Brown Trout Of The Boulder Mountain, Are there any brown trout on Boulder Mountain? The answer to that question is YES!

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Brown Trout Of The Boulder Mountain

Are there any brown trout on Boulder Mountain? The answer to that question is YES! There are no brown trout in the lakes of Boulder Mountain, but the streams that flow from this mountain hold plenty of browns in the lower reaches. The rocky bottoms and undercut banks of these cold clear streams provide outstanding habitat for Brown trout [Salmo trutta]. Sandstone cliffs line either side of the winding boulder strewn canyons that run from the base of the Aquarius Plateau for many miles, down through the slickrock country of the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, finally reaching their confluence with the Escalante River. Brown trout were first introduced to this area in the 1940's by wildlife officers and sportsmen attempting to bring some diversity to the local fisheries. The first stocking of brown trout fingerlings was in Calf Creek located midway between the towns of Boulder and Escalante on Scenic Byway 12. The brown trout thrived in the little spring fed stream that was a series of small but deep beaver ponds. It was just a matter of time before the trout migrated downstream and into the Escalante River. From there they spread like wildfire, upstream and down, entering all of the cold water tributaries flowing from nearby Boulder Mountain and the Aquarius Plateau.

The streams that flow from the Boulder Mountain and into the Escalante River are very remote in their lower reaches. Hiking to these remote areas with the intent to fly fish for the brown trout there can be a difficult process. Some streams can be reached by hiking over rough boulder and slickrock terrain for 1 - 2 miles one way. The hike to the stream at this relatively short distance, under these conditions can still take as much as 2 hours. This allows for several hours of fly fishing and then it is time to go, as the trip back to your vehicle is usually uphill and an arduous trek on tired legs. Other streams are even more difficult to access, requiring a hike of 3 - 7 miles one way, over very rough country. It is best to plan on camping at least one night or even two to visit these areas. When you plan a trip to these remote streams, it is always wise to consider the possibility of inclement weather and pack the appropriate gear. Waterproof tents are a must have. Sleeping bags, warm clothing, rain jackets and pants, extra food, strong insect repellant, first aid etc.. Don't be caught unprepared without the necessary gear in this rugged country. Once you have made it to your destination, a remote stream in a secluded sandstone canyon far from the highway and any sign of civilization....it's time to fly fish! After hiking through much of the morning, and the time that it takes to setup your camp, there is usually going to be an appropriate amount of time for upstream exploration and casting during the afternoon and evening. After a good night of rest and relaxation you will be ready to go early in the morning and able to fish the entire day without the added weight of your camp on your back.

The trout that you can expect to cast to in these lower elevation streams that empty into the Escalante River will almost certainly be brown trout. Rainbows and occasionally even cutthroats have made their way downstream into these lower canyons. And so these other species of trout are sometimes caught in the deeper holes, but not very often. The water temperature at this elevation is just not suitable for rainbows and cutthroats in the warmer months. Brown trout will tolerate the warmer water a little more....up to a point. There are also schools of suckers in these deep pools. These fish may seem undesirable to some anglers. Considered as trash fish, or rough fish by most fly fishers, they are actually quite difficult to hook on a fly. They hunker down on the bottom of the deeper runs and pools and refuse most offerings. When you realize that they will take small nymphs drifted naturally along the bottom, it won't be long before you hook one. When you do, get ready for a fight! These suckers will average 3 - 5 pounds and are tough to land on a light fly rod. If you do land one, you will notice that they are really a beautiful fish, except for their down turned mouth. For some unexplainable reason, we fly fishers have developed a loathing of fish with a down turned mouth such as carp and suckers. Is it because they are only lowly bottom feeders. Actually they are benthic feeders, feeding mainly on macro invertebrates, [very small nymphs]. In any case, are they not worthy of our talented and artful casting? Trout feed off of the bottom just as much as these lesser fish. Maybe it is because they have always refused our flies when we have attempted to cast to them. They ignore our delicate presentations and scorn even the most tempting nymphs in our boxes. What are we doing wrong? Maybe the question should be what aren’t we doing right? We as fly fishers must harbor a deep resentment towards these lowly bottom feeders who have snubbed us. We can catch the wily browns, but we just can’t catch the suckers on a fly! Well, they can be caught using flies. With enough careful observation you will be able to figure out their diet and when they are feeding, just like the trout. Learning how to get your fly in the right position for these fish to take it is most of the battle. Getting the hook set down is crucial, as these fish will take your fly very softly. Once they are hooked…..well, figuring out how to play a big strong fish is a lot of fun. Once you successfully hook and land a 4 - 5 pound sucker in a small stream on your 4 weight you will have a new respect for them. They generally fight much harder and longer than a trout of the equivalent size. It is best to release them unharmed though, as you may never know for sure if you are holding a Flannelmouth sucker [Catostomus latipinnis] or another sensitive / endangered fish species of the Colorado River system.

The Escalante River flows into Lake Powell. Consequently, a variety of fish species are free to migrate upstream and then into the tributaries that feed the Escalante River. catfish, bluegill, walleye, and especially carp have been found in many of these small streams. Even though there are some natural barriors that would seem to impede their travel upstream, there is always the possibility of a rare fish such as the Humpback chub [Gila cypha], Colorado pikeminnow [Ptychocheilus lucius], Razorback sucker [Xyrauchen texanus] and other sensitive / endangered species from the Colorado River system making their way up and into the Escalante River system. The suckers that are seen in the riffles and pools of these streams are almost always the Utah sucker [Catostomus ardens] with the rare possibility of the Flannelmouth sucker [Catostomus latipinnis]. Colorado pikeminnow, formerly known as the Colorado sqauwfish were once common on the upper Colorado River as recently as 1940. Anglers would hook these huge fish along the banks of the upper Colorado River, some of which weighed in excess of 60 pounds, with a light rod and reel. Imagine hooking into a fish of that size from the bank, holding on for dear life as the monster ripped the line from your reel! It must have been exiting to land a fish like that!

The Escalante River for all intents and purposes looks like the ideal trout stream. There are beautiful flat riffles that run into deep pools on every bend. Undercut banks with overhanging trees, log jams, boulders and sandstone cliffs are everywhere. Hiking in this river corridor is very strenuous if you try to navigate along the banks. Since cattle grazing has been virtually eliminated in the river bottoms, the riparian is so thick you have to walk in the river whenever possible! The insect hatches are fantastic, with March Brown mayflies and clouds of Little Yellow stoneflies starting off the season in late March and early April. Various caddis and mayfly hatches occur daily throughout the Summer and Fall. However, all of this cannot help the trout to flourish in this seemingly perfect stream. During July and August the water temperature averages 70 degrees or more.

Water this warm won't support wild trout, even browns. The tributaries that flow from the Boulder Mountain are much cooler and will hold healthy populations of wild trout year round. As you progress upstream into these smaller streams, you will begin seeing more trout in the riffles and pools.

The brown trout pictured above has quite a humpback of his own. This strange looking trout was caught and released in one of the tributary streams that feed the Escalante River. As you can clearly see by this image, he does not appear to have struggled finding enough to eat! Brown trout are really quite versatile in their feeding habits. Once they mature, they will eat, or attempt to eat anything that they see in the water column.

This includes invertebrates, terrestrial insects of all types and sizes, salamanders, frogs, snakes, lizards, minnows of all species, even mice or young birds that happen to fall into the stream. Not much drifts unnoticed past a big brown laying up under the bank, including your well placed fly! Large terrestrial patterns such as ants, hoppers and cicadas get noticed.

Heavy streamers like # 2 or # 4 muddlers work exceptionally well here. Whenever your are fly fishing for big browns, don't ever think that your streamer pattern is too large. No matter what you are casting, a Muddler Minnow, Zonker or whatever, in sizes as large as 2 -4 can't even compare to the natural in the image above. This Mottled Sculpin [Cottus bairdii], was more than 4 inches long!

Farther upstream in the tributaries of the Escalante River, the number of rough fish decreases, and the numbers of brown trout increase. This is due in part because the suckers and other fish seem to prefer the slower deeper pools, and the warmer temperatures of the lower elevations. The structure of the streambeds change considerably as you progress upstream. The gradient is a bit steeper here, with a rocky streambed and less sand. This creates more riffles between pools. The high sandstone cliffs that loom over the stream on both sides in the lower country give way to wide open areas. The riparian also changes, providing more trees along the banks, and less willows. There are still sandstone cliffs and the long slow pools and runs associated with these cliffs along the way, but not as many. Brown trout are everywhere as you wade up the stream.

The mid elevation areas of some of these streams will flow mostly through private property. This restricts access to most anglers. Current Utah state law allows anglers to fish any stream flowing through private land as long as they enter and leave from a public thoroughfare such as a bridge on a public road. They must also stay within the high water mark at all times while fishing these streams. This means that you cannot traverse across private land to or from your fishing destination without written permission from either the landowner or the manager of that land. During the regular fishing season, from April through October, the Boulder Creek where it flows past Highway 12 is a dry streambed. The water that would normally flow here has been completely diverted upstream for irrigation use. This dry streambed cannot legally be used as a corridor through private land to gain access to public land further upstream. This particular stream runs through many miles of cliff lined canyon before spilling out onto this private land. The canyon walls are of sheer sandstone more than one hundred feet high. When you consider the geography and terrain of this area, the going gets real tough. Most anglers these days prefer the comfort of their luxury SUV close at hand when they fish. If you travel a bit farther off the beaten path around here, you are not likely to see any other anglers…..ever! Since these areas are rather remote and quite rugged, a guide is definitely recommended. Your guide will generally have prior written permission to enter private ground. The brown trout continue to be the majority of fish caught here, but are beginning to give way to the rainbow as you move further upstream closer to the Boulder Mountain. The stream is very secluded at this point and as close to pristine as you can get. Very few fly fishers ever get the opportunity to walk and wade in a fine trout stream like this with no other anglers. Boulder provides that special setting for this unusual phenomenon to occur. Rarely do you ever encounter another angler while fly fishing a secluded stream on Boulder Mountain. With private access, this is assured.

These waters are managed as wild trout only. This means that no fish are stocked. The wild browns are totally self-sustaining and receive no food other than their natural diet of insects etc.. They are not pressured by anglers very often in these streams. Consequently, they will readily take your fly. They will often aggressively chase a fly downstream as it drifts, finally grabbing it right at your feet! The wild brown trout that inhabit some of the private ponds around the town of Boulder are not as easy to hook, however. The water is crystal clear and these fish are wary. They will rise to a dry fly or take a nymph with a decent presentation.

Your guide will help you with your cast so that you can learn to accomplish this. If you have never fly fished, there is no better place to get started, than a still water setting where you can learn to cast and quite possibly hook and land a trophy wild brown trout on your first fly fishing trip. The 2009 fishing season begins in April, and there are still many quality brown trout fisheries on this mountain, for those who know where to look!

Call Steve Stoner at 1- 435-335-7306 Your call will always be returned

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