Little Dell Reservoir

About Little Dell Reservoir

Little Dell Reservoir sits in eastern Salt Lake County, about 13 miles east of downtown Salt Lake City in the western Wasatch Mountains, close enough for an after-work trip, yet it feels like a different world once you’re there. The reservoir was built in 1993 as a joint flood control, municipal water supply, and wildlife enhancement project. It remains a critical piece of Salt Lake City’s protected drinking water watershed to this day. The dam itself is a rolled earthfill structure, 224 feet high and 1,700 feet long, holding back a maximum capacity of 20,500 acre-feet of water.

The area carries real pioneer history too. The recreation area sits near the former site of Little Dell Station, a Pony Express stop run by Utah pioneer Ephraim Hanks in the mid-1800s, located about 1,000 feet northeast of the reservoir’s northern tip.

Fish Species

Little Dell holds two species: Bonneville Cutthroat Trout and Brook Trout. The Bonneville Cutthroat population here has become well known among serious anglers, prized for their size, and a real rarity for a fishery sitting this close to a major metro area. Part of the reason they grow so well is that Little Dell’s native Cutthroat actually serve double duty as brood stock. DWR collects eggs from fish spawning in the tributary streams above the reservoir, using them to help populate other lakes and streams along the Wasatch Front.

How to Fish

Woolly Buggers and other shiny, baitfish-imitating lures are the standard here. Since bait is off the table entirely, come prepared with fly or light spin gear. I visited the reservoir in hopes of checking off one of the four species of cutthroat for the Utah Cutthroat Slam. We dragged the Kayaks down the hill and had success trolling Jake's Spin-a-lures colored gold with red spots.

When to Fish

Early spring, right as the ice clears, is a productive time. Bonneville Cutthroat and Brook Trout are both active in open water before the bugs show up and before snowmelt floods the reservoir with runoff.

 

Facilities & Access

Two hand-launch boat ramps serve the reservoir, with no docking facilities. Several picnic sites are available, some shaded and some not. A day-use fee applies, and season passes are sold for frequent visitors. Access runs along State Highway 65 (East Canyon Road), about six miles south of Big Mountain Summit, just past Mountain Dell Reservoir and golf course.

Final Thoughts

The restrictions here are real, but so is the payoff. For a fishery sitting this close to the Salt Lake Valley, paired with a potential for large native Cutthroat, it's hard to beat.

Fishing Regulations

Little Dell carries some of the most restrictive, and specific, regulations of any fishery on this site, since it sits inside a protected municipal watershed:

• Catch-and-release only. Nothing may be kept.
• Artificial flies and lures only. Worms, salmon eggs, cheese baits, PowerBait, pickled minnows, and any other organic bait are prohibited.
• Bonneville Cutthroat must always be released, specifically to protect and support the brood-stock program described above.
• No swimming or wading, no motorized boats (hand-launch, non-motorized watercraft only), no campfires or charcoal grills (camp stoves and propane only), and a 15 mph speed limit throughout the recreation area.
• No waterfowl hunting on the reservoir or within 200 yards of it.

Always check the current Utah Fishing Guidebook before your trip, since watershed-specific rules can shift.