Fishing Lake Hardy in Salt Lake County, Utah

• Overview

  Out in Salt Lake County, Utah, sits Lake Hardy. It stands 9,948 feet above sea level. This is a pocket water of some 5 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Supplies mean a trip to Granite, 5.1 miles off. Then Alpine, 5.5 miles, and Draper, 6.8 miles. The line between counties passes nearby, which can change who manages the water.

• Where to Fish on Lake Hardy

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. County-wide records name rainbow trout, black-spotted cutthroat trout and brown trout. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. On Lake Hardy a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 59°F, with December the cold end at about 21°F. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near early May. Break-up near early May, freeze-up near mid November: that is the shape of an average year. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Lake Hardy fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. No built facilities appear in mapping around this water. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Red Pine Lake, 2.5 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Where Lake Hardy is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.