Description:
Peteetneet Creek is a stream named after the Timpanogos Chief Peteetneet who lived near it, in the vicinity of what is now Payson, Utah. Its source is located at 39°56′52″N 111°40′37″W, the confluence of Shram Creek and Frank Young Canyon Creek.
History
Peteneet Creek was a good camping spot on the Mormon Road, a Mormon pioneer and 49er wagon route between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. The Latter-day Saints first settled in Payson in 1850. After improvements were made to the Mormon Road wagon route in 1855, it had become what was known as the Los Angeles - Salt Lake Road. This was a wagon freight route used each year from late fall through winter into early spring, between Southern California and Utah, isolated by the winter snows in the Sierra Nevada Mountains from San Francisco and by the Rocky Mountains from the rest of the United States to the east. This route remained the only winter season route to the outside world, until the arrival of the railroad in Utah in the late 1860s.:2, 172–178
Peteetneet Creek is located up Payson Canyon in South Utah County. The creek is very small, and in fact much of the year it runs completely dry in the lower stretches of the canyon and into Payson City. In the upper canyon, however, near Payson Lakes, the stream is home to a few Brook Trout that have escaped down from the lakes above, as well as some stocked Rainbow Trout that are placed there by the Utah DWR. The stream is heavily stocked with catchable Rainbow Trout during the summer and early fall months.
Fish Species:
Brook Trout
Rainbow Trout
Directions:
Take I-15 to Payson Main Street (Exit 250).
Head south on Payson Main until junction with Hwy. 198 (stop light).
Turn left (east) onto Hwy. 198.
Turn right (south) onto 600 East (Canyon Road).
Head south on Canyon road up into Payson Canyon. The road follows the creek.
Current Regulations:
Statewide Trout/Salmon/Grayling limit: 4 fish (in the aggregate)
Fishing Tips:
Since the creek is dry for much of the year in its lower stretches, angler should concentrate their efforts on the upper half of the stream, where water flows year round. Small flies such as hare's ears, pheasant tails, and other nymphs should work well, but the most common method here is with bait such as small worms or pieces of nightcrawlers fished in the holes behind rocks.
If you can find a good pool or a large enough hole, tossing a 1/16 oz. spinner and reeling it back downstream with the current may result in some fish as well.
