Ryan Mosley, Flaming Gorge Project Leader for Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, sent in this report on fishing at Flaming Gorge.
Two weekends ago, Mother Nature ripped through Flaming Gorge country leaving several inches of snow. This past weekend, we were back in the upper 60's, applying sun screen, and fishing comfortably. Water temps have cooled but still remain on the warm side, now in the low 60's.
Like the weather, rainbow trout fishing is "hot" right now for some sizeable fish. As water temps have cooled, rainbows are moving shallow. Look for concentrations of fish along shaded banks in the morning and evening. Surface feeding is a dead giveaway on a calm lake. Also look for large concentrations of rainbows near the mouth of creeks entering the reservoir. Some of the rainbows stocked into the Gorge are fall and/or winter spawners and they will move towards inflows as a result.
You can use a variety of lures and techniques to catch rainbow trout. While fishing on Saturday, we did really well using 2-inch Berkley Power Grubs (white, chartreuse) on a 1/4 oz jighead tipped with bait. We slowly worked the bait along the bottom in 10-15 ft of water, pausing occasionally. Also within view, we watched fly-fisherman, bait fisherman, and boat trollers catch fish. Fly anglers should try wooly buggers (weighted) or small jigs under a strike indicator. Bait fisherman (probably with the highest catch rates) should use Powerbait and/or a marshmallow/worm combo. Trollers and casters can also try small tube and marabou jigs, crankbaits, and a variety of spoons. Tip the lures with bait for better success.
Rainbow fishing should remain good through the remainder of the fall-winter. Rainbows caught out of the Gorge are exceptional to look at, with vibrant colors and contrasting spots (see pic). They are typically planktivores, feeding on small but abundant zooplankton found throughout the water. That diet choice makes their meat "red" in color and consequently great table fare.
Pictures - Koby Mosley with a couple of big rainbows caught while fishing jigs and a typical Flaming Gorge rainbow trout.
