Yellowstone Country is one of the best places in the world to learn how to fly fish. From mountain meadow creeks in the world’s first national park to world-famous rivers like the Yellowstone and Madison, this region has a vast array of fisheries where beginners can learn different techniques, all while enjoying stunning scenery, spotting animals, and building memories.
We call our business Yellowstone Country Fly Fishing because this region is our home and the only area we guide. Our owner and head guide Walter Wiese has been guiding fly fishers of all ages and experience levels here for almost 25 years, and we’re eager to share our knowledge, tips, and tricks, as we introduce you to the riches of the region we call home.
Best Trips for Beginners
There are many great fishing trip options for beginners in our neck of the woods, across all of the different trip types we offer. We customize all trips for all clients based on their interests, goals, an so on. Here are some of the best trips for beginners:
River Float Trips
Enjoy a relaxing (or exciting!) float on the Yellowstone or Madison River. See ospreys and eagles, beautiful scenery, and lots of fish, as well as a bit of whitewater if you want it.
Walk & Wade Trips
Hike into backcountry creeks, rivers, and lakes where the trout see less pressure than on the famous roadside waters, and enjoy “the real Yellowstone” that the average tourists miss, ranging from waterfalls, archaeological sites, and more.
Private Water Trips
Shed crowds and chase large trout by boating a private lake. Enjoy bucolic ranch settings with lots of opportunities for spotting birds, without much angling competition.
Multiday Trips
Ready to dig deep in fly fishing? Book one of our multiday packages, or give us a call to customize your own. We’ll help you build your skills over several days of fishing. By the end, you’ll be a more accomplished angler than many who’ve been doing it for years.
What Our Clients Have to Say
If you are planning to fish the great trout rivers around the Livingston region Walter is your man. And if you do, tell him Bud and Dave say thanks!
Also, we had bad weather/water conditions on the scheduled day but were able to reschedule for another day on our trip, which made us very happy!
Overall, great day on the river. Would definitely recommend booking with him.
The whole experience was excellent from start to finish and made for a very memorable day. I would definitely book another trip with Yellowstone Country Fly FIshing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fishing tackle is included, but you are also welcome to bring your own. Flies are also included, including many custom fly patterns our guides have developed specifically for local waters. Do you like to tie your own? No problem. We'll let you know what to tie, and you can check out our YouTube fly tying tutorials to learn how to tie some of our specialties.
We do not supply wading gear. It is not needed on our most popular trips, and may be rented from local shops if required.
Almost always! In 2025, we only had two clients over the entire year fail to catch anything. On most trips, beginner guests catch a whole bunch. Walter and your guide will plan the right trip for the conditions and tweak things as needed to get you plenty of chances.
No. Our trips are strictly catch and release. There’s little to no stocking in Yellowstone Country (meaning most of the fish are made “the old fashioned way”), and fishing pressure is heavy, so it’s important to leave the fish in the river for our next guests. Besides, it doesn’t make sense to eat our business partners. Rest assured that there will be plenty of photo opportunities to help you remember your trip.
On most boat trips, wading gear is not required. You just need sandals or water shoes you don’t mind getting wet. Early and late in the season we usually need to wear waders on floats, as raingear as much as anything.
On most peak season wade trips, we wet-wade. Old sneakers usually don’t cut it, so you will need wading boots, but not full waders. We seldom wade very deep and hike a fair distance, so splashing in a creek on a hot summer day feels great. From mid-September through early June, waders are required due to the cold weather and water.
We can arrange rental waders when they’re required.
We accept clients aged 10 to infinity. From October 15 through April 15, it’s 12+ due to the cold water, rough wading, and otherwise more challenging conditions. Options are available for anglers of almost any fitness.
One guide can handle one or two clients. More clients requires more guides. While we have a total of six guides on staff, we cap operations at four guides per day in order to preserve our standards of personalized service. All four guides can fish one area on float trips, though we prefer to limit it to two boats per section except when we’re on a “party float” with a big family, a bachelor party, or other cases where fishing success is less important than being all together. In Yellowstone Park, we currently limit things to one guide per day, and the legal limit is two guides and four clients per spot.
We have good beginner options year-round anytime temperatures are above freezing. The most popular period for beginners is from late May through September, but April and October are sleeper bets with lower crowds, and there’s some fishing to do even in the dead of winter if you get lucky with the weather.
Absolutely. While we don't include lodging in any of our rates, we have some preferred hotels and campgrounds that work best for our clients. Give us a call and we'll give you our recommendations based on your budget, timeframe, and fishing goals. We'd also be happy to help with other travel planning.
Are You an Information Junkie?
If so, our website will be just the ticket. You'll find plenty of additional info about our guide services, our specialty flies, and more. We also provide more helpful content about area fisheries and fishing tactics than you'll fine in many guidebooks. All this is intended to help you plan your trip - whether you decide to fish with us or not.
Sound good? Grab a cup of coffee or something stronger, click or tap the button below, and get ready for a deep dive into fly fishing Yellowstone Country.
As you absorb all the info on our site, we ask you to consider one thing: think about how much we hold back for our clients….
