Nash Stewart eyes a Rainbow trout before he turned it loose in Wellsville pond on Tues. May 24, 2022. He raised the trout in his classroom at Mountain View Elementary School in Brigham City.
WELLSVILLE—With Memorial Day weekend on the horizon, many Utahns may be making plans to get out for a long weekend adventure. Cache Valley and Northern Utah offer a host of excellent fishing opportunities for those who want to fish with their families.
Paul Romander, 91, of Brigham City and Kenny McDowell of Perry show two of the many fish they caught on Tues., May 24, 2022.
Gary Howe, the manager of the Division of Wildlife Resources Logan Fish Hatchery, said the rivers, streams and ponds in Cache Valley have been stocked with 10-inch rainbows ready for the Memorial Day weekend.
“Our trucks have been on the move in Cache Valley stocking fish in community ponds and the Logan River,” he said. “Most of the places have been hit at least once.”
Community ponds in the Cache Valley area include Wellsville Pond, located at 500 S. 100 E. Wellsville and Skyler’s Pond, located at 500 W. 700 S. Logan.
Skyler’s Pond, located in Willow Park, was designated for fisherman 14 years-old and younger. Not only does it have rainbow trout it also has bluegill, largemouth bass, green sunfish and channel catfish.
Brigham City has two community fishing ponds. Mayor’s Pond is located not far from the Highway 89/91 west bound exit coming out of Sardine Canyon. Rainbow trout are the only fish listed. Pioneer Pond is located at 800 W. Forest St. The Pioneer Park Pond has rainbow trout, bluegill, largemouth bass and catfish.
Weather conditions on Saturday through Monday will be cool with rain in the forecast, so plan accordingly.
DWR suggests taking kids to places with good rainbow trout populations because they are an easier fish to catch. Community ponds were all recently stocked with rainbow trout and will be good places to fish throughout this month.
Rainbow trout can be caught with a wide variety of baits and lures and are easy to catch from shore, making them a good option for anyone without a boat.
Besides the community ponds, Mantua Reservoir was listed as one of the top reservoirs for fishing because of the large population of bluegill, rainbow trout and largemouth bass.
For good success fishing for rainbow trout at any of the listed locations, using PowerBait about 18-24 inches below a bobber has proven to be a good way to go.
Kylie Call of Mantua, a student on a field trip with Mountain View Elementary School, waits on a fish to bite while fishing on Wellsville pond on Tues., May 24, 2022.
A good option for family-friendly fishing is to visit waterbodies with bluegill.
“Bluegill tend to be on the smaller size, but are also an easy fish to catch,” DWR Sportfish Coordinator Randy Oplinger said. “During the warmer months, they tend to move closer to shore and you can often see them take your bait, which can be fun.”
Similar to rainbow trout, you can have success fishing for bluegill using PowerBait, but make sure to use a small hook since bluegill have little mouths. Using small flies about 18-24 inches below a bobber is another good way to catch bluegill. To have success, slowly reel in the fly to trigger the bluegill to bite.
For those targeting larger fish, Flaming Gorge Reservoir is a good option with the current state record for lake trout over 3 feet long and weighing more than 50 bounds. Bear Lake is also a place to go for large cutthroat and lake trout.
It can be difficult to catch these large fish, so be sure to have patience.
“Cutthroat trout numbers at Bear Lake are currently among the highest that we’ve ever recorded, so there are a lot of them available to catch,” Oplinger said. “You can likely have success at both Flaming Gorge and Bear Lake by trolling crankbaits.”
The DWR manages many diverse fisheries at various waterbodies, ensuring there are multiple species that offer different types of fishing opportunities.
Liam Haselhorst from California is enjoying his second day of fishing at Wellsville pond Tues. May 24, 2022.
“As one example, we stock Flaming Gorge with rainbow trout so that families and shore anglers can have good fishing experiences,” Oplinger said. “We also stock kokanee salmon for boat anglers who like to catch a lot of fish, and we manage the fishery for healthy lake trout populations so anglers can also have a trophy-fishing experience.”
“We know anglers enjoy having diverse options in case they aren’t having luck fishing for a certain species — then they can switch tactics and target a different species that is biting. Having multiple species and different types of fishing also helps alleviate crowding at a waterbody. DWR implements this same strategy for the majority of the fisheries across Utah.”
Visit the Fish Utah map on the DWR website to find more information about the different fishing locations across the state.
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