Utah Fishing & Outdoors Report

(Updated 10-30-06)

Fall weather has cooled air temperatures, but fishing is still hot at many Utah waters. Fish are feeding aggressively because they know the lean days of winter are just around the corner.

The famous waters, like the Provo River, are still attracting good numbers of fishers but many waters are all but deserted because casual anglers have turned their attention to other pursuits. The result is great fishing for those hardy enough to brave the cooler temperatures.

Brown trout will be spawning in streams during the next few weeks. If you pay attention and move softly you will see them in shallow areas. They fan a circular redd (nest) into the gravel, deposit eggs and then stick around to guard the nest.

Novice anglers often try to catch these spawning fish. That's a bad idea for a couple reasons. First, the fish don't usually eat when engaged in the spawning routine. More importantly, if you stress, kill or drive away the fish guarding nests, the young may not survive.

Anglers need to take care not to wade through the redds. A simple misstep could completely destroy the nest. Many of our brown trout streams rely on natural reproduction. Anglers who interfere with spawning may inadvertently damage the resource they love.

Fish that are not spawning often wait below nests and gobble up eggs that float by. These opportunistic fish are fair game. Look for them on the edge of the current, particularly near structure or other hiding areas. Get them using glo bugs and other egg imitations, along with streamers and standard nymphs.

The Provo, Green, Weber, Ogden and Blacksmith offer some of our better brown trout action this time of year. Other, smaller streams can also be very good. Try the Price River, Currant Creek, Strawberry River, Huntington Creek, Salina Creek, the stream below Joes Valley Reservoir, and others.

Lake trout are now completing their spawn and migrating uplake at Flaming Gorge. Some of the biggest lake trout of the year are caught during early November. The Lucern area is usually a hot spot. (Special regulations apply there so check the proclamation.) Lake trout can also be caught at Fish Lake and Bear Lake.

Rainbow and cutthroat trout are also aggressive and can be caught readily in most of our mountain reservoirs. Strawberry typically offers very good fishing until ice and snow block access. Scofield, Otter Creek, Fish Lake, Bear Lake and many other waters are also good.

Walleye fishing is often very good on stormy fall afternoons. Walleye are cool-water fish that stay active and feed aggressively, even after the water freezes. If wind is piling up waves against shore, look for feeding fish along that shoreline. Trolling can be effective now, but so can jigging.
The tiger muskie at Pineview and the wipers in Willard Bay also bite well during the fall. Most fish are taken by boaters trolling or casting minnow-imitating lures.

Bass action is winding down in northern Utah but is still good at Lake Powell, Quail Lake and Sand Hollow Reservoir.

Many other waters also provide good fishing. For hints on which waters are fishing well, watch the DWR reports and the Utah postings on Big Fish Tackle.

- Dave Webb