DWR staff urge Blue Ribbon reviewers to consider access, easements when scoring Provo River

Division of Wildlife Resources staff told the Great Salt Lake Blue Ribbon Council that the Lower Provo River remains a productive trout fishery but that access and seasonal flow patterns should factor into this year’s Blue Ribbon waterbody assessments.

Why it matters: the council ranks waters for Blue Ribbon designation, and designations inform outreach, monitoring and funding priorities. DWR staff said access limitations and a pending landowner dispute make it important for reviewers to visit multiple reaches before final scoring.

DWR sport-fish staff described the days and places when anglers are most likely to encounter major hatches and fish activity on the portion of the Provo River between the trestle and Deer Creek State Park. Staff recommended reviewers sample the river in mid- to late April for spring hatches — particularly the blue‑winged olive hatch — and in afternoon hours when hatches historically intensify. "You can have some really good days fishing on the Lower Provo River," Mike…