Why Target Them
Arctic grayling are the odd one out in Utah, a northern fish living in a handful of high mountain lakes. They are not hard to catch once you find them, since they rise to small dries through the middle of the day, but you have to walk in. Keep your size expectations low: the state record is 1 pound 12 ounces and 17.25 inches, from Big Dog Lake on the South Slope in 1998. They count in the same combined four-fish limit as trout.
How To Catch Them
Where: Select Uinta high lakes
Go-to rig: Fly-and-bubble with small dries, ultralight spinners
Best bait and lures: Small dry flies (Adams, Renegade), tiny spinners
Best time: Midday hatches at altitude
That sailfin dorsal! A bucket-list backcountry catch.
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Also works: tiny spinners
The hike-in kit: 4-piece rod that fits the pack, bubble-and-fly for reach.
Where To Catch Them (2 waters)
Quick Answers
- How do you catch Arctic Grayling in Utah?
- Go-to rig: Fly-and-bubble with small dries, ultralight spinners Best bait: Small dry flies (Adams, Renegade), tiny spinners
- Where can I catch Arctic Grayling in Utah?
- Boulder Mountain Lakes, Uinta Backcountry Lakes.
- When do Arctic Grayling bite best?
- Midday hatches at altitude
- Why fish for Arctic Grayling in Utah?
- Because it is the only fish in Utah that looks like that. The sail-like dorsal fin makes a grayling worth the hike on its own, and they live in high lakes where you will often have the shore to yourself. Expect a fish under a pound rather than a trophy, and plan around a short high-country season.