Hello All,
It's officially Summertime, and the Summer hatches are starting to get going on our local waters. We just updated our [WR]FAQ blog, and it's focused on the upcoming Green Drake and stonefly hatches in Utah, and across the west. Take a look at our [WR]FAQ: Summer Hatches - Part 1 and the Summer Hatches Gear Guide (both linked below) to get a head start on getting ready for the "big bugs" of Summer. If you like to fish little freestone creeks and streams, the next three-four weeks are going to be primetime, so it's time to get after it! As always, in order to avoid bad river etiquette, it's important to know the basic ins an outs of how to interact with each other on the water. Check out this video from Redington on basic fishing etiquette here.
*FLOW UPDATE: The flows on the Middle Provo are now at 612 CFS out of Jordanelle Reservoir, and have dropped to 511 CFS out of Deer Creek Reservoir. Both of these flows are fishable, but pushy, so use caution and focus on fishing the rivers edges. Run-off is virtually over, but it's still a good idea to check the river gauges before heading out.*
*FYI: Spawning time for Rainbows and Cutthroat is still going on, so it's important to be aware of where we are fishing and stepping so we don't crush their eggs. If you're not sure what a spawning redd is, and why it's important to leave them be, we've written articles on why it's important to leave any spawning trout alone, which you can read on our blog. The folks over at Redington also made a little video on the why leaving spawning trout alone is so important to the long-term health of any fishery. You can view that here.*
Middle Provo:
As of today the Middle Provo is currently 612 CFS out of Jordanelle, and 467 CFS at River Road. This is once again a fishable flow, and at these flows fish will hang around river structure such as rocks, drop-offs and shelfs, log jams, and side channels. Our summer bugs are on the cusp of hacthing, so coming prepared with Pale Morning Dun (P.M.D.) dries and nymphs (#16-#18), Caddis dries and nymphs (#14-#18), attractor/perdigon/jig head style nymphs, yellow stonefly patterns (#12-#16) and Green Drakes (#12-#14) may move fish too. With the dropping current flows, swinging soft hackles or fishing streamers during the low-light periods of the day can potentially move a fish or two.
Lower Provo:
The Lower's flow is around 511 CFS out of Deer Creek. This is once again a fishable flow, but pushy, and not easy to cross at. With these current conditions, the fish will seek out structure right along the rivers edge, and structure such as drop-offs, pools, rocks, and foam / bubble lines are still what I'd focus on fishing. I'd be on the lookout for fish up and eating along the rivers edges on Yellow Stonefly dries and nymphs, Pale Morning Dun (P.M.D.) mayfly dries and nymphs (#16-#18), Caddis dries and emergers (#14-#16), worm patterns, sow bugs, and attractor nymphs. If you don't want to look at a bobber, fishing streamers can move fish too.
The Weber River between Rockport and Echo reservoirs is now flowing at 182 CFS at Wanship, and 194 CFS at Coalville. This is a pushy, but fishable flow for the Middle Weber. So make sure you take your time when wading! The Summer insect hatches are going, so it wouldn't be bad idea to come prepared with Pale Morning Dun (P.M.D.) mayfly nymphs and dries in #16-#18, Yellow Stonefly nymphs and dries in sizes #12-#16, sow bugs, Hare's Ears, Pheasant Tails, and Copper Johns are good option over there for nymphing. Fishing a streamer low and slow through the deeper holes can also potentially move a fish or two, and isn't a bad option to try-especially if nothing else is working. Flows out of Echo Reservoir to Henefer are now currently at 426 CFS, which is a borderline fishable flow, and the fish will be forced right to the rivers edge to find structure to hang out around. Heading down towards Morgan and Ogden the flows are starting to be more fishable, but that stretch can be tricky to fish and wade. In short, use caution, and don't put yourself in danger!!! Flies to use for the Lower Weber will be identical to what we are fishing on the Weber between Rockport and Echo Reservoirs.
The Green's flows are now at 1,860 CFS.. If you're heading to the Green I'd make sure to bring midge nymphs and dries (#18-#24), PMD mayfly nymphs and dries (#16-#20) for the cloudy days, attractor dry fly patterns like Deer Hair Ants (#12-#16), Bionic Ants (#12-#16), Para. Crickets (#12-#16), Peacock PMXs (#12-#16), Parachute Adams (#14-#22), and Purple Rooster/Purple Hazes (#14-#18). Cicada's are starting to show in noticeable numbers, and if it's a hot, windy afternoon-I'd put a #10-#12 Cicada on and trail a small ant or beetle pattern behind it 18"-24". Dry-Dropper fishing with attractor nymphs like "Frenchies", Perdigons, olive or tan sow bugs/scuds, small mayfly nymphs (i.e. RS-2, Juju Baetis, Barr's Emergers, etc.) and a variety of sizes and colors of Zebra Midges can work well if there are no signs of fish feeding off of the surface. If it is super windy, cloudy, not much surface activity, etc.-fishing a streamer can be effective.
Warm-Water fish species such as carp, sunfish, and bass are great options to fish for during the early Summer, and can be a welcome change from fishing popular (i.e. crowded) trout streams.. The Mirror Lake Highway is open, the creeks and streams are coming into shape, and taking a drive to find some open lakes and ponds can potentially lead to some fun fishing opportunities. If you fancy a road trip, heading down to check out some of the high-country streams, lakes, and reservoirs down in Southern Utah can potentially lead to good fishing opportunities, and less people.
For fishing streamers and giant dry flies, I like to run a 7.5' 2X leader, and 2X-4X tippets. For my "all-around" Summer leader, I use 7.5'-9' 4X leaders and 4X-6X tippets for everything from Stoneflies, Drakes, Terrestrials, Caddis, and Pale Morning Duns.
Dry Flies:
Timmy Drake Cripple (#12)
Hair Wing Drake (#12)
Impearsonator Drake (#12)
Film Critic PMD Cripple (#16)
CDC Thorax PMD (#16-#18)
Deer Hair Ant (#12-#16)
Peacock PMX (#10-#16)
Chubby Chernobyl (#10-#16)
Bullet Head Golden Stone (#12, #14)
Yellow Stimulator (#12-#16)
Tan & Olive X-Caddis (#14-18)
Hemingway Caddis (#16)
Spent Partridge Caddis (#14-#18)
Hi-Vis Griffith's Gnat (#18-#22)
Para. Adams (#12-#20)
Purple Rooster (#14-#16)
Nymphs:
Green Drake Nymphs (#12)
Jiggy Epoxy Stone (#12)
Iron Sally Stonefly Nymph (#16)
Split Case PMD (#16-#18)
Prince Nymphs (#12-#16)
Pheasant Tail Nymphs (#12-#22)
Hare's Ear Nymphs (#12-#18)
Cased / Un-Cased Caddis Larva (#14-#18)
Zebra Midges (#16-#22)
Soft Hackles:
Graphic Caddis (#16)
Partridge & Yellow (#14-#16)
Partridge & Olive (#14-#16)
March Brown Spider (#14-#16)
Partidge & Orange (#14-#16)
Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle (#14-#18)
Olive Sparkle Soft Hackle (#16)
Streamers:
Leeches (#8-#12)
Olive and Rusty Sculpin
Patterns (#6-#12)
Platte River Spider (#4)
Shiela Scuplin (#6)
Sculpzilla (#6)
Check out our full SUMMER HATCHES GEAR GUIDE for everything you need to be prepared when the fish are looking up!