FlamingGorge
Angler’sGuide
“Themostscenictrophytroutdestinationintheworld”
–OgdenStandardExaminer
FlamingGorgeCountryisoneofthepremierfishingdestinationsintheUnitedStates.Wenot
onlyhaveoneofthemostdiversefisheries,butalsotheareahasbeendubbedthemostscenic
trophytroutdestinationintheworld.Therearehundredsofplacestofishwithinanhourdrive
ofLakeFlamingGorge.Bringingyourlittleoneoutforherfirst-timefishing?Huntingforanew
spottocastyourlinefortheannualguy’strip?Wanttoescapethecrazinessofyoureveryday
lifeandsinkintothesolitudeofflyfishing?Nomatteryourdesire,FlamingGorgeCountrycan
grantyourfishwish!
“FlamingGorgeCountryhassomeofthebestfishingopportunitiesin
theworldthankstoitsincrediblydiversefisheries”–RecreateinUtah
FamilyFishing
Fishingwiththefamilyisnotonlyahighly
rewardingactivity,it’salsooneofthemost
inexpensivewaystospendqualitytimedoing
somethingfuninnature.Thebasicstartergear
willcostlessthan$50,butthatinvestmentwill
helpyoucreatepricelessmemoriesforyearsto
come!Hereareafewtipstogetyoustartedif
youarenewtothesport.
• GearUp
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Youneedaspinningrodwithline,needle-nosepliers(forsafelyreleasingallthosefish
you’llcatch!)andluresorbaitgear.
LiveBaitorLure?
Baitgearincludesyourbaitofchoice(likeworms),hooks,alittleweightandabobber.
Thisisbyfarthemostpopularmethodoffishing,especiallyifyouplantokeepyour
catch.Butitcangetalittlemessysinceyouhavetoconstantlyre-baitthehook.Lures
areeasilyattachedandmuchgentleronfishyouintendtorelease.Lurescomeina
rainbowofcolorsandsizes.Oneofourlocaltackledealerswillclueyouinonwhich
luresarebestforthewatersyouarefishing.
EnjoyFreeFishing
BothUtahandWyomingofferaFreeFishingDay!It’sSaturday,June4inWyomingand
Saturday,June11inUtah.Checkstatewebsitesforspecialfamily-orientedprogramsat
variousstatelocationsonthosedays(www.wgfd.wyo.govorwww.wildlife.utah.gov)
FollowtheRules
Youngchildrenineitherstatefishforfree.InUtah,kidsunder12don’tneedafishing
license.Adultscangetathree-day,seven-dayorUtahannualpermitonlineat
www.wildlife.utah.gov.TofishacrossstatelinesontheFlamingGorgeReservoir,you
musthaveavalidfishinglicensefromonestateandareciprocalfishingpermit($10)
fromtheotherstate.InWyoming,youcangetaone-dayorannualfishinglicenseonline
atwww.wgfd.wyo.gov/apply-or-buy.KidswhoareresidentsofWyomingandunderthe
ageof14donotneedalicense.Nonresidentyouth(under14)donotneedalicenseif
accompaniedbyanadultpossessingavalidWyomingfishinglicense.
SelectYourSpot
Wehavesomeperfectfamily-friendlyfishingspots,includingTheMoosePonds,The
FlamingGorgeDamFishingPier,thefreeKidsFishingHoleatRedCanyonLodge,and
LittleHoleontheGreenRiver.
FishingLakeFlamingGorge
With11statefishingrecordsandtwoformerworldrecords,it’snowonderthatFlamingGorge
Reservoirisrenownedasatrophyfishery.The91-mile-longlakestraddlesWyomingandUtah
andoffersboatingservicesatthreemarinas–Buckboard,LucerneandCedarSprings.Themost
populargamefishintheGorgearethetrophylake(mackinaw)trout,kokaneesalmonand
smallmouthbass.
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“Theonlyplaceyoucancomeand
expecttocatch30-40lb.fishandhave
areallygoodchanceata50pounder!"
–In-FishermanTV
WhereAretheFish?
Fishingtopwaterdownto50feetyouwilllikelycatchrainbows,browns,tigerandsmallerlake
trout.Kokaneesalmonwillfollowthethermocline,stayingshallowinthewinterandspringand
goingdeeperasthesummermonthswarmthewater.Thelargerlaketroutwillgenerallystayin
deeperwater(70-120feet),buttheywillfeedintheshallowerwaterespeciallyintheearly
spring.ThebassinLakeFlamingGorgeareveryactiveinthesummermonthswhenthewater
haswarmedabit.Youcanfindthemonmostshallowrockypoints,humpsandridges
throughoutthereservoir.
“Oneofthetopsmallmouthbasswatersinthecountry”–BASS
LakeFishingTechniques
TrollingFlamingGorgeisaverypopulartechnique,allowinganglerstocoverlargeportionsof
anareawhiletargetingmultiplespecies.SomedifferenttrollingtechniquesusedontheGorge
include:longlining,dipsydivers,weightedlineordownriggers.
Verticaljiggingisanothertechniqueusedtotargetsomeofthegamefishinthereservoir,
especiallythekokaneeandmackinaw.Thetheoryistositontopoftheareaswherethefish
tendtobe,usinganelectrictrollingmotororanchorsystemwhilebouncingyourfavoritejig–
baitedornot–infrontoftheirfaces.
“ThereisonlyoneplaceinUtahtohookatruemonster:
FlamingGorgeReservoir”–KSL.com
AveryeffectivewaytocatchfishonLakeFlamingGorge–whetherbyboatorfromshore–is
castingandretrieving.Therearethousandsofdifferentluresandjigsthatworkforthismethod.
Flyfishingstreamerscanevenbeeffective.
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Baitfishing,whetherwithabobberorweighted,isanothercommontechnique.Nightcrawlers
andpowerbaitarebothrecommended.
Averypopularwinteractivityisicefishing.Incold-weathermonths,thelargerlaketroutarein
thedeeperwaterandcanbecaughtusingverticaljiggingtechniques.Thesmallertroutand
kokaneeareinshallowerwater,whereit’sbesttousesmallerjigsandbaits.Itisbecomingvery
populartofishforBurbot–theinvasivespeciesinthegorge–throughtheiceatnight.
“TheGorgeprovidessomeofthefinestlaketroutfishing
inthelower48.”–In-Fisherman.com
Year-RoundFishingEvents
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Premierfishingtournamentsoccuryear-roundontheGorge.TheFlamingGorgeFishingDerby,
BurbotBashandBurbotClassicarejustafew.Foracompletelistoffishingeventsinthearea,
gotowww.flaminggorgecountry.com.
Fishingthe
GreenRiver
“America’sBestTailwater:
Utah’sGreenRiver.”
–Field&Stream
TheGreenRiver,asitreemergesfromFlamingGorgeDam,hasbecomealegendarytailwater
fishery.Thewaterreleasedfromthedamisregulatedtomaintainanoptimumtemperature
andflowthathascreatedaworld-famousblueribbontroutfishery.TheGreenRiver’sclear,
emeraldwaterssupportalargepopulationoftrout,withrainbowsandcutthroatbeingmore
commonjustbelowthedamandbrownsdominatingdownstream.
Annualsurveyshaverevealedanincredibletroutpopulation.Moststatesboastthattheirblueribbonsteamshave5,000-7,000fishpermile.ButsomestretchesoftheGreencarryasmanyas
14,000fishpermile!
Fishingisrestrictedtoartificialfliesorlures,andcatch-and-releaseishighlyencouraged.Fly
tackleismostcommonlyused,butspinners,jigsandRapalasarealsoeffectiveonthesewaters.
“Someofthebestfishingofmyentirelife.”–OgdenStandardExaminer
Additionally,insecthatchesareprolific.Scudsareaprimaryfoodsourceandareeffective
throughouttheyear.Midgesworkonandbelowthesurfaceduringthewinterandearlyspring.
Blue-wingedoliveshatchinincrediblenumbersinthespring.Bigcicadasproduceexciting
fishingduringtheearlysummer.Ants,hoppersandmanydryflypatternsworkwellthroughthe
summerandearlyfall.
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“OneofthemostbeautifultroutriversintheUnitedStates.”
–Field&Stream
TheGreenflowsthroughascenic,steep-walledcanyon.Theruggedterrainallowsaccessin
onlythreeareas:justbelowthedam,LittleHoleandBrownsPark.Youcandrivetothese
locationsandfishyourwayupordownstream,orfloattheriverinadriftboatorrubberraft.
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High-CountryFishing
Ifyoureallywanttogetawayfromitall,thefamousHighUintaWildernessistheplacetobe.
Here,thereareover600hundrednaturalmountainlakesandthousandsofstreamsthatare
packedfullofbrookies,cutthroat,rainbowsand–ifyousearchhardenough–grayling.
Tip:Whenahigh-countrylake
is“on,”getreadyforsomefast
andfuriousfishing!Ifthings
areslow,takeashortwalkto
thenextone.
SomeofthemorepopularandeasilyaccessiblelakesinourareaincludeMattWarner
Reservoir,BrowneLake,SheepCreekLake,LongParkReservoirandSpiritLake,justtonamea
few.Butifyouaremoreadventurousandliketogetoutandhike,checkoutTamarackLake,
DaggettLake,FishLakeorIslandLake.
TheFlamingGorgehighcountryisaveryspecialplacethathasremainednaturallywild.So
whileyou’reoutandabout,keepyoureyespeeledforthehugemoosepopulationthatcalls
thishighcountryhome.Otherwildlifeyoumightspotincluderiverotter,RockyMountain
bighornsheep,RockyMountainelk,yellow-belliedmarmotandbaldeagle.
LookforLunkersinRemoteWaters
SouthwesternWyomingalsoprovidessomegreatopportunitiesfortheadventurousangler.
SeedskadeeNationalWildlifeRefugeprotectsamosaicofriparian,wetlandanduplandshrub
habitatsalong36milesoftheupperGreenRiver.TherefugetakesitsnamefromtheShoshoni
wordfortheGreenRiver:Seeds-kee-dee-Agie,meaning“riverofthesagechicken.”
Located37milesnorthofGreenRiver,visitorscanfindSeedskadeebydrivingwestonI-80to
theLaBargeStateHighway372north.Establishedin1965asmitigationfortheconstructionof
FontenelleandFlamingGorgeDams,therefugeencompassesmorethan20,000acresalongthe
GreenRiverbetweenFontenelleDamandthetownofGreenRiver,Wyoming.
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WhilethenumbersoffishatSeedskadeemaybelessthanintheGreenRiverbelowFlaming
GorgeDam,thesizeofthefishisincredible.Hugetroutawaitthosewillingtoinvesttimeon
thesewaters!
SeekLocalKnowledge
FlamingGorgeiscrawlingwithguideshops,marinaandlodgesthatselllicenses,fishingtackle
andofferplentyoffreeadvice.However,wethinkthebestwaytogetacquaintedwithour
watersiswithoneofourfun-lovinglocalguides.Theseexpertsknowjustwheretolookforan
anglingadventurethatwillmakememoriestolastalifetime!
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