After having two consecutive winters in Park City with a low amount of snow pack we finally get a summer perfect for top water action. The middle and lower Provo River are right in the 350-400 CFS range and should stay around that flow until the beginning of September. I have written this in past Provo River fishing reports, but I will say it again, these flows are just perfect for fly fishing. In the last 5-10 years the flows on our dam controlled rivers such as the middle and lower Provo and Weber River have gradually increased in flow with every year. Believe it or not, but the voice of the fly fishermen in Utah asking for perfect flows is nothing in comparison to the water rights demands downstream. What I am a basically saying is, we might not see these perfect flows for quite sometime.
In the next week or two, we should see the middle and lower Provo River erupt with caddis. In past years, the dry fly fishing has been good even in high water. I can only imagine it will be spectacular this year. The beauty of the caddis hatch is that you can fish dry flies almost all day. Right around 7:30 AM, when the light starts to hit the water, the caddis from the night before come back to the water to lay their eggs. As these little moth like bugs are bouncing on the water, the trout don't hesitate to explode on them just as they are hovering over the surface. This exciting action usually last until 11:00 AM. Right as the caddis start to leave the water and go back into the bushes, the start of the first of many PMD's start to hatch. In the next hour the fish start to pod-up and sip these small yellow mayflies off the surface for the next 3-5 hours. Around 4 PM, it is a good idea to get off the water, get a bite to eat, and save your energy for the best fishing of the day. Around 8:30 PM or as the sun comes off the water, the caddis start hatching in swarms and it seems like every fish in the river is sitting down for the feast of their life. Pack a head lamp to prolong your day of fishing, or call it a night to rest up for an early day of fishing tomorrow. -Jeff Harwin
fly fishing in Utah
fly fishing in utah