Stonefly Society
TU Chapter 48
The Stonefly Society is the oldest TU chapter in Utah and one of the oldest in the United States. We are a
Utah Trout Unlimited Chapter for Salt Lake County and the surrounding area. We welcome everyone who
cares about fishing and the conservation of Utah’s fisheries. Currently, there are close to 900 active TU
members associated with the Stonefly Society.
Trout Camp for Teens
Each year the Stonefly Society and the Utah Council of Trout Unlimited host a three-day, all inclusive fly fishing
camp for mature teens between the agest of 12 – 17. The camp is held at Sportsman’s Paradise, aka White’s
Ranch, in Paradise, UT, and is limited to a total of fourteen boys and girls. White’s Ranch is a private fly
fishing facility with miles of private streams and ponds that are loaded with trout. Registrations are conducted
online and are accepted on a “first come, first served” basis. No prior fly fishing experience is necessary. All
of the required equipment, including rods, reels, line, leaders, tippet, accessories and flies are provided. The
camp is a “sleep away” camp with segregated sleeping accommodations for boys and girls, and with all meals,
snacks and hydration provided. In addition to fly fishing, campers learn entomology and basic fly tying
skills. The program is supervised by skilled TU volunteers, all of whom must complete a police background
check and receive training in working with young people. Campers return from the camp with a lot more skill,
experience, knowledge and friendships, but, most importantly, they catch a lot of fish and have tons of fun. In
2023, the camp will be held on June 20-22, 2023. To register, and for further information contact David Leta at
801-560-5382 or David.leta@gmail.com.
Second Cast
“Second Cast” gear donation project Stonefly Society, in cooperation with all of the other Utah TU Chapters, has launched the “Second Cast” gear donation project to find fishing gear and raise money so that teens and other young fly fishers will have the gear they need to learn the sport. The TU chapters are asking members who have useable fly fishing and fly tying gear that they no longer need or use to donate this gear so that deserving kids who participate in our youth training programs, including our annual Trout Camp for Teens, can use it. There is a special need for the basics: rods, reels (with line) and accessories (nippers, forceps, tippet, vests, etc.).
Millcreek cutthroat restoration project complete
After a century of absence, indigenous Bonneville cutthroat trout once again swim in Millcreek in Salt Lake City. Removal of a small dam and restoration of the creek channel through the dam site was the consummation of a four-year collaborative project. The success of the ambitious project was recently celebrated with the third, and final, stocking of native Bonneville cutthroat trout.
Utah Trout Unlimited collaborated with the UintaWasatch-Cache National Forest, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, PacifiCorp, private landowners, Boy Scouts of America and others on removal on non-native trout, culvert replacement, dam removal, stream restoration, and reintroduction of Bonneville cutthroat trout. TU’s Stonefly Society chapter used an Embrace-A-Stream grant and many volunteer hours to create a conservation model within a fiveminute drive from Salt Lake Valley and its 1.5 million people. In addition to providing funds for replacing culverts to allow fish passage, TU assisted in the cleanup and disposal of non-native fish after rotenone treatments for three consecutive years.
Native Bonneville cutthroat stocking in Millcreek Canyon, Salt Lake County.
While fingerlings cutthroat were being stocked in November 2016, previously stocked cutthroat trout had grown to catchable size in the upper sections of the creek, where anglers have been catching the native cutts as part of the new Utah Cutthroat Slam, also a Trout Unlimited joint venture. Proceeds from the Utah Cutthroat Slam were used for the Millcreek dam removal. Millcreek Canyon is a short, 9-mile canyon that enters the Salt Lake Valley near a shopping mall. The creek continues through Salt Lake City’s neighborhoods and parks. Because of its proximity to the city’s residents, Millcreek Canyon is heavily used for hiking, biking, picnicking, and other recreation, including fishing. The Millcreek restoration is significant because native Bonneville cutthroat trout were extirpated nearly a century ago when non-native trout were planted in Millcreek and the river was altered by the construction of
lumber mills. The indigenous trout are named for ice-age Lake Bonneville, which inundated the mouth of Millcreek Canyon 15,000 years ago. In addition to native cutthroat reintroduction, native mountain suckers and long-nose dace were also reintroduced to the lower section of the creek.
You can find us on Facebook or our website https://stoneflysociety.tu.org
