Parks' Fly Shop fishing reports: yellowstone fishing reports and montana fishing reports
Fishing Report
This is our basic, just the facts Yellowstone country fishing report. For accounts of days spent on the water, check out our Trip Diary. This fishing report is organized first by jurisdiction (Yellowstone fishing reports followed by Montana fishing reports), then by river drainage, with the private lakes, spring creeks, and distant Montana waters in their own categories at the end. Small creeks in a given river drainage will be discussed under their parent drainage. If you have any specific questions, or want an up to the second report, give us a call. The links following some location names will take you to stream gauges (and in one case a webcam). Sudden spikes in streamflow usually mean muddy water.
Quick Links to Each Drainage/Category
In YNP: Yellowstone inside YNP, Lamar, Gardner, Madison inside YNP, Snake, Gallatin inside YNP
In Montana: Yellowstone, Madison, Private Lakes, Spring Creeks, Other Montana Waters
Yellowstone National Park
Please note that the dates given for when various YNP fisheries will become fishable are approximate only. Check our News Page starting in January or February for regularly updated predictions based on winter snowpack and spring weather.
Yellowstone River Drainage Inside YNP
Yellowstone River Above the Lake and Lake to Falls
Updated November 6
Closed until July 15, 2012.
Yellowstone River, Grand Canyon (Falls to Mouth of Lamar)
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely unfishable through late June.
Yellowstone River, Black Canyon (Mouth of Lamar to Gardiner)
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely unfishable through late June or early July.
Yellowstone Drainage Small Streams
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Unfishable through sometime in June for some, late July for others.
Yellowstone Drainage Lakes and Ponds
Updated November 6
Closed. Blacktail usually reopens early July.
Lamar River Drainage
Lamar River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Unfishable through at least June 20 and much more likely July 4. Possibly won't be ready until July 20.
Soda Butte Creek
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Unfishable through at least June 20 and much more likely July 1.
Slough Creek
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Probably muddy then, but if the winter is dry and the spring cold, maybe still pre-runoff then. Much more likely fishable around July 1-5.
Other Waters
Updated November 6
Trout Lake reopens the 15th of June. Others won't be fishable until sometime in July.
Gardner River Drainage
Gardner River Above Osprey Falls
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Probably unfishable until around July 4.
Gardner River, Osprey Falls to Boiling River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Fishable sometime in late June, 2012.
Gardner River, Boiling River to Yellowstone River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Fishable day to day through late June or early July for anglers in good shape who know how to short-line nymph with stonefly nymph imitations, then fishable every day from then on.
Small Streams
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Unfishable until late June or early July.
Lakes
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Joffe fishable at the opener. Others TBD based on snowpack, spring weather, and trail conditions.
Madison River Drainage Inside YNP
Please note: this drainage is infested with New Zealand Mud Snails, an invasive species that poses a large threat to other river drainages in the region. Please clean your gear between fishing this drainage (especially the Firehole) and fishing elsewhere. This website includes information on how to effectively clean your gear.
Madison River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Possibly ready then, certainly by mid-June.
Firehole River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Probably ready then, though occasionally a day or two here and there in the first half of June sees the river too dirty to fish.
Gibbon River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Possibly ready then, certainly by mid-June.
Grebe & Wolf Lakes
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Probably too hard to reach until June 5-10, due either to snow or snowmelt.
Other Waters
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Firehole tributary creeks usually fish best in late July and August.
Snake River Drainage
Snake River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely unfishable until late June or early July.
Lewis River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely unfishable until mid-late June.
Lewis and Shoshone Lakes
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely frozen until early June.
Gallatin River Drainage Inside YNP
Gallatin River
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely unfishable until late June.
Small Streams
Updated November 6
Closed until Memorial Day Weekend, 2012. Likely unfishable until July 4.
Montana
Yellowstone River Drainage
Yellowstone River, Gardiner to Emigrant
Yellowstone River Webcam, Corwin Springs Stream Gauge
Updated January 14
We've had a shot of very cold weather come through, with more in the forecast, so much of the river has now gained some bank ice, and portions have significant ice floes and slush floating downstream. There won't be much fishing except near warm water sources for a few weeks due to these conditions, especially the drifting ice and slush.
Yellowstone River, Emigrant to Shields River
Updated January 14
See above. Fishing in this section will be quite limited due to the wide, slow nature of the river in many spots here.
Yellowstone River, Shields River Confluence to Clark Fork Confluence
Updated January 14
Similar to the section from Emigrant to the Shields. This section is often a tough call until early March.
Other Waters
Updated November 28
All other creeks and rivers in the Yellowstone system (besides the spring creeks) are closed. Dailey Lake is open but probably doesn't have ice thick enough to walk on yet --it's been kind of warm.
Madison River Drainage
Madison River, Hebgen Lake to Quake Lake
Updated November 6
Great water this time of year, but you can't get there from here. Seriously. With the park roads closing at 8AM tomorrow morning, it's a four hour drive from here.
Madison River, Quake Lake to Ennis Lake
Below Quake Lake, Near Cameron
Updated November 6
Not quite as good as between the lakes, and also a long way from Gardiner.
Madison River, Lower
Updated November 6
A good bet. Crayfish patterns, eggs, San Juan Worms, and flashy midge larvae/pupae are the bread and butter, but the browns should chase brown and yellow and black and orange buggers for another couple weeks.
Hebgen and Quake Lakes
Updated November 6
Fishing well, but again, can't get there from here.
Other Waters
Updated November 6
The South Fork is a great bet for fall-run browns right now, but again, it's not worth the drive from Gardiner with the roads closed.
Private Lakes
Story Lakes
Updated November 6
Check back in late April.
Merrell Lake
Updated November 6
Closed for public access due to the use of the lake by big game hunters staying at the lodge. Check back in May.
Burns Lake
Updated November 6
Check back in May.
Spring Creeks
Armstrong's, Nelson's, Depuy
Updated January 4
There may already be a handful of early spring rainbows moving in, but they won't be on the redds for about another month. Floss worms, WD-40s, scuds, and small Pheasant Tails will be the bread and butter, but don't neglect streamers, and you may see some adult midges or tiny winter BWO.
All creeks are on their winter rates of $40/day through mid-March, which is a great value, especially towards the end of the winter rate period.
Other Montana Waters
Updated November 28
The various ski areas in the state are either open or going to open soon... that's "other water," right?