Fishing Reports
Northern Utah Fishing Reports: October 16th, 2026
Hello everyone! It's been feeling a lot more like Fall out there ever since the cooler, rainy weather that rolled through last week. There has been some significant changes on our local fisheries in terms of what is hatching and flies we are fishing, as the Fall Baetis (B.W.O.) mayflies are starting to hatch more consistently. Despite the snow in the high country, there are lakes still open to fish for those seeking cooler temps and solitude, especially in the Uinta mountians. Fish in the local reservoirs continue to move a little closer to the shore, espcially during the mornings, evenings, and the cloudy/stormy days. In short, there are good options across the state to get out and wet a line.
Provo River
Middle Provo:
As of today (October 16th), the Middle Provo is flowing at 151 CFS out of Jordanelle Reservoir. This is not abnormal, as they usually drop flows out of the reservoirs once irrigation season is over. It will definitely cause the fish to move around, and find deeper holes and pools to winter over in. We have been seeing more and more Blue Winged Olive (B.W.O.) mayflies in good numbers on the Middle Provo in the last week, especially with the rainy weather we had earlier. I'd make sure to pack every stage of the B.W.O. life cycle (nymphs, cripples, duns, etc.) in sizes #20-#24 when heading out, and Midges (#20-#26) are always around and fish are definitely feeding on them. The cloudy, rainy weather will help improve the fishing, and on those cloudy, cold days I'd be focused on fishing from the late-morning to mid-afternoon hours, and fishing the pocketwater om those sunny Fall days. Nymphing with midge larva and pupa patterns (#20-#24), sow bugs, B.W.O. mayfly nymphs (#20-#24), and small attractor nymphs (#16-#20) can move fish if there is no surface activity. If you don't want to look at a bobber, swinging soft hackles or fishing streamers has been working well too. Don't know how much longer the terrestrial insects are going to be around, but fishing an ant, beetle, or terrestrial attractor with a dropper up the banks for those sunny, warm afternoons still wouldn't be a bad idea either.
Lower Provo:
The Lower's flow has dropped to its Winter level, and is currently flowing at 154 CFS out of Deer Creek. The river is low and weedy, which can make fishing subsurface techniques tough, but certainly not impossible. Like the Middle Provo, there are B.W.O. mayflies (#20-#24) and Midges (#22-#26) around, so make sure to have nymphs and dries for all of these insects. Sow Bugs, B.W.O. mayfly nymphs (#20-#24), and small attractor nymphs (#16-#20) can move fish if there is no surface activity. Like on the Middle Provo, if you don't want to look at a bobber, swinging soft hackles or fishing streamers has been working well too. Fishing an ant, beetle, or terrestrial attractor with a dropper up the banks for those sunny, warm afternoons wouldn't be a bad idea either.
WEBER RIVER
The Weber River between Rockport and Echo reservoirs has just been dropped to low flow/Winter flow levels, and is now flowing at 25 CFS at Wanship, and the gauge at Coalville is reading 26.7 CFS. At these flows, I'm personally not going to fish the Weber. The fish are literally going to be pinned up in any deep water they can find, and with the spawn around the corner, they don't need me bothering them. If you choose to fish the Weber at these flows, I'd advise not pounding the fish in the deep holes. Instead, catch a couple out of a hole and move on. Or, find a river with a better flow. Look for tiny Baetis / B.W.O. mayflies in the late mornings and during the afternoon storms, and prospecting around structure and up the grassy banks with ants, beetles and terrestrial attractor-dropper rigs.
Flows out of Echo Reservoir to Morgan are now currently at .66 CFS. This is and unfishable level, so you'll need to go downstream towards Morgan to find water that is actually flowing. Flies to use for the Middle and Lower Weber will be identical to what we are fishing on the Lower Provo.
GREEN RIVER
Flows on the Green River below Flaming Gorge are still fluctuating between 1,850-2,800 CFS. For the most consistent fishing at these flows, I'd recommend you get your fishing in when the river is steady, which as of now is roughly between 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM. This is important to know-especially if you're wading.
Smaller ants, beetles, and attractor flies are what we prefer to use on sunny Fall days as the fish are more wary after a busy summer. Switch up your fly if you're getting consistent good drifts, but not any eats! Just because one insect is the most abundant, doesn't mean they aren't picking off something else. There are Baetis / B.W.O. mayflies (#20-#24) hatching, Midges (#22-#26) are always an option, and fishing with Chubby Chernobyl patterns (#10-#16), Parachute Crickets (#12-#16), Flying Ants (#14-#18), Beetles (#14-#18), and dropping a Frenchie (#14-#18), Zebra Midge (#16-#22), Perdigon (#14-#20), or Sow Bug/Scud (#16-#20), could potentially pick up fish. If its really windy, or cloudy, I wouldn't hesitate to try fish a streamer, and cover as much water as possible.
If you're headed over there, make sure to stop in and see the WRF Guides crew at Yellow Dory Fly Shop (435-790-6465) for all of your shuttles, last minute flies and tackle, and most up to date reports! If you need somewhere to stay, book a room at the newest place in town, Kestral Cove Lodge.
Uintas & OTHER WATERS
Mirror Lake Highway:
We got out first shot of Fall snow earlier this week, so I'd recommend getting up there sooner than later! Pack appropriately with a waterproof jacket, base layers and extra socks if you're heading deep out there, and be prepared to hunker down if need be. Otherwise, it's still a good time of year to get a hike in.
Nothing new or revolutionary to note in regards to the high country. For those fishing the lakes, many locations will fish very similarly, and the main factors are going to be how far do you want to hike, and what species are you after. There is so much information online about the different hikes, trailheads and lakes so it would be futile to try and replicate that here. Being said, grab a map and dig around online (trip reports, hiking forums, etc...) and find somewhere that looks nice, and a place that meets your desires for a day out on the trail.
Fly selection up here is pretty simple: Attractor style dry flies, midges, balanced leeches, and small streamers should all do the trick. I'm usually going to start by looking for fish sipping and cruising the edges to throw dry flies at, and then switch to a small leech or streamer if I can't spot anyone.
Check our our Frequent Angling Questions - High Country for a crash course in getting after it up there.
Small Streams:
Most of our major hatches have come and gone on these streams. I wouldn't hesitate to prospect around with attractor nymphs and dries, especially if there isn't any obvious signs of a hatch. If one was inclined to drop a little beadhead behind their dry fly, jig style nymphs (#16-#18), Frenchies (#16-#18), and Zebra Midges (#18-usually move fish.
Stillwater:
Scofield and Strawberry Reservoirs are fishing ok-good during the mornings, evenings, and the cloudy/stormy days have been fishing well with a variety of flies and techniques. The farther we get into October, the better the fishing from the shore should increase too. So make sure to pack your attractor boxes with you! Fishing a variety of dry-dropper rigs, streamers, balanced leeches, Midge Pupa patterns (i.e. Chironomids), and slowly stripping larger soft-hackles can be effective during the late-mornings and afternoons-especially if there is a breeze. Warm October days are also still good for chasing carp, bass, and sunfish too.
Tips
This time of year, I'm carrying a myriad of leader & tippet sizes and adjusting to the fishing conditions as needed. For most local fishing, a 9' 4X leader should cover your bases as long as you have 4x, 5x, & 6x tippet to adjust as necessary. For small stream fishing, we'd recommend a 7.5" 4X or 5X leader, and 4X-6X tippets. For chucking big hoppers and mice patterns, I pack 7.5'-9' 2X leaders and 2X-3X tippet.
Fly Recommendations
Ants (#14-#18)
PMX (#14-#16)
Griffith's Gnat (#18-#22)
Purple Rooster (#14-#18)
Almost There Baetis (#22)
Timmy B.W.O. Emerger (#22)
Winger BWO (#22-#24)
Drymerger B.W.O. (#22)
Parachute Adams (#14-#26)
Purple Rooster (#14-#18)
Purple Haze (#14, #20)
Chubby Chernobyl (#10-#16)
October Caddis (#10-#14)
Nymphs:
Gray RS-2 (#18-#24)
S.H.E. (#18, #22)
F.B. Pheasant Tail Nymph (#18-#24)
Barr's P.M.D. Emerger (#18-#20)
Barr's B.W.O. Emerger (#20-#22)
Duracell (#16-#18)
Blowtorch (#14-#16)
Split Case B.W.O. Nymphs (#18-#22)
Prince Nymphs (#12-#18)
FB Pheasant Tail Nymphs (#12-#22)
Hare's Ear Nymphs (#12-#18)
Cased Caddis Larva (#16-#20)
Zebra Midges (#16-#22)
Copper Johns (#12-#16)
Soft Hackles:
March Brown Spider (#14)
Hot Spot Spider (#12-#16)
Partridge & Yellow (#14-#16)
Partridge & Orange (#14)
Partridge & Olive (#14)
Partridge and Peacock (#16)
Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle (#12-#18)
Snipe and Purple SH (#16)
Black Soft Hackle BH Thorax (#18)
GN Soft Hackle BH Thorax (#14-#18)
Tan Soft Hackle BH Thorax (#14-#16)
Olive Sparkle Soft Hackle (#16)
Streamers:
Leeches (#8-#12)
Olive and Rusty Sculpin
Patterns (#6-#12)
Platte River Spider (#4)
Shiela Scuplin (#6)
Sculpzilla (#8)
Balanced Leeches (#10-#14)
Wooly Bugger (#8-#12)
It's been busy out there with other anglers, and some of you REALLY need to read up on river etiquette! Be self-aware while on the water, spread out, ask people if they're ok with sharing the water with you before just jumping in, give each other space, and treat others as you'd like to be treated; there is plenty of room for everyone. If you are intent of fishing a specific piece of water; get there early! If you're having a hard time finding space; fish the pockets, edges and banks that are often overlooked. 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.
Utah streamFlow Resources
The best information for river flows on the Middle and Lower Provo are through the CUWCD Wesbite. You can find that info Here.
For flow information on a majority of the smaller streams in the state, we use the USGS Website. You can find that info Here.
For flow information on other tailwater fisheries in the state, and surrounding states, we use the USBR website. You can find that info Here.
