Fishing Report July 12, 2024:
We've entered our reliably good to excellent summer fishing rhythm here in Jackson Hole. There are a multitude of options right now for float fishing and wade fishing and the quality and number of offerings has been good at spreading out the fishing crowds. One thing to be aware of at the moment is the hot weather and rising river temperatures. Although the fishing has been good early morning to just after noon on many rivers and creeks, water temperatures have been entering the "danger zone" (67 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit) on many rivers in the afternoon hours. Fish can die if caught and released when the water is this warm so carry a thermometer, know what your water temperature is, and target cooler waters where the fishing is better anyways. Please do not fish in the afternoon and evening on rivers that are seeing water temps in the high 60's!
The Snake River has been fishing much better than it typically does in mid July. Flows are lower than normal for this time of year, and stoneflies and pmds are out and have fish looking up. Coldest water of the day is around 58 degrees at 930am so fish it early am and crack open a beer around 2 or 230 when the water temp gets too high.
The Green River has also been fishing great with large numbers of pmds, grey drakes, and multiple stonefly species. The grey drake hatch typically starts around 1030am most years but with our current heat wave and warmer than average water temps for this time of year, its been starting around 9am the last few days. Yesterday, water temps hit 67 degrees at 130pm. The best fishing has been from dawn to just after noon.
The Gros Ventre River and Hoback River are still fishing well although flows have been dropping fast on both of them. Target any areas of depth with foam dry flies in sizes 14 through 8 and get ready for some explosive dry fly eats! Fly selection is not very critical on freestone Snake River tributaries when they first clear in early summer, just be there right when they first go clear and the cutthroat are voraciously hungry!
Yellowstone National Park has been reliably great with both our walk/wade trips and lake trips on Yellowstone Lake targeting monster cutthroat. Both options are some of the best offerings we have to beat the crowds at this busy time of year.
Our Private Spring Creek water has been producing some incredible dry fly fishing as well. Sight fishing for large rainbow trout and cutthroat trout in small water is one of the most memorable fishing experiences you can have in this area and this option should be productive from now right through to mid/late September.
Fishing Report June 15, 2024:
We are currently in full runoff mode at the moment with most of the area rivers at peak flows for the season and quite muddy. Fishing on these rivers like the Salt River, Green River, Snake River, and Snake River Tributaries is definitely NOT a good idea this week. Some of these options might come around and fish well in a week or two, but for now, look elsewhere. That said, there are some great fishing and guided trip options to be had right now.
Yellowstone National Park is the place to be for trout fishing. Yellowstone Lake is still extremely cold but the big fish are cruising around in the shallows and feeding activity is increasing daily with warming water temperatures. The Lewis River Channel, Lewis Lake, and the Lewis River are all clear and fishing very well right now. Our Lewis Lake trips have been getting into solid numbers of brown trout and lake trout over the last several weeks. Generally, the streamer fishing has been best with leech and minnow patterns but nymphing with chironomids and a heavy, gaudy, streamer to get the chironomid fly down to 6 to 12 feet of depth has been producing fish all day long.
Some of our Spring Creeks have also been fishing great as well. At this time of year we rely heavily on the consistent, clear flows from spring creeks when there's so much dirty water around. Give us a ring at 307-203-4683 to fish the clear water right now and avoid the crowds!
Fishing Report May 5, 2024:
Cinco de Mayo and the week leading up to it was a fiesta on the water! Skwala stoneflies are now out in good numbers on the Snake River as well as midges, blue-winged olives, and even caddis on warmer days. Clarity of the Snake is highly variable from day to day but the clearer days with one to two feet of visibility have had exceptional dry fly fishing. Any foam stonefly pattern that imitates a skwala will do - don't overthink pattern selection when the river is murky. Just be at the right place at the right time and they'll eat. The right place is tight to the bank and highly defined seams and current lines when river visibility is low like it has been. The right time has been around 2pm into the early evening when we've had cold nights (in the 20's) and cold mornings and it takes most of the day to warm up. When the lows have been in the mid 30's overnight, the fish have been feeding starting as early as 1030am and going all day long.
Flows will be increased out of Jackson Lake Dam starting on May 7. Expect fish to be a little out of sorts and feeding activity to decline while the river is on the rise and the fish look for new holding water as the hydraulics of the river are changing. We may have another few days of good fishing on the Snake after dam flows settle and before snowmelt really kicks runoff into gear.
The Green River is also clear and fishing at the moment if looking to pursue some of our local brown trout and rainbow trout. Spring fishing on the Green is usually not as productive as other times of the year but it is a good option when other rivers are too muddy to fish.
Fishing Report: March 21, 2024
We've enjoyed some fantastic fishing on the Snake River in the last few weeks with daytime temps in the 40's and 50's with sunny skies. This should continue for at least another month. Midge activity has been PROLIFIC. As I write this, there are midges flying and crawling around the High Alpine Anglers office that hitch-hiked back from the river on our waders and gear. The most successful strategy has been floating or hiking along the river until you are able to locate a pod of wintering cutthroat trout. These pods are usually in or very near deep pools with slow current and the fish have been most active between noon and 5pm.
3/21/2024
We've been fishing a lot of deep nymph rigs with tungsten bead perdigon patterns, zebragons, mercury midges, and other midge patterns in size 16 to 20. Most of the time we will use a larger, heavy stonefly nymph pattern to get both nymphs down deep as quickly as possible. The stonefly nymphs have been producing plenty of fish as well as our local trout and whitefish are likely starting to see more and more activity from skwala stonefly nymphs crawling around the river. It will be another month until the skwalas hatch into adults but the fish are taking note of the skwala nymphs already!
In certain spots, if conditions are right, fish have been rising to midges on the surface as well. Almost any small dry fly in sizes 16 to 20 that imitates a midge, a midge cluster, or a little black winter stonefly will get the job done in these situations.
Most all other Northwestern Wyoming water is still buried in ice and snow at the moment. Look for more options to free from ice in the next few weeks.
Fishing Report: October 25, 2023
Over the last few weeks we've experienced warmer than average fall temperatures. The town of Jackson has also been quiet which has led to very little fishing pressure. These factors combined with the fact that several boat ramps on the Snake River have been closed for construction has led to some of the best fishing and lightest fishing pressure we've seen in many many years. Access is limited on the Snake River at the moment but if you know where to go and when, the fishing can be spectacular. Prolific midge hatches and blue- winged olive hatches have kept our local cutthroat trout looking up for dry flies. The streamer bite has also been good on most days but all you really need is a bushy size 16 mayfly dry. The best fishing window has been between 11am and 4pm in buckets and bathtub pools, on foamy seamlines and in slow recirculating eddies. Riffles have been producing huge numbers of fish too but these fish are mostly smaller, cookie-cutter 8" to 12" fish. Almost all good holding water has been producing fish except for on the bank as fish aren't really targeting terrestrials that fall into the water as much at this time of year. Look for this spectacular fishing action to slow down considerably in the coming weeks as colder weather and colder water temperatures are in the immediate forecast.
Tributary streams in the valley such as the Buffalo Fork, Pacific Creek, Spread Creek, The Gros Ventre River, Flat Creek, The Hoback River, and various spring creeks have very low flows at the moment and for the most part, arent nearly as productive as the main Snake River. Most of the cutthroat in these tributaries have migrated downstream to the Snake in search of deep, safe, winter holding water. Look for these smaller tributaries to get good again after runoff clears next summer.
Yellowstone Lakes continue to fish well for large cutthroat, brown trout, and lake trout and will likely continue to do so until the South Entrance Road closes for the winter in early November.
The Salt River is still productive but hasn't been nearly as consistent as the Snake. Still, if you're looking for that once in a lifetime brown trout migrating up from Palisades Reservoir and don't mind throwing a streamer all day long to find it, give us a call to make a plan!
Fishing Report: September 12, 2023
"Good to excellent" in short. Almost all of our waters have been reliably productive over the last few weeks. We've experienced a cooler summer that started out with above average snowpack in the mountains and we've had periodic rains throughout the summer. Regular rain has kept our trout waters cold and recharged and the fish are happy all over the valley. The Snake River has been consistently fishing well over the last few weeks. We haven't had any cold snaps with below freezing temperatures yet this year so there are plenty of grasshoppers still around and the terrestrial fishing remains good. Our favorite hopper spots these days are buckets, turbulent pocket water, and banks with fast current. Hoppers will usually get committed eats in this type of water where the trout have to eat fast or risk losing a meal. In slower water like the inside of riffles or long, deep green seams where fish can really analyze a fly before eating it, they may refuse to eat hoppers as they've seen a lot of artificial flies so far this summer. In these calmer spots with more picky trout, we recommend mayfly dries as big as a size 12 and as small as a 20. These will imitate the natural baetis, pmd, and hecuba (Snake drake) mayflies that trout have been seeing recently. You can also fish nymphs earlier on in the day when its still cold and fish are a bit lethargic but why bother when the dry fly bite is so good!
The Salt River has been fishing great as well with nymphs producing in the morning and hoppers in the afternoon. The Salt can be good at this time of year but we don't usually see it this good as it typically fishes best as soon as it clears in June or July when there are lots of aquatic insect hatches. Typically, the quality of fishing will slowly taper off throughout the summer. However, this year, there are a TON of hoppers around with no forecasted hard frosts to kill them off in the near future! The Salt also has an ideal amount of water in it right now - 650 cfs (https://waterdata.usgs.gov/wy/nwis/uv?site_no=13027500) which is an unusually plentiful amount of water for this late in the fishing season.
Yellowstone National Park continues to produce some great wade fishing as well as trophy trout options on Yellowstone Lake. The fishing on Lewis Lake and the Lewis River system isn't that noteworthy at the moment but look for these fisheries to start getting really good when it cools down this fall and the resident brown trout and lake trout move into shallower water.
Our Private Creek water has been reliably great as well with lots of healthy rainbows and cutthroat in the 16" to 22" class. We've seen abundant trico hatches as well as flying ants and lots of hoppers around as previously noted. Give us a call at 307-203-4683 to see what late summer and early fall fishing looks like after an ideal water level year with light crowds.
Fishing Report: July 27, 2023
Options around the valley continue to produce reliably good fishing most days. The Snake River is still producing solid numbers of fish and more and more big cutthroat trout are dropping out of spring creeks and freestone tributaries and into the Snake River every day. Look for this trend to continue into the fall as tributary flows decrease and fish look for more holding water in the main Snake.
Snake River Tributaries aren't fishing quite as well as they were several weeks ago when the water first cleared but they are still fair to good on most days between 9am and early afternoon. After that point in the day, water temps are warming and fish aren't feeding as actively. Try thinking outside the box when it comes to fly selection as these fish have now seen a lot of different fly patterns by this point in the summer and a big piece of foam might not cut it. Consider downsizing and using a smaller mayfly imitation (size 14 or 16) or a little more refined ant or beetle pattern if you are targeting a particular fish that has refused a large foam attractor pattern.
The Salt River is just starting to fish really well with water clarity improving every day. Normally, by this point in the summer, the Salt has been fishing for several weeks. Unfortunately, there was a landslide in Swift Creek, a tributary of the Salt River in June this year which muddied the waters of the Salt. This made for extremely tough fishing and a later than usual clearing of the river. There has also been heavy machinery working around the area of the landslide which has made for dirty water on some days. On days when the water is clear, fish have been hungry and eating mayflies, microfoam, and streamers on cloudier days.
Yellowstone Lake water temperatures are absolutely prime at the moment in the mid to high 50's and the large, resident Yellowstone Cutthroat have been on the hunt for baitfish, leeches, and scuds. On calmer mornings, fish can be targeted on the surface while cruising for callibaetis mayflies. This is about the most fun you can have while fly fishing.
Fishing Report: July 6, 2023
It's on! Bugs are out and about in big numbers on most area rivers, runoff flows are subsiding, and the wade and float fishing options are numerous and productive at the moment.
The Snake River is fishing excellent right now. Typically, in June, there is so much water coming out of Jackson Lake dam, combined with freestone river runoff from Pacific Creek, The Buffalo Fork, The Gros Ventre River, and the Hoback River, that flows are too high to have much good trout holding water or fishable water visibility. This year, with Jackson Lake Dam flows held steady at a low 280-300 CFS, the Snake has been clearer in June and early July than we've ever seen and the fishing over the last couple weeks has been some of the best early summer fishing on the Snake in a very long time. Hatches of caddis have been prolific but are starting to fade. Green drake hatches have been solid anywhere near spring creek confluences with the Snake, and we've also had good numbers of natural stoneflies on the water during the middle of the day. The Bureau of Reclamation is planning to raise the flows out of Jackson Lake Dam to several thousand CFS starting July 10th so look for the fishing to remain great up until that point. When flows bump up, the Snake will have tougher fishing for a week or two until it re-stabilizes.
Snake River Tributaries are coming online as well with visibility improving every day. The Hoback River and other tributaries have started to fish and typically, the cutthroat in fast pocket water tributaries are not that picky with respect to fly selection. The most important thing by far is a natural looking, drag free drift. Just find the right water (anything slower velocity at the moment) and give em a big foam dry fly with a dropper!!
Yellowstone National Park has also been great. The Upper Snake River above Jackson Lake near the South Entrance of Yellowstone has been producing solid cutthroat for those willing to hike to reach good water. Just about any dry fly attractor pattern or big, ugly nymph will produce fish at the right time of day (mid morning to early afternoon) as there have been too many mayfly and stonefly hatches to mention and these fish, like most tributary fish, are far more concerned with a drag free drift than they are with fly pattern. Yellowstone Lake is starting to fish better as the water warms up and the large Yellowstone Cutthroat begin to feed more actively. Look for caddis and callibaetis hatches in the upcoming weeks and fish leech and attractor streamers if no hatches are visible on the water!
The Green River has been hit and miss over the last few weeks. There have been plenty of bugs on the water including grey drakes, golden stones, and a few salmonflies but the flows have been up and down so much that the fishing will be great one day and slow the next. We've been getting into large, healthy, quality brown and rainbow trout regularly but the consistency in numbers of fish isn't quite as regular as we'd like yet. We anticipate the Green to improve as flows continue to come down a little more and stabilize into mid July.
Fishing Report: June 7, 2023
After one of the best spring fishing periods in years on the Snake River, we are now in the middle of runoff. Above average snowpack from the winter of 2023 is melting and almost all of our area rivers are high and muddy at the moment. There is some great fly fishing in Western Wyoming right now but the options are limited.
Lakes are our primary focus right now and Yellowstone lakes are fishing great. After a late ice off on Lewis Lake, the Lewis River outlet and the Lewis River Channel are producing good numbers of lake trout and brown trout. Streamers such as black and olive leech patterns, the Mini Dungeon, Kreelex Minnow, and Lil Kim are all getting the job done. Nymphing close to the bottom in 10 to 15 feet of water with a double chironomid nymph rig is also productive although not as productive as streamers have been over the last week.
Yellowstone Lake is also fishing well right now and producing some true trophy cutthroat trout in the 5+ pound class. This Lake is 132 square miles of fishable water so covering ground with a chironomid nymph rig can be a little daunting at times, which is why we mostly prefer to fish streamers here as well. Covering ground is everything. Once you've located a pod of active fish, don't be afraid to switch back to the nymph rig to get picky fish to eat that just aren't willing to chase down a streamer. The average size class of fish on Yellowstone lake is much bigger than Lewis but be prepared to work hard for each fish and accept quality over quantity. When water temps increase in the coming weeks and summer hatches begin on Yellowstone Lake, we expect to see the resident Yellowstone Cutthroat fishing to get even better and have quality and quantity.
Along with the lake fishing in Yellowstone, we've had some fun wade fishing trips recently on smaller pocket water creeks and the Firehole River as well. Big caddis dry fly patterns, micro foam attractors, and caddis larva are great fly selection options on these creeks.
The Green River and New Fork River have also been good options on some days over the last several weeks. We had a period of relatively stable river flows 4 to 8 days ago and the nymphing and streamer fishing was great although we expect the fishing on both the Green and New Fork to slow down temporarily as flows are on the rise again.
Fishing Report: April 25, 2023
The midge madness continues in Jackson on the Snake River with excellent fishing on all but the coldest (sub mid 30 degree days). There have been so many midges on the water on the Snake in recent weeks that we've witnessed mallard ducks eating midges in trout feeding lies. There have been "midge mats" collecting in some eddies the size of living room rugs. At times, fishing these concentrated midge zones can be difficult with all the natural insects on the water - a needle in the haystack scenario. If this is the case, you should focus on fishing very defined feeding lines rather than just trying to prospect a wide, fishy looking area where the trout could be spread out. Or use a dry or nymph pattern with a little bit of sparkle to it. If the wind picks up enough so that seeing a size 20 midge dry fly is impossible or the trout aren't rising to midges on the surface, fish a midge nymph.
Skwala stoneflies are starting to emerge and the fish are beginning to target them. The midge fishing has been incredibly fun this spring but it's nice to start fishing size 10 and 12 foam stonefly patterns instead of straining to see a size 18 or 20. The skwalas have just started to hatch and the fish are not completely focused on them yet but we are starting to catch fish on skwala dries. Look for this hatch to pick up in the next several weeks.
Blue winged olives are hatching on some days as well and fly patterns are similar to what you'd use for midges. Try parachute adams, purple parachutes, and extended body bwo's, in sizes 16 to 20.
The streamer fishing has been very good on most days from mid morning until late afternoon as well. Try slow and steady retrieves on slow, deep banks and seams.
Most other rivers in the area are still locked up in snow and ice or too low to compete with the fishing on the Snake at the moment but look for this to change in the next few weeks!
***With Jackson Lake at only 25% full as of today, the Bureau of Reclamation is planning on keeping dam flows out of Jackson Lake Dam at a minimum through May in order to recharge the lake as much as possible. This has not been done in many decades so it should be a very interesting spring and could be very good for skwala stonefly fishing if the Snake stays lower and more consistent in flows into May. There will still be a rapid rise in Snake River flows in May due to rising tributary flows from snowmelt runoff but the effect will not be as great as in years past because of low flows coming out of Jackson Lake Dam.
Fishing Report: April 8, 2023
Spring has finally arrived in the Tetons and the fishing is on. The Snake River has been very productive in recent warmer days. With the abrupt weather change from snowy days in the 20's and low 30's to sunny days in the 40's and soon to be 50's, the midge activity has been prolific. There are stretches of river without much feeding activity happening but if you can locate one of the pods of trout that have been wintering together when they key in on midges, the fishing can be fast and furious. Be prepared to make fly selections that are close to EXACT matches of the naturals on the water because when trout get into a feeding pattern sipping midge dries off the water every 5 to 10 seconds all day long, they won't eat a fly that looks much different from a natural. Consider how you would react if you were eating french fries off a huge plate, a few at a time, for a while, then encountered a random edamame bean in the mix......Be prepared to look very closely at the bugs on the water to match with precise imitations. Griffiths Gnats, small parachute midge patterns, and cdc midge dries and emerges have all been producing well. Larger, solitary cutthroat trout that have left these concentrated winter pods have been chasing down streamers mid day as well. Try black and olive bugger patterns. Streamer selection isn't nearly as important as dry fly selection. Just get it in the right place at the right time and strip it!! Give us a call at 307-203-4683 to see why this is one of our absolute favorite times of the year.
Fishing Report: March 27, 2023
As of 3/27/2023, we have 113% of our median snowpack weight in the Snake River drainage and well above normal snow/water amounts in the surrounding drainages in Western Wyoming. This is a fantastic setup for water for the 2023 fishing season and we are PUMPED!! We expect to see a big runoff period this spring which will likely transition into slow and challenging fishing in the early summer (when flows are high) and above average fishing in mid summer all the way into the fall after flows settle down. The benefits of an above average snowpack are extensive but include spreading out anglers and spreading out fishing pressure, flushing and cleaning the river systems, increased oxygenation of rivers, colder (healthier) water temperatures for trout in the hot summer months when fish are usually very stressed, more habitat and migration pathways for fish, and more water in reservoirs. The benefits go on and on.
The long term forecast for summer 2023 looks great with our big snowpack but the spring fishing is already underway! On the warmest days over the last several weeks, midge hatches on the Snake River have been prolific and the trout are feeding aggressively. Surface and subsurface activity has been best in early to mid afternoon in slow, foamy current seams and slow recirculating eddies near deep pools where pods of fish are overwintering. Don't even bother with early morning or evening fishing - during the coldest times of the year, trout are most active during the warmest part of the day.
Try using small midge dry fly imitations or a midge dry/dropper. Something like a size 16 midge cluster pattern with a hi-vis post or a small Parachute Adams with a size 18 midge nymph dropped 1 to 2 feet underneath it will work. Double nymph rigs will get the job done as well if no fish are rising. Use a dense, sparsely tied "get down" fly like a tungsten bead stonelfy nymph or perdigon as the first fly to get the nymphs to sink fast and a smaller, size 16 or 18 midge nymph as the point fly. We are seeing some little black winter stoneflies mixed in with the midges as well and the same fly imitations will work for these stoneflies - dries and nymphs in size 16 to 20. Color and pattern will make a difference at times but getting the right fly size (small!) is far more important for getting into fish at this time of year! Access to the river this time of year can be difficult and usually involves post-holing through deep snow so we recommend drift boat trips right now to maximize your time on the water. Give us a call to set up a trip!!
Fishing Report: November 21, 2022
After a phenomenal fall fishing season with unusually warm temperatures, we are entering our slow period of the year which will last for several months. Most days in December, Jan, and Feb have little to offer for fly fishing in Northwestern Wyoming. You will find better options at lower elevations in central Wyoming on rivers like the Big Horn near Thermopolis and on the South Fork and Henry's Fork in Idaho.
Though most winter days are too cold around Jackson for trout to be feeding that much, we can see some good action during periods of warmer weather. Be on the lookout for daytime highs in the upper 30's to 40's. When temps rise to this point in the dead of winter, trout metabolism ramps up a bit and they can often be found feeding on midge dries and nymphs. Be ready to cover a lot of ground in order to locate a pod of fish in the winter. You may float or walk for miles in what feels like a "dead zone" with no feeding activity and seemingly no fish at all then find a happy group of several dozen trout just sipping away if the conditions are just right. On the Snake River most fish in the winter will be in slower water in the vicinity of some sort of deep water, overwintering hole where they can hold position without expending much energy and be safe from predators. Energy conservation is the name of the game for Cutthroat trout in the winter. If you encounter a pod of rising fish, try midge dry flies in sizes 16 to 20. We like midges with high vis white or orange on top or pairing smaller midges that are less visible with a bigger dry fly on a double dry rig. If feeding activity on top is scarce, try nymphing midge patterns in areas where you've seen trout activity recently or try fishing these areas with a slow streamer retrieve. Call us to set up a winter fly fishing trip and we can discuss available options and let you know if weather conditions warrant a trip.
We are also accepting reservations for the 2023 season so please call us up now before we book up for certain dates!
Fishing Report: August 22, 2022
Monsoonal moisture over the last several weeks has been fantastic for the fishing and has saved us this season. With continued thunderstorms in the afternoon forecasted this week and highs in the high 70's to low 80's (instead of the high 80's) we will see water temperatures come down a little bit into a safer range for trout. This cloud cover will also likely be great for the fishing and the thunderstorms should add a little bit of much needed moisture to our river drainages. Keep an eye on flows and water levels at the USGS streamflow conditions web page for Wyoming here: https://waterdata.usgs.gov/wy/nwis/rt
The Snake River has been reliably consistent lately with the best fishing from mid morning into the very early afternoon (1 to 2pm). After this time the water temperature has been approaching the danger zone for trout and the action has been lackluster. Pay attention to the bugs in the air, on the bank, and on water surface for your fly selection. Most days we are seeing stonefly and mayfly nymph action producing best from mid morning to late morning and the dry fly action picking up substantially with pale morning duns hatching in the very late morning to early afternoon. We are also starting to see some Hecuba mayflies aka the "Snake Drake" and the fish are keying in on them. These mayflies are really fun to fish as you can use a big ol size 12 bushy, attractor mayfly dry in faster currents and a more delicate, precise imitation of a Hecuba mayfly in spookier water. No matter what your mayfly dry of choice may be, the Hecubas are always an eagerly awaited hatch as they can get some really quality trout to eat a size 12 mayfly dry when those same fish might only eat a size 14 or 16 outside of the Hecuba hatch window. The smaller mayflies are still producing great on the Snake as well as grasshopper patterns in the early afternoon. It's safe to say the Snake is fully on!
The Snake River tributaries have dropped so much in flows that the majority of the quality trout have dropped downstream to the Snake in search of deeper, safer, colder water. That said, there is still some tributary fishing to be had, it's just not our first choice at the moment.
The Green and New Fork Rivers are dropping in flows fast but still have some great fishing options with hoppers, ants, beetles, and streamers on the cloudier days. Its a great time to take advantage of these fisheries before flows drop any further and it gets really tough and technical for these brown and rainbow trout.
Give us a call at 307-203-4683 or email info@highalpineanglers.com to book a trip and take advantage of the ideal weather, great fishing, and light crowds we are currently experiencing in Jackson!
Fishing Report: July 29, 2022
We continue to see reliably great fishing across most of our waters in Western Wyoming. River and creek flows are dropping fast and some of these fishing options will no longer be accessible in a week or two so get it while the getting is good!
Snake River tributaries continue to fish well with mayflies and yellow and purple foam attractor patterns from size 14 all the way up to a size 8. Mid morning to early afternoon is the time to hit most of these cutthroat fisheries. Not much action to be had in the early morning hours and by 2pm, water temperatures on some of these creeks are approaching dangerous levels for trout.
Certain sections of the Snake River are pretty much the only waters that have had slow fishing in the last week and this is mostly due to high water temperatures. Afternoon temps on the Snake are reaching 68 to 70 degrees on a daily basis by around 2pm at a variety of gauging stations. When temperatures are this warm, you should not fish for trout. There is so little dissolved oxygen in the water at these temperatures that the exhaustion a fish experiences after a fight on the end of a fly line can be fatal. In addition to this, fish probably won't be biting that well on an afternoon half day trip during a heat wave. You should not fish in the afternoon when waters approach these temperatures on trout rivers and you should not go on a guided trip with a company that offers afternoon half days when water temperatures are 68 degrees or warmer. That said, there are a variety of great fishing options that exist at the moment.
The upper Green River continues to fish well and has been colder than the Snake. Grey drakes and stoneflies are no longer around on most stretches of the green but early morning to early afternoon action has been solid with streamers and hoppers fished tight to the bank - especially on cloudy days.
The Salt River has offered consistent dry fly fishing and colder water temperatures than the Snake for the last month with ongoing little yellow sally and pmd hatches as well as recent trico hatches on some stretches. Expect the aquatic insect activity to taper off in the coming weeks and focus a bit more on fishing hoppers and streamers.
The 40 miles of Snake River above Jackson Lake has settled into its summer flows and is also offering great wade fishing options right now if you are willing to hike for it. Few people fish this zone and it can offer some phenomenal dry fly fishing and solitude from the midsummer crowds. Be sure to keep an eye on water temperatures here as well and be ready to pull the plug if temps are too warm. Yellowstone Lake fishing has been great as well with mid to late morning caddis and mayfly hatches coaxing some truly massive cutthroat to the surface for a snack! Remember to pinch those barbs on your flies not only in Yellowstone but anywhere else on our special wild trout fisheries!
Fishing Report: July 12, 2022
River flows have been relatively stable for several weeks now and we have entered our classic, reliably excellent summer fishing season. The Snake River is fishing well at the moment although flows are still quite high and the slower holding water for trout is limited. The average size fish in the Snake is also small at the moment compared to other options as many of the mature, spawning class fish that moved upstream into Snake River tributaries in May and June are still in those tributaries and have not dropped down into the main Snake yet. Even though the average size is small, nymph rigs with large or brightly colored attractor mayfly nymphs are producing fish as well as foam dry flies in the late morning to afternoon hours.
Snake River Tributaries are fishing great. They have recently cleared and are filled with voracious fish. Although the salmonfly hatch on the Hoback River is waning, the fish are still keying in on very large salmonfly dry patterns with reckless abandon in pocket water and slower sections of the river. Pacific Creek and the upper Gros Ventre River are also starting to clear, slow, and fish well.
The Green River is fishing great at the moment with tons of bug life. Lots of grey drakes, litlle yellow sallies, and a variety of stonefly species are on the water starting in the late morning and the fish are looking up. Consider fishing a single dry fly to accurately target tight to the bank spots that can't be reached with a dry/dropper rig. Some days the smaller fish are targeting the bugs on the surface and a nymph rig or streamer is required to get to the larger, trophy browns and rainbows on the Green but this isn't always the case - it depends on the day, the stretch of river, and the type and speed of water.
The Salt River is also fishing well at the moment. The bug life has slowed down a little bit from a few weeks ago when there were clouds of midges, drakes, and little yellow sallies, but fish are still eating mayfly dries and size 8 to 12 foam attractor dries from mid to late morning onwards. Consider fishing nymphs early morning when water temps are extremely cold and fish activity is still slow and don't be afraid to downsize from your standard cutthroat attractor dry fly as the fish in the Salt get less gullible as the summer goes on and they see some more fishing pressure. Microfoam is your friend!
Yellowstone is also fishing great as the freestone creeks and rivers settle into their summer flows with happy, hungry cutthroat trout. The further you are willing to hike to beat the crowds, the better. Lewis Lake surface water temps are rising and the fishing is slowing down considerably with the browns and lakers moving into deeper water for the summer months. Look for the fishing to pick up again on Lewis Lake in the fall as things cool down. The crowds are not bad at all in Yellowstone at the moment and the traffic is very light as the park service has done an incredible job opening up roads and keeping all operations moving smoothly despite the flooding in the Northern portion of the park several weeks ago.
Fishing is great everywhere at the moment, give us a call at 307 203 4683 to book a trip and join the fun!
Fishing Report: June 13, 2022
In the last 24 hours, the Jackson Hole region, Yellowstone National Park, and communities surrounding the parks have received a tremendous amount of rainfall. This has led to road closures and flooding in Montana and Yellowstone. Although the sudden increase in river flows wasn't as bad in the Jackson Hole region, almost all of our area rivers are very high and muddy at the moment and the creek and river fishing will suffer for several days to a week or more in some cases. Once the river flows have settled and the rainwater has flushed downstream, check the U.S. Geological Survey stream gauges in the area to find rivers that are relatively stable in flows https://waterdata.usgs.gov/wy/nwis/rt . These gauges don't show clarity levels but they do show a graph with flow levels. Stable flows over time will indicate clearer water, which is more fishable water in general - so avoid the rivers that have spiked!! For fishing options right now, look to the area lakes like Jenny Lake, Jackson Lake, Lewis Lake, and Yellowstone Lake. The streamer bite has been very good on just about any color small to medium sized streamer on these bodies of water at depths of 5 to 15 feet. A fast action 6 or 7 weight rod with a line like Rio's Streamer Tip or Rio Outbound Short works great for casting streamers long distances and getting down to that depth range quickly. Give us a call at 307-203-4683 to talk fishable options. Our guides are experts at reading streamflow gauges and analyzing flow trends and historic data to pick the right fishing option at the right time!
Fishing Report: June 4, 2022
Fishing options are starting to open up as Pinedale waters like the Green River are stabilizing in flows and Yellowstone melts out from the deep freeze. The Lewis River is still very cold at the moment but starting to fish with stonefly nymph imitations in certain sections. The Firehole River and Iron Spring Creek are fishing great right now and offer some of the only consistent, dry fly fishing options at this time. Classic bushy dries like an elk hair caddis, parachute hare's ear, or humpy are working well from late morning on. When fishing in Yellowstone this time of year, bring your thermometer and make sure you are targeting water in the 50's and 60's to maximize your fishing efforts where trout are most active. Water temps can vary a tremendous amount over a short distance in Yellowstone rivers depending on where hydrothermal features are located so be ready to pull the plug and move if it isn't happening in one spot!! Lewis Lake is still frozen and inaccessible at the moment. The ice out on Lewis will be much later than usual this year with the cold and wet spring we've had. Look for hungry fish eating streamers and midge nymphs on Lewis in 5 to 15 feet of water when the ice does go out. Most sections of the Snake are high, brown, and muddy at the moment.
Fishing Report: May 2, 2022
Right now is our favorite time to fish the Snake River. Skwala stoneflies have been hatching for a while now, along with caddis, and blue winged olives, and the fish are really paying attention. Skwala dry fly imitations in size 10 or 12 (think dark bodied chubby chernobyl ants and water walkers) and skwala nymphs in the same size are producing sizeable Snake River cutthroat in a variety of water. Some of the biggest fish we've seen are holding tight to the bank but fishing has been great on mid-river seams, side channels, spring creek confluences, and deep, slow, recirculating pools as well. The water is rising at the moment and the visibility of the river isn't perfect, but its more than enough for fish to be eating dry flies voraciously. As the visibility of the river drops, try fishing a dry / dropper rig with the nymph 3 to 4 feet down. This can pick up fish that are holding deeper and aren't able to see the dry fly on the surface. We have fishing trip options on the Green River and other locations as well right now but with our Snake River trips seeing large fish, good numbers, and aggressive dry fly eats, why go anywhere else??
Fishing Report: March 30, 2022
The dry fly action has been phenomenal for about a week now with the unusually warm spring weather we've been having. Capnia stoneflies and midges account for the majority of the bug life on the river at the moment and any dry fly or nymph that imitates either one of those insects has been getting the job done! The streamer bite has been really solid as well between about 11am and 430pm. Not only have we been seeing solid numbers of fish but the average size fish in the Snake is large at the moment. Get it while it's good and schedule a trip with us today!! Call 307 203 4683 to see why spring is our favorite time of year to fish.
Fishing Report: February 8, 2022
Fishing options will be limited until the Spring thaw which usually occurs sometime in March. Until that time, watch the temperature closely. If daytime temps start rising into the mid 30's to low 40's on days without much wind, fishing in slow, deep pools can be productive with midge nymph patterns and occasionally with midge dries. Slow, sustained streamer retrieves in these same deep pools can also be productive. The weather forecast is calling for warmer temps and light winds later in the week which will likely get fish feeding a little. Give us a call to set up a Winter fishing trip and we'll explain some of the available options at this time of year.