Brown Trout
Salmo trutta. Golden-brown to olive body with dark spots ringed by pale halos, the key trait separating them from other stocked trout.
Photos
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Identification
- Golden-brown to olive body with dark spots ringed by pale halos, the key trait separating them from other stocked trout.
- Typically 12 to 18 inches in stocked lakes and streams; quality waters can produce fish over 20 inches.
- Members of the Salmo genus, more closely related to Atlantic salmon than to rainbow, cutthroat, or other native Pacific trout.
Preferred temperature
54–66°F
Depth by season
| Season | Depth | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Spring | – | Cool water lets fish feed actively through the day, often shallower and closer to shore. |
| Summer | – | Warm surface water pushes fish toward deep water or shade; feeding shifts mostly to dawn and dusk. |
| Fall | – | Cooling water brings a return to active daytime feeding, similar to the spring pattern. |
| Winter | – | Fish move into deep, low-velocity water and conserve energy in cold water; feeding slows but continues. |
Active times
- dawn
- day
- dusk
Top lures
- Rapala floating minnow (crankbait , silver/black/gold/orange/brown trout pattern): Cast-and-retrieve or troll along drop-offs and shorelines over deeper holding water.
- Little Cleo spoon (spoon , silver/gold/copper): Cast to deep pools, drop-offs, and structure where brown trout hold near cover.
- Woolly Bugger streamer (fly , olive/black/brown): Stripped through deep runs and undercut banks at dawn or dusk when browns feed most actively.
- Panther Martin spinner (spinner , black/yellow/brown/orange): Streams and stocked lake inlets, worked across current or along undercut banks.
Top baits
- Nightcrawler: Drifted on a small bait hook with a split shot, fished along undercut banks and deep runs.
- PowerBait dough bait: Marble-sized ball molded onto a treble hook, suspended off bottom near deep holes and drop-offs.
Line & tackle
- Line: 4–8 lb
- Rod power: Medium-light to medium spinning rod, or a 5-6 weight fly rod for larger, wary fish
- Hook sizes: Size 8 to 14 hooks for bait
Stocked behavior
Brown trout are more often released as 2-8 inch fingerlings than as catchable-size fish, so newly stocked fish need weeks of feeding on natural food before reaching catchable size rather than biting readily on day one. From the start they favor cover such as undercut banks, rocks, and submerged structure over open water, and grow noticeably more cautious of anglers within their first weeks.
Common mistakes
- Fishing insect imitations for the big ones; browns switch to a fish diet as they grow, so baitfish-mimicking spoons and plugs win.
- Only fishing midday in warm months; browns feed most actively at dawn, dusk, and after dark once water warms.
- Ignoring cover like undercut banks, logs, and boulders; brown trout hold tight to structure more than other trout.
State records
| State | Weight | Angler | Water | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 22.00 lbs | R. L. Henry | Sullivan Lake, Pend Oreille County | 1965 |
| Utah | 33 lbs. 10 oz. | Robert Bringhurst | Flaming Gorge Reservoir | 1977 |
Sources: Washington's official record page , Utah's official record page , accessed 2026-09-19.
Best time to fish Brown Trout
Computed from every real stocking date on record, not a general seasonal guess.
Washington
Most commonly stocked in May in Washington, based on 10 stocking events on record.
Utah
Most commonly stocked in May in Utah, based on 127 stocking events on record.
Where it's stocked
23 locations shown. Click a pin for details.
Washington
Utah
- Jackson Flat Reservoir (34)
- Otter Creek Reservoir (13)
- Fish Lake (12)
- Steinaker Reservoir (10)
- Matt Warner Reservoir (10)
- Willow Park Pond (8)
- Hyrum Reservoir (7)
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir (6)
- Huntington North Reservoir (5)
- Grantsville Reservoir (3)
- Piute Reservoir (3)
- Minersville Reservoir (3)
- Browns Draw Reservoir (3)
- Big Sand Wash Reservoir (2)
- Salem Pond (2)
- Adams Reservoir (1)
- Upper Enterprise Reservoir (1)
- Newcastle Reservoir (1)
- Red Fleet Reservoir (1)
Sources
- identification (accessed 2026-09-18)
- preferred_temp_f (accessed 2026-09-18)
- depth_by_season (accessed 2026-09-18)
- depth_by_season (accessed 2026-09-18)
- active_times (accessed 2026-09-18)
- active_times (accessed 2026-09-18)
- top_lures (accessed 2026-09-18)
- top_baits (accessed 2026-09-18)
- line_and_tackle (accessed 2026-09-18)
- stocked_behaviour (accessed 2026-09-18)
- stocked_behaviour (accessed 2026-09-18)
- line_and_tackle (accessed 2026-09-19)
- line_and_tackle (accessed 2026-09-19)
- common_mistakes (accessed 2026-09-19)
- common_mistakes (accessed 2026-09-19)