph for faster water.
Royal WulffSize 14 · 3-packA visible, buggy attractor for broken water.
Day Tripper Trout Fly Box The box Your flies arrive ready to fish, in a real fly box.

Season & hatches

The Saco, month by month

A month-by-month hatch calendar for this water — the bugs that matter and the flies that match them. Sizes are typical ranges; go smaller in clear, low water.

Month	What's hatching / conditions	Go-to flies
January	High and cold, mostly locked up — a deep-winter break.	Midge, small nymphs
February	Still winter in the mountains; wait for the thaw.	Midge, Pheasant Tail
March	Snowmelt begins; high, cold water with early stones on warm days.	small stonefly, Pheasant Tail, BWO
April	Runoff — fish the edges as it drops; early caddis and stones.	Elk Hair Caddis, Stonefly, Hare's Ear
May	Water dropping and clearing; caddis and the first mayflies in the pockets.	Elk Hair Caddis, March Brown, Prince Nymph
June	Prime pocket-water dry fishing — caddis, stones, and eager brookies.	Stimulator, Elk Hair Caddis, Prince Nymph, Royal Wulff
July	Cold mountain water and willing fish — attractors and terrestrials.	Stimulator, Royal Wulff, Ant, Elk Hair Caddis
August	Low and clear up high; attractors, hoppers, and beetles in the pockets.	Stimulator, Hopper, Foam Beetle, Elk Hair Caddis
September This month	Cooling water and aggressive brookies before the spawn; attractors and small streamers.	Royal Wulff, Elk Hair Caddis, Woolly Bugger, Prince Nymph
October	Brook trout in fall color; attractors and swung small streamers.	Elk Hair Caddis, Woolly Bugger, Pheasant Tail, BWO
November	Cold and quieting; nymph the deeper pockets on mild days.	Pheasant Tail, Prince Nymph, Midge
December	Winter in the highlands — mostly done until spring.	Midge, small nymphs

Hatch timing shifts with the season and the weather — watch the water, not the calendar. Compiled from regional hatch data and local reports.

Know the fishery

Wild or stocked

Wild brook trout in the mountain water, stocked rainbows and brookies in the main river; the upper river and tribs fish best.
The rig

9 ft to 4X–5X for pocket-water dries and dry-droppers.
Release

Barbless, wet hands, quick release — and fish the cold water, not the warm lower river, in summer.

The flies

Flies That Fish Here

The flies we'd carry for the Battenkill right now — one pattern per card, pick your hook size.