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Lamar River Drainage

        The Lamar River drainage offers the best dry fly fishing in Yellowstone Park, and quite possibly in the country.  Some might even suggest it is the best in the world.  It certainly is not the best on every or possibly even any given day, since other rivers sometimes have denser hatches and larger trout, and the drainage can be "fluky," but there is nowhere else where more consistently large trout can be caught on dry flies from mid-July until late September or early October, almost every day.  Its only downsides are that it takes forever to clear of snowmelt and often gets muddy from summer thunderstorms, with Slough Creek the notable exception to the latter issue.

        The Lamar drainage comprises three large streams and a variety of smaller ones.  The large streams are the Lamar itself, Soda Butte Creek, which doubles the size of the Lamar where they meet, and Slough Creek.  All are famous streams and are easy to access over much of their course.  All three are partially or even primarily meadow streams, and feature excellent populations of aquatic insects on their bottoms, especially mayflies and caddis.  Terrestrials are everywhere as well, ranging from spruce moths to ants to the enormous Mormon cricket.

        The trout in the Lamar drainage are pounded hard by very experienced anglers all summer long, so none of the streams in it are suitable for beginners, especially beginners without a guide.  By late summer even experts can have trouble at times.  Trout in Soda Butte Creek's Junction Meadow and in the Lower and First Meadow on Slough Creek are routinely caught ten or more times a year, so they have learned to be very persnickety about what they eat, even as they constantly have their eyes on the surface for the first PMD, Green Drake, hopper, or beetle to pass overhead.  They'll inspect many flies, but reject them at the last moment unless proportions, coloration, silhouette, and drift are correct.  If a fly is drifting correctly and it resembles the food item the trout wants, the trout will eat, usually with agonizing slowness.  This trout might be eight inches long, but it is much more likely to stretch thirteen to twenty, or even a bit more.

        One important factor in much of the Lamar drainage is crowding.  Anglers pack like sardines into the Junction Meadow of Soda Butte, portions of the Lamar, and areas of the First Meadow of Slough Creek.  Please be aware of proper angling etiquette for these situations.  Unless invited, it is not proper to join another angler or group of anglers in the pool they are fishing.  If unsure, give at least 100 yards between your group and the next.  Also, avoid walking on high banks as much as possible.  Trails frequently line these banks, but they are trampled by people who don't know any better.  High, undercut banks are where trout reside, while anglers fishing to them stand on the flatter, shallower bank to avoid spooking the trout by their shadow and silhouette.  There are easy fords at every bend on these streams, so it's easy to cross from shallow bank to shallow bank.

        On most pages in this Planner I have tried not to "push" Parks' Fly Shop's services too hard, in order make the information provided suitable for everyone, but I must note that we are the closest fly shop to the streams in the Lamar Drainage, and our guides and shop workers know more about the habits of the trout here and the hatches that interest them than anyone else, save perhaps the cagy locals who keep their information under their hats.  We have at least one guide operating somewhere in this drainage every day it is fishable, and it is usually where every member of our staff chooses to fish on days off, if they have time to make the drive and they get up early enough to catch the midday mayfly hatches.  More of our custom fly patterns were developed for this drainage than any other, and only a few of these flies are available elsewhere.  If you are looking for a guide to help you up your chances of fooling the cagy trout of the Lamar drainage, book one of us.  Sales pitch done.