Many diehard fly fishermen don’t believe it’s possible to catch brook trout, rainbows, browns and cutthroat trout in the same river. Trout of different species just don’t hang out in the same places – they require different water temperatures and have different feeding patterns. However, in my more than 60 years of fly fishing I’ve experienced this phenomenon twice.
Kimball Creek near Park City
The first such experience happened on Kimball Creek, which ran behind my house when I lived on Old Ranch Road, just outside of Park City. You’d mostly find browns in that stretch of water with an occasional migrating rainbow trout. Due to a small spring creek that flowed into the main river, I suspect it was the colder temperatures that also harbored a few brook and cutthroat trout in Kimball Creek.
Thousand Peaks Ranch near Oakley
Today you’ll find plenty of these species sharing the Weber River high upstream around Thousand Peaks Ranch. In my experience browns in the Weber are found downstream from the canyon above Oakley where the water is warmer. The rainbow trout that you’ll find up and down the Weber and the Provo Rivers are almost certainly planted fish.
Rock Creek in the Uintas
My second encounter with these four species of trout in the same pool of water occurred on Rock Creek in the Uinta basin, about three or four miles upstream from the Farm Creek Bridge. Since this stretch of river sits on Indian land, it requires a special Indian Lands permit, which can be purchased at the Jans Park Avenue location. One of the fish, a brown trout, exceeded 22 inches. To fish this section of Rock Creek also requires that you hire an Indian guide for the day. I suspect the purpose of this is to keep you away from sensitive lands.
If you would like to explore either the private waters of Thousand Peaks Ranch or the Indian Lands, our expert fly fishing guides from Jans in Park City are more than happy to help you out. You can book a guided tour online or give us a call at our flagship store on Park Avenue.
See you on the river!
Jan Peterson
