Overview
Based in Vineyard, Utah our company has bloomed and developed. Our company is small but has a big love for the world of fly fishing. Jordan and Sarah Gillespie are both experienced anglers with over 14 years of serious Fly fishing experience. They would rather be out chasing trout more than anything else.
The Provo River is a great fishery located next to major cities. It is considered a Blue Ribbon fishery with good reason. Full of brown, rainbow, and cutthroat trout it can be fished ... moreduring every season. It starts high up in the mighty Uinta Mountains and works its way down through two reservoirs and finally empties into Utah Lake. The river is broken into three sections namely the Upper, from the Uinta Mountains to Jordanelle Reservoir, the Middle, from Jordanelle Reservoir to Deer Creek Reservoir, and the Lower, from Deer Creek down to Utah Lake. I guide on the Middle and the Lower where fish counts are the highest.
The Middle Provo
Winding its way through beautiful Heber Valley the middle Provo is a great piece of trout water. After a river reconstruction done about 7 years ago the river has many access points and great holes to fish. The river is full of bug life which sustains a large population of Brown and Rainbow Trout. Amazing hatches of midges, and blue wing olives seem to bring every fish in the river to the surface.
The Lower Provo
Dumping out of Deer Creek Dam the lower Provo cascades its way through the impressive Provo Canyon. Huge limestone cliffs hang thousands of feet above you as large brown trout eagerly eat your fly. This is where I started learning how to fly fish. I have spent many days chasing these trout and have had much frustration and joy here. The lower Provo is much swifter then the middle section and offers great nymphing opportunities. The sow bug is the king when nymphing here and midges and mayfly nymphs work well. With seasonal hatches of midges, BWO, PMD, and a great caddis hatch fishing on top can be great as well.
Most fish average 12-17 inches in this section with fish over 20 possible. A 18 pound hog was caught out of this section 12 years ago. With the Lower Provo being only 10 minutes outside of Orem and Provo it gets lots of fishing pressure. I love to fish it in the fall through early spring to avoid the people hatch. In winter you can have whole sections to yourself and pick and choose where you want to fish. A real treat for putting up with cold hands for a few hours.
The Strawberry starts above Strawberry Reservoir and enters into Strawberry Reservoir. It leaves the Berry Patch and empties into Starvation Reservoir, then joins with the Duchesne ... moreRiver below the town of Duchesne and Becomes the Duchesne River. The sections I guide on are the “Wild Strawberry” from strawberry reservoir to Starvation, and Below Starvation Reservoir. Both are very different and offer a different reward to anglers.
The Wild Strawberry
Cascading down from Strawberry Reservoir the Wild Strawberry is home to beautiful mountain trout. Rainbow, Brown, and gorgeous cutthroat trout live in this little tail water and love large dry flys. Fishing season here is June till October according to snow levels. You will not find a prettier place to wet your line then this stretch of river.
Fish usually average 8-14 inch’s with fish up to 20 inches available. A pure dry dropper stream that is a blast to fish. When going here plan on leaving early to get a good section of stream to fish. The fish are very spooky and do not respond to pressure well.
Strawberry River: Below Starvation Reservoir
Being a Fly Fishing Guide you get to explore new areas to find large fish. No other place in Utah has larger Brown Trout on a consistent basis. This area Produces large fish. But beware. Many of anglers here reports and come expecting much only to get their butt kicked by these wary fish.
Sight fishing and stalking skills can be the difference between a 20 fish day and getting skunked. I will show you how to find these fish, how to approach them, what to use, and how to land a brown over 20 inches. With browns over 26″ being caught every year this area holds some true pigs.
I guide on this section of Strawberry River year round and can help you catch a large Brown Trout. It will take work and some learning, but you will not be disappointed with the results. Plan on catching 2-8 fish during the day, but at least one of those will be over 20 inch’s.
Guiding On the Green River: I love the Green River and have been fishing it monthly for the last seven years. The emerald waters and amazing canyon atmosphere make it a place to remember ... moreeven if the fish are not cooperating. But that seldom is a problem with over 14,000 fish per mile from the dam to little hole. These fish are very healthy and stunningly beautiful. Making the Green River the ultimate destination for any angler to enjoy.
How Guiding works
To be a guide on the Green River you need hold a current river guide license issued by the state of Utah, and to be hired on by an outfitting company who holds a current river permit. There are some great company’s and good guides in the area. I currently guide out of Spinner Fall Guide Service and take all of my trips through this company.
Your Day On a Guided Trip
We meet at 7:30am or 8:30am in Dutch John, Utah. We go over conditions, gear, fly’s and what to expect for the day. You provide your rod, reel, leader, and I will provide fly’s and accessories we will use throughout the day.
We load up in a company vehicle that takes us down to the boat ramp.
We take the boat off the trailer and get or rods rigged up and start our float.
The Green River offers great fishing for a variety of techniques. Depending upon your preference we can fish drys, nymphs, dry dropper, or streamers. I am very open to fish any of these and will help you understand the skill needed for each of them. I will not force you to to fish a certain way, I know this is your trip and will help you achieve your expectations.
When the time is right we will pull the boat ashore and have a river side lunch that is often grilled chicken, brats, burgers, or sandwiches.
After lunch will will finish our float and with sore arms and new memories reach the boat ramp to end our float.
Our vehicle will be shuttled by a shuttle service and be ready for us at the ramp.
I will then load the boat on the trailer and will drive back to the meeting location in Dutch John.
Overall a full day guided trip is between 8-9 hours and everything is simplified for us to really focus on the fishing!
Just a few hours’ drive from the acclaimed Mecca of fly fishing, Utah is an often-overlooked goldmine for serious fly anglers. Abounding with wild rivers and striking scenery, it’s ... morea paradise for solitude seekers and nature lovers.
Category: Fly Fishing, Planning, Perfect Fishing Days
Added Date: Thursday, 27 Apr, 2017
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