Fremont River
FISHING UTAH'S FREMONT RIVER
Fishing Southern Utah’s Fremont River is the crown jewel of less traveled trophy waters which meander through awe inspiring red bluffs near the Capitol Reef National Park.The mountains meet the high desert of South Central Utah’s color country forming perfect habitat and world class fly fishing for Brown, Rainbow, Cutthroat, Brook and Tiger Trout. The best way to experience this is to hire a guide!
Perhaps the most rewarding dry fly fishing you will ever encounter, the Fremont River is a surreal experience that at many levels will teach you more about fly fishing than you ever thought possible. There are times that the combination of crystal clear slow moving water and lush riparian zones, set against the stark contrast of the red rocks and many national parks, the Fremont River can pierce your soul.
Fremont River flows through the town of Torrey where we recommend our clients stay for the best fly fishing access with our guides. Also, the best lodging and restaurants are available in Torrey as well.
Our guides will pick guests up at their lodging facility for the day on the water which is very close if you are fishing the Fremont River or Boulder Mountains.
The upper most section below Johnson Valley Reservoir flows downstream through over 7 miles of forest service land before entering Mill Meadow Reservoir. We consider this section the “Upper Fremont”. This water has some long stretches which are overgrown with fallen branches, pine trees and sagebrush, but this section holds superb undercuts with large trout.
The first 4 miles below the dam are virtually never fished and very remote. Anglers should explore this water with a well equipped day pack and plan for plenty of bush-wacking. Stretches of beautiful open water can be found with bruiser brown trout and no fishing pressure to speak of.
The rewards are great here if you are willing to make the trek! Hatches are good during the spring, summer and fall. Midges, Baetis, Olive Stoneflies, Golden Stones, Tricos as well as numerous other mayfly, stonefly and caddis hatches. Don’t shy away from streamers as they tend to bring the bigger trout to the net. Whether you prefer using a dry-dropper technique or nymph with strike indicator, all will produce if presented properly.
We call the section of the river below Mill Meadow Reservoir the “Middle Fremont” which holds brown, rainbow and splake. The river will wind its way through the Fremont Valley passing the towns of Fremont, Loa and then Lyman picking up some spring water flow along its journey. There is some public access, but most of the water passes through private property.
Certain sections can produce good numbers of fish here and even some larger trophy sized trout. Be prepared to travel down many county dirt roads if you want to fish the middle river as you can lose it quickly in the plethora of fields, canyons and private property. Hatches are similar to the upper stretches, but great terrestrial fishing can be had here as well. Hoppers, ants, beetles and damsel dries to name a few.
This section downriver from the small town of Bicknell is bordered by the lower slopes of the Boulder Mountains to the south and Thousand Lakes Mountain to the north. This is also very scenic with many red rock bluffs as well as farmland as it passes the town of Torrey.
There are at least 20 miles of river here before it enters Capitol Reef National Park. Trout are only supported in the river until a few miles before it reaches the park. The lower river is almost completely private land with very little public access fishing. Most of the trout caught in this section are browns with a good population of rainbows and even an outside chance at a tiger or cutthroat if you’re lucky.
Hatches here include; midges, baetis, PMD’s, callibaetis, a myriad of caddisflies, yellow sallies, golden stones, salmonflies, terrestrials and others. Anglers will find the trout consistently rising to strong hatches of aquatic insects throughout the season. Fly fishers will quickly see what makes the Fremont River, the Boulder Mountains, Fishlake Mountain, Thousand Lakes Mountain and other neighboring streams and lakes so esteemed.
Our guides can help you unlock the secrets of the area and teach you the necessary skills to succeed. Any fly angler that is able to learn the basics of fishing these waters will suddenly find that all other places become easier and more enjoyable to fish.