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..