Fishing The Uintas

This week, I had originally planned to get out with my bro-in-law, but that fell through and I stuck with my intended destination anyway.  It would be my first Uinta trip of the year.

Like usual, my first stop was on the Upper Provo to get some quick bites from tiny brookies.  Gotta get the mojo flowing early to find the proper mindset.

Next stop was a lake I’ve been wanting to fish for a couple of years.  A gorgeous venue, quite suitable for a float.

The conditions were breezy and it made me a little bit nervous about getting on the tube.  Then I considered the size of the lake and that getting blown across wouldn’t be a big deal, so I hopped on and started jigging.

The first taker was a small one:

The next one was much nicer, especially for a Uinta brookie:

More brookies followed and eventually the breeze and cold water left me shaking and ready for a shore break.

It wasn’t very long and I started feeling a few rain drops and the wind really kicked in.  The little voice inside my head told me that I didn’t want to navigate the terrible road in bad weather, so I saddled back up in my tube and made way for my put-in spot, picking up a few more fish along the way.

Luckily, the ominous clouds moved on and the sun could be seen again through the haze of smoke from all the fires everywhere.  Since I had my fun on the lake, I decided that it just wouldn’t be a complete Uinta trip without visiting some other places I like to fish.

The ride back down the evil road was much better on the way down, but still a beast.

My next stop was at some ponds that I really like.  The ponds don’t get stocked, but the nearest lakes do and some of those fish find their way into the ponds during the runoff.  First in line to taste my hook was a tiny rainbow:

But then I got into some tigers, which I hadn’t seen in the ponds before:

Some looked pretty healthy:

The ponds are always a treat and even though they’re right next to some of the most popular spots along the Mirror Lake Highway, I never see a soul out there.

As I fished, I noticed the sky igniting in a brilliant red color as the sun was setting and had to slap myself for continuing to fish rather than getting back to the pass for what would have surely been some incredible photos.

The smoke throughout the sky makes for a very nice sunset, but I had to settle for a pastel twilight instead.  I took a similar photo a couple of years ago from the same spot.

It was a great day and I was pleased to catch nicer fish than usual in the Uintas.  It’s a beautiful world.

Happy Fishing, Humans.