Yellowstone River | Lamar Drainage | Gardner River | Madison Drainage | Small Streams | Stillwaters

Small Streams and Creeks

1. Introduction

2. Description and Access

3. Angling

    Hatch and Pattern Chart

    Top Flies

Introduction

        Yellowstone's small streams and creeks are not famous and with only a few exceptions their trout are small, but there are hundreds of miles of them, ranging in character from rough-and-tumble creeks tumbling vertically down mountains through boulder gardens to classic riffle-pool trout streams to undercut, meandering meadow streams where even the eight-inchers bolt if you throw a shadow on the water.  These streams, even those close to the road, offer visiting anglers something in short supply on easy-to-reach sections of Yellowstone's larger, more famous rivers: solitude.

Description and Access

        The Yellowstone area's small creeks range wildly in character and quality of access.  From Pebble Creek, which has its own campground and both a canyon where small trout live and, upstream, meadows where there are larger trout, to tributaries of the Snake in the southern part of the Park where no more than a dozen anglers fish per season, no one description suits Yellowstone waters.

        In general, most small creeks in the Yellowstone area share character with the larger streams they feed, so breaking down small creeks by river system for descriptive purposes makes the most sense.  Creeks in the Yellowstone drainage that are open to fishing are typically steep, pocket water streams with cutthroat in their lower reaches and all the way to their headwaters if no waterfalls are present, or rainbow and especially brook trout above falls if they are present.  Many Yellowstone tributaries between the Lake and Canyon are closed to angling, and the rest have seasonal closures.  Tributaries above Yellowstone Lake, deep in the backcountry, may have a few large cutts up from the lake, but most have small resident fish populations.  Most Yellowstone tributaries in the canyons and outside the Park receive at least some spawning cutthroat in late spring, so they should be avoided until at least late July to avoid disturbing these spawners.  Even afterwards, be sure to step only on boulders and try to stay out of the water as much as possible.  This preserves the fragile eggs and fry, which will be in gravel.  It makes no sense to practice catch and release angling for large trout while killing 500 small ones with a few errant steps.  Most Yellowstone tribs must be reached by trail, or have a single road crossing which allows access up or downstream.

        Small streams in the Lamar drainage usually have cutthroat trout as their sole residents, with Buffalo Creek in the Slough Creek drainage the exception, with rainbows and a few cutts.  These streams vary wildly in size and character, much like the Lamar itself.  Most are three or more miles into the backcountry, with Pebble Creek and the headwaters of Soda Butte the notable exceptions.

        Gardner-drainage creeks are populated almost exclusively by brook trout.  Most tributaries enter the river above Osprey Falls and were therefore fishless until the main stem Gardner was stocked with brookies.  Lava Creek enters below Osprey Falls, and below its own pair of falls has the full complement of trout found in the lower Gardner.  A few large browns may continue up Lava Creek from the main Gardner in the fall, but this is unusual.   Most Gardner tributaries are meadow streams with a riffle-pool character, though Lava Creek is faster as are portions of some of the others.  Access ranges from difficult to impossible for portions of Lava Creek burned in the 1988 fires and deep in its narrow canyon to easy, for creeks near the Indian Creek campground and Sheepeater picnic ground.

        Creeks in the Gibbon drainage are generally small and not worth the visiting angler's time, with Canyon Creek the sole exception.  Access is moderate, and brook, brown, and rainbow trout are present.  Whitefish and grayling are possible but unlikely.  The Madison river has no significant tributaries that meet it inside Yellowstone Park, but there are several tributaries accessible via bridges and trails in the western part of the Park that meet Hebgen Lake, an impoundment of the Madison just outside the Park.  Some of these offer spawning runs from the lake as well as some fairly significant resident fish.  The terrain is often boggy and bears are a problem, but the going is usually flat.

        The Firehole drainage offers the most "technical" small-stream fishing in the Yellowstone area except the private Paradise Valley spring creeks.  The meadow streams in this drainage all receive a run of larger Firehole River fish in July and August, fish seeking to escape the excessive summer water temperatures in the geothermally-heated Firehole.  Access generally requires an easy hike.  Nez Perce Creek is the largest and best of the Firehole tribs, but it receives fewer run-up fish due to poor habitat and high temperatures in its lower reaches.  Above its hot springs, it is a fine meadow stream in its own right.

        The Gallatin drainage offers several fine cutthroat creeks, most of which have a riffle-pool character.  Most require a short hike, though several flow under the road or on the other side of the river opposite the road.  Some of these creeks, particularly Fan Creek, have cutthroat featuring mostly westslope subspecies genes, making them an interesting quarry despite their small size.  Reintroduction efforts are in progress in some of these watersheds.

        The Bechler and Snake systems are extremely remote and vary from pocket water to riffle-pool meadow streams.  Fish size is dependant upon character.  All require a hike of several to many miles.

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Angling

        Except for the Paradise Valley spring creeks and the Firehole tributaries during refugee season, most small streams in the Yellowstone area require simple tactics and only a few flies.  I could probably catch 75-80% of an average season's trout if limited only to a Coachman Trude, size 14, for example.  There are two reasons for this.  First more small streams are found in the Gardner and Yellowstone drainages than elsewhere.  Those in the Gardner drainage are populated by feisty, unsophisticated brook trout.  There are large numbers of brookies in the Yellowstone tribs as well, but even the streams populated by cutthroats are steep, meaning a high-floating dry fly will draw a trout's attention most of the time. 

        The Lamar and Firehole drainages are the primary areas where hatches may make trout somewhat selective.  Chief among these hatches are Green Drakes, which are present to varying degrees in all Lamar tributaries.  There are also Green Drakes in the Gardner tributaries, but they are seldom important there.

        Terrestrials work well in all drainages, with high-floating hoppers favored choices in the Gardner, Lamar, and Yellowstone drainages and small beetles and ants your best choices for the trout in the Firehole system.  Tiny nymphs also work well for these spooky, large trout.  Regardless of fly, the Firehole tributaries require stealthy, hands-and-knees approaches, long, fine leaders, and delicate casting.  Some large fish are possible in these creeks, but most of them will dive into chunks of broken-off sod and break off.

        In general, Yellowstone tributary streams that don't have run-up fish in midsummer have trout averaging 6-10 inches, with some to twelve or thirteen.  This makes them excellent choices for light dry fly rods and teaching children and beginners how to fly fish, or for anyone who wants low-pressure angling in beautiful locations.  The Firehole tribs are, as noted, exceptions.

        For information on the Paradise Valley creeks, please contact us.

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