South Fork tribs below Palisades Dam with cutthroat spawning runs open to fishing tomorrow. Some of these still have large cutthroat heading down to the river. Because these currently have cooler water, top water fishing will be slower than presenting such as nymph, small leech, and streamer patterns. The Willow Creek tribs also open to fishing tomorrow. Good locations for family fishing can be around any of the crossings with with wet flies being the best way to encounter trout. Willow Creek has been stocked with rainbow trout around these, but beaver ponds, until their water warms offer better fishing, and the Willow Creek drainage has many of these. More later on best strategies for fishing beaver ponds.
Golden stone flies are still around up and down the river. Some may flies have peaked (green drakes, gray drakes, March browns) and others are yet to peak ( brown drakes and flavs on the upper river). Afternoons will be the best times for finding the brown drakes and flavs.
The other happening that will begin its season is recreational floating. Going through Box Canyon and Big Springs to Mack’s Inn will have the biggest concentrations, but they will also be common through Harriman State Park to Riverside campground. Be patient with these folks as most of them have yet to form an etiquette. Gently explain to them that you realize they have a right to the river, but we appreciate you giving anglers present enough room to enjoy what they do. To be sure, you will learn a lot about human nature through these encounters.
No change in fishing success since our last report. Looks like we need warmer water and weather. Maybe some damsel flies being active soon will help, but for now find some submerged springs and sink a midge pupa around it for a bit of action.
The Madison River below Cabin Creek can be discolored from time to time, but streamer, big stonefly nymph and rubber leg patterns will produce action. Top water fishing is quite slow here. Hebgen Lake is also spotty with some action from midge pupa patterns under an indicator in shallow water. Centennial Valley streams are running high and cold because of run-off. Elk Lake offers good fishing for west slope cutthroat in shallow water through using leech and streamer patterns. No word yet on the road to the upper end being open, but fishing on the lake around Elk Lake Resort is good.
Cool weather is keeping the Firehole River in good fishing shape. Water is cool enough for caddis, PMD and sally activity. The same is happening to a lesser extent on the lower Gibbon River. The Madison River features a good PM caddis hatch for some top water fishing. Use light (5X) tippets for natural drifts of your favorite small caddis patterns.
Perhaps the best still water fishing in the entire region is on Shoshone Lake, but only with the right strategy. Here it is. A three mile walk packing a flotation device down the DeLacy Creek Trail between Old Faithful and Thumb Junction is required or through boating up the Lewis River to realize it. Get out on the lake and look for submerged weed beds in water no more than ten to twelve feet deep. The beds host scuds, leeches, a few snails, and other food forms, so lake trout and a few brown trout are attracted. Use a full sink line to get patterns for these down to the beds, and action is sure to happen. The lake trout run 17-22 inches and the brown trout are slightly larger. The other good fishing in this area is on the Lewis River between Shoshone Lakes where large brown trout are chasing streamer patterns.
No significant giant stonefly or mayfly activity yet. Water needs to warm up. To some extent Dr. Rob Van Kirk’s comments on Henry’s Fork aquatic insect hatches being late this year applies to those on the South Fork. Palisades Reservoir is near 100 % of capacity, and flow out of it was deceased very slightly yesterday with no impact on the relatively slow fishing.
Water Quality and Insect Hatch Information From Dr. Rob Van Kirk’s Henry’s Fork Watershed Report of Today
Overall, water quality continues to be excellent throughout the watershed. Turbidity continues to decrease across the watershed. Water temperatures yesterday were near to slightly below average throughout the watershed. Temperatures were within the optimal range for rainbow trout most of the day in most river reaches. Dissolved oxygen concentrations are optimal.
Timing of aquatic insect hatches at Flat Rock, Ashton Dam and St. Anthony is 1–4 days later than the 2014–2022 average but 1–4 days earlier than last year. Hatch timing in the river reach between Island Park Dam and Pinehaven is 5–6 days later than average but at or a few days ahead of that in 2022. Hatch timing lags average by the largest margin at Marysville, where it is 9 days later than average.
Dr. Rob Van Kirk’s information above explains why fishing is better on some parts of the river than others. For example a good population of big stoneflies remain in Box Canyon, but on cool, cloudy days streamer fishing produces best. Golden stoneflies are coming out up and down the river., Gray drakes and flavs are showing up during PMs on the river below Ashton Dam. The fabled green drake hatch is yet to be significant in the Harriman State Park reach and is declining on the lower river.
The lower Coffee Pot area will one of the better locations to find relative solitude on the river. The Henry’s Fork giant stonefly hatch ends there, and golden stone fly, PMD and caddis activities can bring on good fishing.
Flow out of Palisades Dam has been nearly constant for about a week. Streamer, rubber leg, woolly bugger patterns and annelid presented in slower waters will interest some fish. Changes are coming soon with the stonefly hatches just around the corner. We will keep track of these and their progress and report on this web site.
With the exception of the Ashton-Flagg Road beyond Calf Creek hill and one other big exception, all back country roads are open. The other exception is getting to Bear Creek where the Bear Creek road will be closed for many weeks. The Jensen Creek road, the long way around ( Leaving the McCoy Creek Road about three miles above the campground) to Bear Creek is also closed. Thus the only ways to reach Bear Creek is though boating or hiking. Other major streams feeding Palisades Reservoir are rounding into good fishing shape with small streamer and such as woolly bugger and San Juan worm patterns being effective until aquatic insects ( caddis, golden stone flies, PMDs,etc) become more active. Other small streams in that area that are rounding into shape are the Salt River tribs coming out of Idaho: Jackknife, Tincup, Stump, and Crow Creeks. Fish within these respond to the same patterns suggested for the Reservoir tribs.
The Firehole River is beginning to warm, so begin considering other waters to fish. Some of the best stream fishing currently in the park is on the Lewis River Channel between Lewis and Shoshone Lakes where resident brown trout will chase streamer patterns. The channel also has a minor giant stone fly emergence and some green drakes. Green drakes are also in the river below Lewis lake (where browns are wary beyond belief) at least to the top of the canyon. Fishing on Shoshone Lake using the strategies we described in our last report work big time.
If traveling a distance to enjoy some of the largest cutts and bows in the Park is OK with you, Trout Lake, a few miles west of the northeast entrance offers these. The lake is about half a mile uphill walk from the highway. It can be fished from shore, but packing a flotation device to get onto it is a best strategy. Damsel and dragon fly life cycle patterns, scud and leech patterns, sometimes suspended under an indicator, sometimes slow trolled (intermediate line) bring best results. The lake will begin weeding up big time soon making wet fly fishing difficult ,so the next few weeks is best time for a visit.
