4 Best Dry Fly Fishing Rivers In Utah

Normally, it doesn’t take until August for the dry fly fishing to coax reckless feeding behavior from trout. In a normal year, though, you don’t see rivers blown out this bad either - especially in Utah.

A half-dozen little streams surrounding my home in central Utah are finally showing signs of great dry fly action, and other rivers are as well. Water levels are dropping and the caddis are hatching - what more could you honestly ask for?

Well, a guide to the best dry fly water in Utah might help. Paying a visit to one of these five rivers will make your Utah fly fishing experience unforgettable.

The Logan River

The Logan is often overlooked by visitors to Utah. It’s close to Bear Lake, an incredibly productive lake and cutthroat trout fishery, and it’s the only major free-flowing river in the state. No dams impede the headwater or tributaries of the Logan.

What you’ll catch

Brown and rainbow trout are dominant in the lower stretches, along with mountain whitefish. Whitefish often get a bad rap as a “sucker” fish, but their presence is an indicator of a healthy stream system.

The higher up the river you go, the fewer browns and bows you’ll see until the majority of your catch is Bonneville cutthroat trout. Certain sections of the Logan are closed to protect spawning cutthroat, so make sure to consult the Utah fishing guidebook before planning a trip.

How to get there

The Logan River lies just east of Logan, Utah, a picturesque town near the Utah-Idaho border.

Once you get to Logan - accessed via I-15 and Highway 89 - you’ll stay on main street through town. Brown signs will point you toward the river. From there, it’s a matter of pulling over and fishing what great water you can find.

Why it’s great dry fly fishing

A huge population of cutthroat trout helps give the Logan a reputation as a dry fly fishery, since they’re known to “always be looking up.” It’s not just the cutthroat, though, that make the Logan a good dry fly river. The caddis hatches are thick, spring BWO and early summer PMD hatches rival that of the best Western rivers, and all the fish are wild. Pair that with tons of classic-looking runs, riffles, and pools, and you have a stellar dry fly river.

The Green River

No Utah fly fishing trip is complete without mention of the Green River below Flaming Gorge Dam. The crystal-clear waters of the Green are famous for their prolific early spring and late fall BWO hatches. In the heat of the summer, yellow sallies and caddis are the ticket for dry fly anglers.

What you’ll catch

Brown and rainbow trout are the dominant species in the A and B sections of the Green. Occasionally, cutthroat or cuttbows show up, but those are a fairly rare catch. Other fish are present in this part of the Green, but when dry fly fishing you’re almost guaranteed a brown or rainbow trout.

How to get there

This section of the Green River is right below the Flaming Gorge Dam, located near the small town of Dutch John, Utah. It’s just south of the Utah-Wyoming border in the northeastern part of the state.

The most popular section - A -section - runs from the Flaming Gorge Dam 7 miles downstream to the first takeout, dubbed Little Hole. This area is excellent wade fishing as well.

Why it’s great dry fly fishing

This is Utah’s biggest tailwater, and it shows in both the size of fish and bug hatches. The clear water makes things a bit more challenging, but the opportunity to watch a trout come from the bottom of the river to the top to eat your dry is second-to-none. The fish are big, healthy, and good fighters, and best of all, you can always find a spot to fish even when the river is “crowded.”

Bear River

This is a classic high-country Rocky Mountain river, complete with some absolute lunker trout if you’re patient enough to look for them.

The Bear winds its way from the North Slope of the Uinta Mountains, south into Wyoming, then Idaho, then back into Utah where it terminates in the Great Salt Lake. Take everything you know or picture about the Rocky Mountain high country, and that’s what the Bear has to offer.

What you’ll catch

Brown, rainbow, cutthroat, and brook trout all occur in the Bear River. The lower reaches are dominated by browns and rainbows - and some absolutely massive cutthroat trout - while the upper areas are full of brookies. Don’t let the abundance of smaller fish dissuade you from paying the Bear a visit, though; all those smaller fish mean a big food source for huge trout.

How to get there

The Bear is a beat of a river. At 350 miles long, it’s the longest river in North America that doesn’t end up reaching the ocean.

That sounds pretty intimidating at first glance, and it can be. The thing is, though, that most of the best fishing on the Bear River is up higher, south of Evanston, Wyoming.

The best access to the higher sections is along the Mirror Lake Highway, which connects Kamas, Utah to Evanston, Wyoming.

Headed north along the Mirror Lake Highway, immediately after the turnoff for Butterfly Lake, the Hayden Fork begins. The Hayden is one of two stems of the Bear that, once it connects with the Stillwater Fork, forms the main stem of the Bear River.

Fishing is good all along this stretch, continuing to be stellar all the way to the turnoff for Stillwater Campground. From here, you can head south again and fish the Stillwater Fork and Main Fork of the Bear. The Stillwater is arguably the best of all the tributaries to the Main Stem of the Bear.

Once the Bear leaves National Forest Land, just before the Utah - Wyoming border, it starts to get drawn on for irrigation. While it’s worth exploring all throughout Wyoming and Idaho, the best stretches reside in Utah.

Why it’s great dry fly fishing

The Bear gets its spot on this list thanks to its location in the high country. Some high country streams have a reputation for being fickle, but by and large the trout in them are willing to smack a dry at nearly any time of day.

With the huge cutthroat trout population in the Bear, that only makes it a more enticing option for those looking for the ultimate dry fly experience.

Middle Provo River

The Provo River is another of Utah’s more well-known fisheries. The Lower Provo garners a lot of attention from rafters, and its proximity to Utah County makes it a bit crowded.

The Middle Provo, between Jordanelle and Deer Creek Reservoirs, gives you a bit more room to find your own stretch of water. From the early green drake hatches to summer caddis, there always seems to be fish rising on the Middle Provo.

What you’ll catch

Brown and rainbow trout are the catches here, with browns being most popular. Mountain whitefish are present too, though getting them on dries doesn’t happen as often as trout. The Middle does have some larger fish in it, but you’ll have to work for them. This is more of a river to go catch a ton of fish on rather than one in which you hunt for trophies.

How to get there

Access to the Middle Provo is easy. From the town of Heber, Utah, you can go north or south and have access to almost all of the river. Only a few stretches are private.

Public access points just north of Deer Creek Reservoir are clearly marked, as the river winds its way through the smaller towns of Charleston and Midway. Once the river reaches Heber, you’ll take Highway 40 north of town before turning to follow it the last few miles to Jordanelle Reservoir. All along the river you’ll see plenty of parking areas and public access ladders.

Why it’s great dry fly fishing

Utah doesn’t get a lot of really big mayfly hatches like Idaho or Wyoming. The one the state does see often, though, is the big green drake hatch. During the spring, these giant bugs bring all the big trout to the surface where they’ll feed with reckless abandon.

Throughout the rest of the year, your standard collection of PMDs, caddis, BWOs, and golden stones work incredibly well. The Middle is also home to a healthy population of buffalo midges, so have a few Griffiths gnats handy for those instances.

Fly fishing in Utah offers you an experience that’s different from a lot of other classic Western rivers. It’s not nearly as crowded, the fish are healthy and large, and the length of the state’s rivers provides a nearly endless supply of new water to explore.