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Why Fish Here
The sandstone formations the park is named for run right down into the water, so you are casting against rock instead of sagebrush, which is not something most Utah trout reservoirs offer. The dinosaur trackway is the other draw, roughly 200 million years old and left by dilophosaurus, three-toed prints 10 to 12 inches across pressed into the slickrock at the shoreline. In high water years many of those tracks go under. The trailhead is two miles down Donkey Flat Road, about a mile north of the park entrance.
How To Fish It
Best rigs: Slip bobber + worm off the red rocks
Bait and lures: Worms, PowerBait, small cranks
Best time: Morning. Season: April-October
Local tip: Cast among red-rock cliffs, then hike to dinosaur tracks after lunch.
Species Playbook
Rainbow Trout
Rig: Slip-bobber or sliding sinker rig, 4 lb mono line, size 8-10 baitholder
Bait: PowerBait (rainbow/garlic), nightcrawler, small spinners (Panther Martin, Jake's)
When: Early morning & last 2 hours before dark
Utah's #1 fish. If a pond got stocked this week, cast anything shiny. Perfect first fish for kids.
Largemouth Bass
Rig: Texas-rigged worm near weeds; wacky rig Senko
Bait: Senkos, jigs, frogs over pads, topwater at dawn
When: Dawn topwater, evenings; pre-spawn (April-May) is prime
Look for submerged brush, tules, and shade lines.
Bluegill & Sunfish
Rig: Worm under a small bobber, size 10 hook - that's it
Bait: Worms, mealworms, tiny jigs
When: All day long, all summer
THE kid fish. Pelican Lake grows bluegill the size of dinner plates.
Getting There + Nearby
Nearby adventures: Red Fleet State Park (State Park, 0 mi) · Steinaker Reservoir (Fishing, 8 mi) · Steinaker State Park (State Park, 8 mi) · Utah Field House of Natural History SP (State Park, 11 mi)
Quick Answers
- What fish are in Red Fleet Reservoir?
- Rainbow Trout, Largemouth Bass, Bluegill & Sunfish.
- What is the best bait at Red Fleet Reservoir?
- Worms, PowerBait, small cranks
- When is the best time to fish Red Fleet Reservoir?
- Morning. Season: April-October.
- Why fish Red Fleet Reservoir?
- Red Fleet holds trout and warmwater fish in the same reservoir, so a family can split up and everybody catches something. The bigger reason people come back is the setting, sandstone reefs dropping into the water, with a campground on the rim and the trackway trail a mile up the road.