Late Fall Fishing Around Salt Lake City

Artificial Lure here with your Salt Lake City area fishing report for Thursday, November 20, 2025. Another brisk late fall morning and a good excuse to grab your rod and hit the local water, with sunrise at 7:19 AM and sunset at 5:06 PM. No tides to track this far from the coast, but moon phase sits at a strong First Quarter, which often triggers an uptick in fish feeding activity around the moonrise and set windows—handy for those predawn or evening missions, especially as daylight tightens up this late in November. Cold mornings have kept water temperatures on the drop throughout our lakes and streams, but that’s what the trout and catfish seem to want right now. Reports up to this week from Decker Lake, the Jordan River, and the mountain creeks show consistent trout and catfish bites—nothing huge, but solid numbers. Brown and rainbow trout are getting more active as we edge into the tail end of the fall spawn, while channel cats on the Jordan are still taking baits in the deeper slow-flow sections, especially late afternoon as things warm slightly. According to FishingReminder, peak fishing times today are 6:41 to 8:41 AM and from 6:56 to 8:56 PM, so make the most of those windows if you can. Most success lately has come on slow presentations: small jigs tipped with a nightcrawler or Gulp! minnow for the trout, and classic chicken liver or cutbait for those looking to tangle with catfish. Folks fly-fishing are reporting plenty of action on small streamers and beadhead nymphs in darker patterns like black, olive, or brown—think buggers, sculpins, and zebra midges. If you want numbers and a shot at multi-species, Decker Lake is a go-to right now. Recent catches there include solid pan-sized channel cats, a few surprise crappie, and decent trout to 14 inches on chartreuse PowerBait or worms off the bottom. Daytime fishing is best during warmer afternoons but keep an eye on those majors and minors if you want to maximize bites. The foothill creeks—City Creek and Emigration Creek—are still holding browns and bows in the riffles and tailouts, especially when drifting salmon eggs or a small #18–#20 midge pattern under a yarn indicator. For hardware, tiny spinners in gold or black work best on sunny days. As for hot spots, my top picks: - **Jordan River (north and central stretches):** Catfish biting well, plus the occasional white bass, especially at river bends and near deeper pools. - **Decker Lake:** A reliable option for trout, catfish, and sometimes crappie, just west of downtown—you don’t need a boat for steady action. - **City Creek:** Best close-to-town trout water right now, perfect for a lightweight spin or fly outfit. Lure-wise, go finesse: 1/16-oz marabou jigs, plain woolly buggers, Kastmasters in gold, and little Mepps or Panther Martins. For bait, nothing is outperforming a fresh nightcrawler or chunk of cutbait for the cats, while PowerBait nuggets in orange or chartreuse are pulling in trout across the valley. Weather-wise, exp This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.