Fishing Forum

Anyone ever made the 4 mile hike up Bell Canyon to the Upper Bell Resevoir in Sandy along the wasatch front? I am going this Saturday.
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Did that a couple of years ago. It is a very steep hike and easy to get off the trail. If you get up there it is worth it, however. There are some nice cutthroat in the lake and the fishing can be fantastic.

I know CBR has done it you might want to get ahold of him.
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I led a hike up there last year--not to the reservoir up top, but to the second waterfall. It's a steep hike--VERY steep. You make around 4000 feet in elevation (the trailhead is at about 5200 feet, Lower Bells Res at 5578ft. and the upper res just shy of 9400ft) in only about 3.75 miles.

It's a great hike to feel the burn in your legs, for sure.

Are you sure it's snow free already?

Also, I've heard the upper reservoir is a bit tricky to find without a GPS. Not that it's impossible, but I know a lady who's tried twice now and as soon as the trail crosses the river up above the second waterfall, it becomes faint and she's never found Upper Bells.

Good luck!



lurechucker
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I went a couple of years ago. It is very steep and I am glad I went but I probably won't ever do it again. The last 1/4 mile after the trail ends is the worst part. It takes almost as long as the rest of the hike. Where the trail ends the rock cairns start. The trouble is they don't lead you to anything. I think that every person that has found the lake marked a different way back. Now there are cairns all over the mountain and it is impossible to follow them to the lake. Even though I have been there once I would not attempt to go back without a GPS. I needed it the first time and I would probably need it again.

Allow yourself plenty of time. I started before daylight and didn't get down until 5 or 6 o'clock and I didn't get in much fishing time. I did catch a few nice cuts.

Finally, if you go now don,t bother to take a fishing pole. It is very high and you are going to find it covered with ice and snow.
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The trail is somewhat undefined past that river. I have never actually made the entire hike myself, only made it to the first waterfall last year because I did not have a lot of time. But I heard you have to bushwack it from the point you are reffering too, then you hit the lake. It is a nice sized lake so I am sure I will find it. There will be snow up there. I will give it a shot, but the snow and the brush might prove to be too much, I will see. Im getting nervous about it now though.
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I thought I had hiked to the upper reservoir, but then a year later my hiking buddy told me that he had gone up again and found the real lake. When I went up with him, we lost the trail in the snow and ended up finding a very small pond that we thought was the lake. OOPS!

I don't know how I feel about fishing the upper reservoir. Fishing is not supposed to be that much work.
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It is a lot of work to fish, but I am backpacking up that steep sonofagun. Going to camp out & fish.
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It's a rough hike for a short time to fish, but the GPS coordinates are N 40 32.39' W 111 44.91'. You will be going close to 5000' in elevation change in a 4 mile distance.
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