Yellowstone Park Fishing Report

This Yellowstone Park fishing report is valid from October 5 until about October 15, when the brown trout spawn begins.

The best waters right now will be the warmer ones: those at low elevations, the larger rivers, and those with geyser inputs. Forget about the Lamar System or small streams for the rest of the season.

Park Waters are presented in roughly their distance from us, then by water type for generalities like “small streams” and “lakes.”

Gardner River

The upper Gardner is too low and cold.

The middle Gardner between Osprey Falls and Boiling River is in good shape, but it’s hampered by limited access. Your choices are the Osprey Falls Trail, the High Bridge, or hiking down from Mammoth Hot Springs. That’s it. The 2022 flood is still a bummer here. This is prime water for Euro-nymphing now. Fish a TJ Hooker or similar with a Bead, Hare, and Copper or similar midsize attractor nymph. You might also try a jig-style BWO or Perdigon. Eggs are at least imminent, if not already working. The big pools are definitely worth fishing hard now, especially on cruddy days… Some BWO and Tan Drake hatches are possible in the afternoons.

The lower Gardner below Boiling River is still going to be weedy, but it’s worth fishing with similar tactics as the above. It gets better and better as fall progresses.

Hatches: BWO and limited Tan Drakes, almost all in the PM.
Dry Flies: Maybe #12-14 Brindle Chutes and Royal Wulff Cripples. More likely, #16-18 Purple Hazy Cripples and Gray Baetis Triple Wings
Nymphs & Wets: A stonefly or stonefly/nymph hybrid (TJ Hooker or Jig Zirdle) in #6-10 trailing a #12-16 attractor nymph, #18 BWO, or #18 egg.
Streamers: Dead-drifted Woolly Buggers and the like. On ugly days, strip a Bugger or Kreelex in the shallower pools.

Streamflow data graph for the Gardner River in Yellowstone Park

Gardner River – Flow

Yellowstone River – Black Canyon

Slowing down quick, especially on cold days. Fish streamers in the morning and look for BWO hatches in the PM. There won’t be much competitions.

Hatches: BWO in the PM are much more likely than Tan Drakes, but you want to see some of the bigger bugs, too.
Dry Flies: #16-18 BWO and Purple Hazy Cripples.
Nymphs & Wets: #16-18 BWO, perhaps trailing a TJ Hooker. The closer to Gardiner you get, the more whitefish.
Streamers: No reason to get fancy. Fish a #4-6 black, white, or black and orange Woolly Bugger (the latter suggesting Salmonflies) with a #10-12 in whatever color on the dropper.

Note: Check the Lamar River streamflow graph below before fishing this stretch of the Yellowstone. The Lamar gauge is near the Yellowstone confluence, so sudden spikes at this age suggest muddy water is incoming in the Black Canyon.

Yellowstone River – Grand Canyon

Somewhat more consistent than the Black Canyon. Streamers are top bets. Fish a #6 Woolly Bugger, Sparkle Minnow, or Slumpbuster with a #10 Bugger or classic Hornberg (really) behind it. Hope for BWO and Tan Drakes in the PM.

Hatches: Similar to the Black Canyon.
Dry Flies: BWO imitations, maybe with an occasional Royal Wulff Cripple, etc.
Nymphs & Wets: Mostly #16-18 attractors like Princes, PT Spankers, Lightning Bugs, etc.
Streamers: See above.

Note: Check the Yellowstone Lake Outlet flow graph below. Except following sudden thunderstorms, the Grand Canyon is usually fishable for the season once flows begin dropping in mid-late June. They may be fishable before, too, if overall flows are below normal, but even during high water years, the Grand Canyon clears fast once the lake outlet stops rising.

Yellowstone River – Headwaters and Lake to Falls

We don’t recommend this water until next July due to low fish counts. Most of the fish are back in the lake. If you fish here, use streamers. Trout spey tactics to cover the maximum amount of water will be the best option.

Hatches: Maybe some BWO or Tan Drakes. Midges in the AM. Not many fish besides fry will be eating them, ethough.
Dry Flies: To match the above, plus smaller attractors such as Hazy Cripples.
Nymphs & Wets: Not a great bet.
Streamers: Various larger Woolly Buggers, Sculpzillas, Marabou Muddlers, and patterns that fish well on the swing, such as Montana Intruders.

Yellowstone River at Yellowstone Lake outlet streamflow data graph

Yellowstone River at the Yellowstone Lake Outlet – Flow

Lamar River, Slough Creek, and Soda Butte Creek

Ice water and a very poor bet until next season. If you insist, don’t start until noon and expect to use winter-style tactics: midge nymphs in the slowest, deepest pools, etc.

Hatches: Fragmentary midge and BWO, maybe a few Tan Drakes on the warmest afternoons.
Dry Flies: To match the above. No point in dries unless you can target specific rising trout.
Nymphs & Wets: #18-20 Zebra Midges and skinny mayflies.
Streamers: Small Woolly Buggers.

Note: Sudden spikes in flow in either graph below suggest muddy water either occurring or imminent. The Lamar graph is immediately upstream from the river’s confluence with the Yellowstone, so odds are the entire river from Soda Butte Creek down is muddy if this graph is showing a spike. The Soda Butte gauge is at the park boundary, so a spike there indicates mud that will hit lower Soda Butte in a couple hours and the Lamar and Yellowstone thereafter. Slough Creek is less prone to mud than either the Lamar or Soda Butte.

Lamar River – Flow

Soda Butte Creek – Flow

Firehole River

A great bet now and probably the river where general fishing crowds will be highest. Absent a hatch, nymph the geyser rock ledges with BWO nymphs or swing soft hackles in the deeper riffles and heads of pools. Some White Miller caddis will hatch on the warmer afternoons. BWO hatches on the gray days will be the better hatches. Below Firehole Falls, fish a stonefly nymph trailing an attractor or egg.

Hatches: See above.
Dry Flies: #18 Parachute Adams, Purple Hazy Cripple, various slender grayish Baetis patterns, #14 Palmered CDC & Elk Caddis.
Nymphs & Wets: #16 PT Soft Hackle, #14-16 While Miller Soft Hackle, #16 other soft hackles, #18 Radiation Baetis, #18 Pheasant Tail, etc.
Streamers: Not a great bet except maybe below the Falls.

Note: The Old Faithful gauge is at the upstream end of the famous section of the Firehole. The West Yellowstone gauge is immediately upstream from the Firehole’s confluence with the Gibbon, downstream of all tributaries both hot and cold. Water temps will be lower and the water clearer the further upstream you travel.

Graph of flow data for the Firehole River at Old Faithful, WY

Firehole River at Old Faithful – Flow

Streamflow Graph for the Firehole River near Madison Junction, WY

Firehole River at Madison Jct. – Flow

Water Temperature Note: The lower Firehole River gets roughly half its water from geyser basins and therefore runs much warmer than anything else in the region. This is good early and late in the season, bad in the middle and even on hot/bright days after early June.

Firehole River trout are used to warm water temperatures and remain active until temps hit 70 degrees on a given day. Even so, when this gauge starts flirting with 75+ for the daily high, especially when nighttime water temps don’t drop below 67, it’s time to start fishing mornings-only upstream from Midway Geyser Basin. Once water temps reach the high 70s and do not drop below 70 at night (or don’t drop under 70 for an appreciable length of time), it’s time to fish only the “small stream” portion of the Firehole upstream from the Old Faithful closure zone, or to go elsewhere.

Firehole River at Madison Jct. – Water Temperature

Gibbon River

Too cold for good fishing upstreame from Norris Geyser Basin. Between Norris and the Gibbon Canyon, fish streamers. In the upper Canyon (above Gibbon Falls), you might see some active fish in the PM eating BWO. These will eat attractor dries. Note that the spring is a better time for this water. Below the Falls will see the most pressure and offer the best fishing. Some BWO hatches, some streamer eaters, some run-up browns eating big stoneflies and attractors.

Hatches: BWO, but hatches will be scattered.
Dry Flies: BWO and small mayfly-type attractor dries.
Nymphs & Wets: #16-18 Princes, Pheasant Tails, Lightning Bugs, and similar small yet slightly flashy attractors for action. A stonefly trailing a larger attractor for runners.
Streamers: Woolly Buggers, midsize sculpins, and big steelhead-style soft hackles and wets.

Gibbon River – Flow

Madison River

While some BWO hatches will bring up fish from Madison Jct to the bridge or so, the main draw here is the fall-run browns and some rainbows. The brown trout holes will be the most crowded waters overall in YNP until the end of the general season. Sometimes these crowds can be pretty egregious.

To target the runners, fish the larger runs. Nymphs produce the most numbers, but big wet flies and streamers are the classic choices. If fishing the latter, spey gear is not at all out of the ordinary. Fishing is best for the first and last hours of daylight or on ugly weather days.

Note that the runner waters, particularly the famed Barns Pools just inside the park’s West gate, have a set etiquette all anglers should follow. Start at the top of the run and work your way down, taking a step after every cast. If you catch a fish, back out and start over. This keeps the crowds manageable and gives everybody a shot. Unfortunately, most people no longer follow this old-school etiquette, including many newer guides and outfitters.

Hatches: BWO.
Dry Flies: BWO imitations.
Nymphs & Wets: Various stoneflies, big soft hackles, San Juan Worms, and assorted “junk.” None of this imitates anything. You are “steelhead fishing” for the run-up trout.
Streamers: Woolly Buggers, Zonkers, Sculpzillas, Sparkle Minnows, etc. Swing, strip, or dead-drift these.

Graph of Madison River Flow at West Yellowstone, MT

Madison River Near West Yellowstone – Flow

Park Small Streams

All are too low and cold.

Hatches:
Dry Flies:
Nymphs & Wets:
Streamers:

Park Lakes and Ponds

You might catch some fish on leeches in the grayling lakes, but Lewis and Shoshone are the best options. Fish leeches and streamers, maybe with an egg behind. For now, the egg imitates the eggs of lake trout, not browns.