Provo River Fishing Report July 10; small nymphs

We missed last weeks fishing report because I was visiting relatives.

Jim fished by himself on the Lower and Middle Provo, while I got to catch smallmouth bass on the New River in Virginia, but that is another story.

The Provo River is finally down to a more normal flow but still higher than we have been used to the last couple of years.

Green Drake and Caddis Hatches are Coming

Jim kick-netted (seined) near Jordanelle Dam recently trying to find green drake nymphs and wasn’t successful. It could be they were in water too deep and fast to sample.

He did find considerable numbers of cased caddis (the little green bodied ones); look forward to that hatch after a while. Also found plenty of the ever present sowbugs and midge larvae.

Big Trout Taking Tiny Flies

Jim had best success lately fishing deep with very small flies, mostly sized in the 20s (yes, that small).

Have been catching good sized trout with these tiny flies, but you must play them very carefully by using as much pressure as light tippets can take. The key is let the current work for you. Keep steady side pressure on the trout and be patient.

This might seem counter to the theory that playing fish hard is better because they can be caught and released before they are completely worn out.

Lots of luck with that when catching big fish with light tippet and small flies. That only serves to decorate trout mouths with expensive flies.

How do we know? Jim landing several trout this week that had other anglers lost flies in their mouths.

There have been some PMDs hatching on the lower Provo, but sowbugs are the most dependable patterns (no surprise there). The flow is high enough that the trout have moved closer to the shore in the heavy run areas.

One would think that the big rainbows would stay way out away from the bank, but even they can be caught on the current edges. Its not that they can’t handle the fast current, but a matter of where the food is most available.

Fishing Better at Midday than Late Evening

Late evening fishing should be really good in this hot weather. That’s coming but not yet; Jim actually had best success during midday fishing deep with nymphs.

Go figure, guess that’s why they call it “fishing” instead of “catching”.