Fly fishing in Utah

The rivers, the hatches, and the live flows — updated every 2 hours — plus the state’s fly shops and guides.

Utah is a tailwater state with a freestone heart. The Green below Flaming Gorge and the Provo below Jordanelle are two of the most productive trout rivers in the West and fish twelve months a year on dam-controlled flows; the Weber, the Logan, the Ogden, and the upper Provo are classic freestones that blow out in May and fish beautifully from late June through October. Strawberry, Scofield, and a few hundred high lakes in the Uintas and on Boulder Mountain make the stillwater as good as the rivers. Flow is the variable that matters most, and every river below shows its live flow against the seasonal median — the single best predictor of whether a freestone is wadeable and clear.

The rivers, live

WaterRight nowFlow / levelWater tempStockedSpecies
Green River (below Flaming Gorge)Blue Ribbon · river, Daggett Co.Prime2,280 cfs50°Fstocked 3w agobrown trout, rainbow trout, cutthroat trout
Middle Provo RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Wasatch Co.Prime151 cfs54°F—brown trout, rainbow trout, mountain whitefish
Lower Provo RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Utah Co.Good77 cfs——brown trout, rainbow trout, mountain whitefish
Lower Weber River · river, Weber Co.Good85 cfs—stocked 3mo agobrown trout, mountain whitefish, cutthroat trout, …
Upper Weber RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Summit Co.Good113 cfs—stocked 2mo agobrown trout, mountain whitefish, cutthroat trout
Logan RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Cache Co.Good92 cfs—stocked 6w agobrown trout, cutthroat trout, mountain whitefish
Upper Provo River · river, Summit Co.Good100 cfs—stocked 3mo agobrown trout, rainbow trout, brook trout, …
Strawberry RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Duchesne Co.Good72 cfs—stocked 4mo agobrown trout, cutthroat trout
Currant Creek · creek, Wasatch Co.Good36 cfs—stocked 4mo agocutthroat trout, brown trout
Huntington Creek · creek, Emery Co.Fairno gauge—stocked 24mo agocutthroat trout
Ogden River · river, Weber Co.Good35 cfs—stocked 4mo agobrown trout, rainbow trout
Blacksmith Fork River · river, Cache Co.Good52 cfs—stocked 4mo agobrown trout, cutthroat trout
Diamond Fork Creek · creek, Utah Co.Fairno gauge—stocked 4mo agocutthroat trout
Fremont RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Wayne Co.Warning56 cfs—stocked 6mo agobrown trout, rainbow trout
East Fork Sevier RiverBlue Ribbon · river, Piute Co.Good14 cfs——brown trout, rainbow trout, cutthroat trout
Duchesne River · river, Duchesne Co.Good59 cfs—stocked 4mo agobrown trout, rainbow trout, cutthroat trout
Rock Creek (Uintas) · creek, Duchesne Co.Good56 cfs—stocked 3mo agobrown trout, cutthroat trout, brook trout
Beaver River · river, Beaver Co.Good20 cfs—stocked 4mo agorainbow trout, brown trout

Hatch calendar

January – February

Midges everywhere, all day on the tailwaters (Green, Provo, Weber): size 18–24 zebra midges, Griffith's gnats on the flats at midday. Scuds and sowbugs under an indicator. Eggs behind spawning rainbows on the Provo late in February.

March – April

Blue-winged olives — the first real hatch, best on gray afternoons, size 18–20 on the Provo, Weber, and Logan at pre-runoff flows. Skwala stoneflies on the Weber and Provo. Midges continue. Freestones fish until runoff starts in late April.

May

Runoff on the freestones. Tailwaters carry the month: caddis start on the Provo and Weber, cicadas arrive on the Green in the last week or two — size 8–10 foam cicadas, the year's biggest dry-fly fish. Stillwater comes alive: chironomids and leeches at Strawberry and Scofield at ice-out.

June

Cicadas on the Green through mid-month, then golden stones and PMDs. Freestones clear in the last two weeks: green drakes (size 10–12) on the Provo and Weber evenings, caddis every evening, yellow sallies. Damsels and callibaetis on the stillwaters.

July

PMDs mornings, caddis evenings, terrestrials from mid-month — ants, beetles, and the first hoppers on the Weber, Provo, and Logan. The Green settles into hoppers and PMDs. High-country lakes and creeks open: attractor dries, small leeches, and anything with a red tag.

August

Hoppers and terrestrials on every river, tricos at dawn on the Provo and Green (size 20–22 spinners), low clear water — long leaders, early mornings, watch the water temperature. Callibaetis and damsels on the high lakes.

September

Tricos continue, then blue-winged olives return with the first cool weather. Hoppers into mid-month. Streamers for pre-spawn browns on the Provo, Weber, and Green. Kokanee on the stillwater inlets. The best all-around dry-fly month of the year.

October – November

Blue-winged olives on cloudy days, midges, and streamer season — big articulated flies on overcast mornings for browns on the Green, Provo, and Weber. Egg patterns behind the redds (don't wade them). Whitefish stack in the tailouts. Stillwater leeches at Strawberry and Scofield until ice.

December

Midges and small nymphs on the tailwaters in the warm window; scuds on the Green. Everything else is under ice.

Stillwater on the fly

Chironomids under an indicator at ice-out, leeches and damsel nymphs on a sinking line through the summer, and callibaetis dries on calm evenings cover Utah’s stillwater. Strawberry is the big cutthroat water; Scofield and the Wasatch Plateau reservoirs are the tiger-trout waters; Little Dell and Minersville are managed trophy fisheries with artificial-only rules; and the Uinta and Boulder Mountain lakes are where a 3-weight and a box of Royal Wulffs is all you need.

WaterRight nowFlow / levelWater tempStockedSpecies
Currant Creek Reservoir · reservoir, Wasatch Co.Good97% full—stocked 3w agocutthroat trout, rainbow trout
Mirror Lake · lake, Duchesne Co.Goodno gauge—stocked 11d agorainbow trout, brook trout, tiger trout (brown × brook hybrid)
Little Dell Reservoir · reservoir, Salt Lake Co.Fairno gauge—stocked 4mo agobrook trout, cutthroat trout
Minersville ReservoirBlue Ribbon · reservoir, Beaver Co.Fair7% full as of Sep 30—stocked 4d agorainbow trout, smallmouth bass, wiper (white × striped bass hybrid)
Otter Creek ReservoirBlue Ribbon · reservoir, Piute Co.Fair6% full as of Sep 30—stocked 4d agorainbow trout, cutthroat trout, smallmouth bass
Electric Lake · lake, Emery Co.Fair38% full as of Sep 30—stocked 3mo agocutthroat trout, tiger trout (brown × brook hybrid)
Huntington Reservoir · reservoir, Sanpete Co.Tough22% full as of Sep 30—stocked 3mo agosplake (lake × brook trout hybrid), tiger trout (brown × brook hybrid), wiper (white × striped bass hybrid)
Panguitch LakeBlue Ribbon · lake, Garfield Co.Warning7% stored pool—stocked 2w agorainbow trout, cutthroat trout, tiger trout (brown × brook hybrid)
Scofield ReservoirBlue Ribbon · reservoir, Carbon Co.Warning34% full—stocked 6w agocutthroat trout, rainbow trout, tiger trout (brown × brook hybrid)
Strawberry ReservoirBlue Ribbon · reservoir, Wasatch Co.Warning76% full—stocked 12d agocutthroat trout, rainbow trout, kokanee salmon

Fly shops & guides

Full guides & shops directory →

See also: all Utah rivers · fishing calendar · Blue Ribbon fisheries · Summit County