Yellowstone Park

Yellowstone National Park, July 24th, 2021

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High-water temperatures and low stream flows prompt fishing closures in Yellowstone National Park 

MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Effective Saturday, July 24, Yellowstone National Park’s rivers and streams will close to fishing in the afternoon and evening due to high-water temperatures and unprecedented low stream flows. This closure will protect the park’s native and wild trout fisheries. 

What will be closed? 

• Fishing on rivers and streams will be prohibited from 2 p.m. to sunrise the following day. 
• The closure will remain in effect until further notice. 

What will be open? 

• Anglers can fish from sunrise to 2 p.m. 
• Yellowstone Lake and other lakes will remain open to fishing from sunrise to sunset as specified in the Fishing Regulations booklet. 

Water temperatures have exceeded 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) in recent days, and flows on many rivers are approaching historic lows. These conditions are extremely stressful and can be fatal to fish. The extended forecast calls for continued hot and dry conditions with a slight chance of isolated afternoon thunderstorms, which contribute to continued low stream flows and high-water temperatures. 

Anglers: Please fish during the coolest times of day and land fish quickly–do not play hooked trout to exhaustion. Gently handle fish in the water as much as possible and let them recover before release . Your cooperation will protect the park’s fisheries and may preclude the need to prohibit fishing at all times of the day on some rivers and streams if conditions worsen.  

Yellowstone Park, July 20th, 2021

Beula Lake

Main roads are crowded with record numbers of tourists and most streams are warm and at or near base levels. There are some waters that do not experience the crowding found on road-side waters and retain water temperatures suitable for active trout. Beula Lake,at near 7500 feet elevation, is one of these if a 2.5 mile walk to get there is not a physical obstacle. It’s trailhead is off the lightly traveled Ashton-Flagg Road near the east end of Grassy Lake Reservoir. Currently it is offering good fishing for those carrying a lightweight flotation device or those willing to wade its southeast and east shore lines. Yellowstone cutthroat trout are the sole inhabitants and they range to near trophy size. Speckled dun, damsel flies and cinnamon caddisflies are the most numerous aquatic insects with leeches and scuds also important. Terrestrial insects become more important as summer advances. Three primitive campground are along the west shore and can be reserved through the park’s back country permit system. Riddle Lake, sitting very near the Continental Divide and off the park’s south entrance highway with a walk of just under 2 miles is similar to Beula in many respects but offers smaller cutthroat.

Yellowstone Park, July 13th, 2021

The Yellowstone River below the lake opens to fishing on Thursday, July 15th. Expect good fishing (green drakes, big stone flies, sallys, PMDs etc coming out) and plenty of company. Another opening that day is Pelican Creek. Fish will be returning to the lake there and their numbers are increasing. You will find more solitude there than on the river and fish will take any small or medium sized fly pattern offered, Be bear and bison aware. Fishing on the Madison and Gibbon Rivers is slowing and dangerrous to fish as water temperatures (74 Deg. F in Madison, up to 80 Deg F in Firehole) warm.

Yellowstone Park, July 10th, 2021

With water temperatures into the low 70s (Deg. F) it is time to leave the Firehole River. Even the Madison River within is experiencing water temperatures close to the 70s in Deg. F. Good alternatives are the Lamar River drainage in the Northeast corner of the park and the Fall River drainage in the southwest corner.

Now that the Ashton-Flagg Road is open, Beula Lake can be fished and will offer some of the fastest fishing in the park. Shoreline fishing is possible from the inlet to along the east shore. Otherwise packing a flotation device to fish from results in the best fishing. Speckled dun and damsel fly life cycle patterns, small leech and scud patterns bring success when using an intermediate line. Also with this road open there are several access points to fish Fall River in the park where dry stone fly, PMD, and caddis life cycle patterns along with traditional attractor patterns bring success.

Yellowstone National Park, July 3rd, 2021

The Ashton-Flagg Road opened to travel on Thursday, July 1st. This action makes access to the Park’s Fall River Basin lakes and streams fully available for fishing. The Basin includes nearly all the southwest corner of the park and contributes major water to the Henry’s Fork. Bechler and Fall River, Boundary, Mountain Ash and Proposition Creeks and Beula and Hering Lakes are the major waters here and each is of the highest fishing quality. No maintained roads are near any of these waters (except for the Cave Falls loop), so walking distances varying from about a mile to several miles are required to approach each. Cutthroat-Rainbow hybrid, cutthroat and in the Fall River side brook trout are the sole salmonid species. Rocky Mountain whitefish and suckers are absent likely because of downstream barrier waterfalls. All these waters are open to fishing during the Park’s general season, however because the Basin receives perhaps the most snowfall of any of its parts, the beginning of July is the most practical time to venture to its waters. What becomes available as food for trout here is much the same for all its streams and lakes. Late June and early July begins with yellow sally and PMD emergences on streams and cinnamon caddis, speckled dun and damsel flies. By mid-July brown drakes will emerge from the streams, but in this low water year the green drake emergence will be minimal.

Slough Creek in Upper Meadows

Heart River below Heart Lake

So many of the park waters are experiencing drought conditions, Thus there is potential that many could be limited with respect to fishing hours. For example, water temperature in the Firehole River now exceeds 70 degrees (Fahrenheit). Because of low snowfall during the previous winter Heart Lake has warmed such that its salmonids have mostly retreated to deep water. Heart Lake and its drainage opened to fishing on July 1st and the best strategy to fish it during these drought conditions is to travel within days to its outlet to encounter fish feeding on the giant and golden stone fly activity coming towards the lake and its immediate outlet from the canyon below. To do this a multi-day trip is required. Shoshone Lake still offers good fishing when a flotation device or a boat is used to approach submerged weed beds and a full-sink line and stout leader is used to present leech, scud, and streamer patterns. The Lamar River drainage offers improving fishing as run-off is leaving early, but getting there through park roads is time consuming. Nevertheless these waters, much of which,are road side are easily approached will offer great fishing with a progression of mayfly and stone fly hatches for weeks to come. Fall River Basin waters will offer great and tranquil fishing on all the above mentioned waters if one is willing to walk far enough to approach them..

Yellowstone Park, June 22nd, 2021

Shoshone and Lewis Lakes and the the river channel between are open and producing. The best strategy for fishing the meadow parts of the channel is through presenting streamer patterns. Browns are the main trout here with some juvenile lake trout, and a very rare brookie. A few giant and golden stone flies are emerging from the channel’s upstream waters and will attract resident trout. Towards the end of the month and the first of July green drakes will emerge from the channel’s meadow area and also from the Lewis River in the meadow below Lewis Lake. It is tough to catch fish from the Shoshone Lake shoreline through casting almost any fly pattern. Streamers and leech patterns can work, but a good day would be hooking up with one or two fish, and doing the same from the Yellowstone Lake shoreline produces similar results as its cutthroat trout population is in a recovery mode and lake rout move to depth. By far the best way to have great fishing in Shoshone Lake is to pack a flotation device down the DeLacey Creek Trail and launch into the lake to find weed beds. Fishing from a hard-sided boat portaged through the channel also works. Juvenile lake trout and brown trout to trophy size hang around weed beds to forage leeches and scuds. The weed beds are in relatively shallow water and usually visible as dark patches in the lighter colored bottom. A full sink line is best for presenting patterns of these.

Other waters in the park are beginning to offer good fishing. Fall River Basin streams are in dry fly condition, but because of low snowfall in our previous winter will drop to base level and warm very soon. The same will happen with Lamar River drainage streams in the Park’s northeast corner. The Firehole River is beginning to warm to levels where trout will become less responsive to fly fishing. Gibbon River below the Falls produces with small streamer patterns and caddis fly and PMD life cycle patterns.The Madison River below has fish responding to PMD and caddis fly life cycle patterns. Streamer fishing is becoming less effective here as most spring spawning rainbows have returned to Hebgen Lake.

Yellowstone Park, May 29th, 2021

We have all grades of Yellowstone Park fishing permits  ( Season : $75, 7-day $55, 2-day $40) and regulation booklets.  These are also available on line through the park web site: www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/fishing.htm. Park boating permits are available only at ranger stations.

The Firehole River will offer the best early season fishing here, so expect company. BWO life cycle, white miller, and soft hackle patterns are usually the most effective during the early season.

Yellowstone Park, Halloween day, 2020

 

Do you want to make a trip to fish park waters somewhere? Better hurry: Tomorrow is the last day of the 2020 park fishing season.