Middle Provo River Fishing Report: July 2, 2013: High Water, Mayflies, North to South Winds, & Pic of the Day!

If you suspect that the holiday week and the anticipation of mayfly hatches will lead to increased traffic on the Provo, you are partly correct. When I think of traffic, I think of moving vehicles, albeit slowly. Yesterday felt more like a traffic jam, as the hoards of anglers leaped frogged each other, until there was nowhere to leap frog to. Still, there are angling opportunities abound for those looking for a good time-- a lot of water gets skipped over in search for greener pastures. I arrived on the Middle around 7:30 am and decided to nymph until I observed a hatch. Nymphing proved to be very productive. With the very high water levels, I recommend scanning for slower water lanes, as well as the water to the left or right of the central water lane. These tend to be some of the more productive water to nymph in high water conditions.

The first and largest mayfly hatch occurred shortly before 11 am and lasted for over an hour. I had planned on shooting footage and taking photos for the blog, but that all went out the window when I hooked into a large brown that took my Hare's Ear--I had planned on one or two more casts before making the switch to a BWO, and submarined upriver--Das Boot! In true Brown fashion, the fish made a b-line for the cover--undercut with grass and branches hanging down on the opposite side of the stream. It is important to recognize the consequences of letting a large fish reach this cover, as there is a high likelihood that your line will get caught up in the hanging cover or even wrap around the fish, preventing it from being able to fight the current. And with the very high water levels, I certainly wasn't interested in doing my best Brad Pitt Impression of floating down the river while fighting the fish--would be the only similarity. So, I raised my rod high and tried to foil its plan. Knowing that there was a small margin for success, I was not surprised that the fish broke free. I was surprised at the point in my set-up that gave way, the knot connecting a small section of heavier test to my main floating line, which I use to create a perfect loop and attach my strike indicator. While all this was occurring, a caravan of anglers had stopped to watch. I stood with my floating line flapping in the wind, until I spotted my indicator zinging up river. I went to shore, dropped my gear off, and went back and tried several times unsuccessfully to grab the bobbing white thingamabobber--almost looked like I whaling. I was finally able to grab it, but without being able to let line out or allow for some give, the fish snapped free moments later and at least I was able to retrieve my line and flies.

I switched to a green bodied BWO and after letting the run rest, a large brown broke the surface, took my fly, bolted for cover, and promptly freed itself. After the hatch ended, the fishing dropped off noticeably and though I had planned on fishing until evening, I lacked stamina--the night before I went on a Google adventure and stumbled across a few blogs worth checking out: The River Damsel-- a fellow Utahn blogger, and Fishing Through Life--Alabama.

On Monday, heading "home" to Washington State.   

Final note:

Here's the pic of the day:

Who Leaves this Kind of the Stuff? 

By the end of the day, I ended up with a gallon freezer bag full of mostly spent line and some garbage. Given the proximity of the middle and lower Provo to Salt Lake and Park City, there will always  be a plethora of spent line and garbage. I am not sure these culprits are reachable and energy is probably spent better elsewhere. If you are able to, please bring as much of this garbage home at the end of the day as you are willing to stomach. Hopefully a collective effort of good river stewards can keep our river banks mostly garbage free! I have always been a proponent for public access and rights to fish streams; however, there's times when I can certainly see the other side's case.

Anyone interested in a river cleanup?