Fishing around Yellowstone
Jan 31st, 2007, 08:29 AM
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Fishing around Yellowstone
My husband wants to catch a fish in every state. We are going to Yellowstone in mid Aug 2007 and want to catch a fish in WY, Montana and Idaho while there. We would love names of guides, or ideas about how to ensure a fish in each of those states while so close
Feb 2nd, 2007, 06:03 PM
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If you're going to Yellowstone, I'd recommend catching the WY fish in Yellowstone park. You can fish on Yellowstone Lake or on one of the many rivers/streams subject to park regulations (see the nps website). Mostly catch and release although certain non-native fish like the invasive lake trout MUST be killed if caught! The YNP website should also have guide information. For your MT fish, there are many streams coming in and out of Yellowstone park so depending on where you are as well as your husband's fishing preferences (fly fishing, spinner, etc), there are tons of options. For example, on the West Yellowstone side, there is Hebgen lake nearby and several blue-ribbon trout streams (Gallatin, Madison, etc). On the Gardiner/Paradise Valley side, there is the Yellowstone River.
Not so familar with Idaho but likewise tons of options I'm sure depending on your location. Good luck!
Not so familar with Idaho but likewise tons of options I'm sure depending on your location. Good luck!
Feb 4th, 2007, 06:07 AM
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It is possible to catch a fish in all 3 states while still being inside the Park. Fishing inside the park requires the purchase of only one fishing license, irregardless of whether you are in the Wyoming part of the park, or the Idaho part of the park, or the Montana part of the park. Step outside the park though, and you will be required to purchase a fishing license for that state.
Although there are many great places to fish outside the park, I think it would be an additional challenge to try to accomplish the feat of catching a fish in all 3 states while inside the park. Of course, the easiest will be the Wyoming fish. There are a number of easy access lakes, including Yellowstone Lake, but most of those are big and if you don't have some kind of guidance you could spend all day just looking for the fish. Smaller lakes in the park are generally off-the-beaten-path, and thus are a bit more difficult to get to, and some are actually sterile. There is a guide book to fishing in the park that is sold at some concession stands that is quite exhaustive and informative. I don't remember the name though.
By August many of the rivers will be low, but still fishable. Although tempting, the section of the Yellowstone River between Yellowstone Lake and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone holds very few resident fish in August and your DH’s time would be better spent fishing the Firehole or the Madison on the west side of the park, or the Yellowstone River between Mammoth Hot Springs and Tower-Roosevelt (access the Yellowstone from the Hellroaring Trailhead about three and a half miles west of the Roosevelt Lodge). The Lamar River and Soda Butte Creek should be fishable with roadside access in the northeast part of the park. For a nice hike-in fishing experience, drive into the Slough Creek Campground area and hike the trail east up into the Slough Creek meadows and fish Slough Creek.
Inside the park you can catch a Montana fish out of the Gardner River north of Mammoth Hot Springs. Or you can go way over on the western boundary of the park in the Gallatin River or Grayling Creek along Hwy 191 north of West Yellowstone, Montana.
The toughest part to complete this trifecta will be the Idaho fish inside the park simply because the part of Yellowstone that is in Idaho is very small and access is very difficult. I personally would buy an Idaho fishing license and fish outside the park west of West Yellowstone at Hebgen Lake, Henrys Lake or the Henry’s Fork River that flows south out of Henry’s Lake.
Inside the park, fishing regulations are a little convoluted about what you are able to catch and keep in certain parts of the park. What is not convoluted is the fact that inside the park you may use ONLY artificial flies and lures. No worms, eggs, real insects, minnows, or foodstuffs can be used. Hooks must be barbless, and sinkers and weights cannot be made of lead. Only flyfishing is allowed in the Madison River, Firehole River, and Gibbon River below Gibbon Falls. Check the National Park Service website of Yellowstone Park for a detailed description of the fishing regulations.
If you’re willing to pay for a Wyoming or a Montana, or an Idaho fishing license, there are plenty of great places to fish outside the park, including a float trip down the Madison, Gallatin, Yellowstone, or Henrys Fork Rivers. Walter Wiese ([email protected]) is the head guide out of Parks Fly Shop (parksflyshop.com) in Gardiner, Montana (just north of Mammoth Hot Springs). Walt can probably handle anything for you in the northern part of the park and in Montana outside of the park. Even if you don’t contact him, check out their website.
Another guide I could recommend is J.D. Miller who guides out of the Henry’s Fork Anglers fly shop in Island Park/Last Chance, Idaho. J.D. guides on the Henry’s Fork and Madison Rivers, and all of Yellowstone. E-mail him at [email protected] or check the website for Henry’s Fork Anglers (henrysforkanglers.com). At present I hear that J.D. is doing some guiding in Chile but he should be back for the summer.
Although there are many great places to fish outside the park, I think it would be an additional challenge to try to accomplish the feat of catching a fish in all 3 states while inside the park. Of course, the easiest will be the Wyoming fish. There are a number of easy access lakes, including Yellowstone Lake, but most of those are big and if you don't have some kind of guidance you could spend all day just looking for the fish. Smaller lakes in the park are generally off-the-beaten-path, and thus are a bit more difficult to get to, and some are actually sterile. There is a guide book to fishing in the park that is sold at some concession stands that is quite exhaustive and informative. I don't remember the name though.
By August many of the rivers will be low, but still fishable. Although tempting, the section of the Yellowstone River between Yellowstone Lake and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone holds very few resident fish in August and your DH’s time would be better spent fishing the Firehole or the Madison on the west side of the park, or the Yellowstone River between Mammoth Hot Springs and Tower-Roosevelt (access the Yellowstone from the Hellroaring Trailhead about three and a half miles west of the Roosevelt Lodge). The Lamar River and Soda Butte Creek should be fishable with roadside access in the northeast part of the park. For a nice hike-in fishing experience, drive into the Slough Creek Campground area and hike the trail east up into the Slough Creek meadows and fish Slough Creek.
Inside the park you can catch a Montana fish out of the Gardner River north of Mammoth Hot Springs. Or you can go way over on the western boundary of the park in the Gallatin River or Grayling Creek along Hwy 191 north of West Yellowstone, Montana.
The toughest part to complete this trifecta will be the Idaho fish inside the park simply because the part of Yellowstone that is in Idaho is very small and access is very difficult. I personally would buy an Idaho fishing license and fish outside the park west of West Yellowstone at Hebgen Lake, Henrys Lake or the Henry’s Fork River that flows south out of Henry’s Lake.
Inside the park, fishing regulations are a little convoluted about what you are able to catch and keep in certain parts of the park. What is not convoluted is the fact that inside the park you may use ONLY artificial flies and lures. No worms, eggs, real insects, minnows, or foodstuffs can be used. Hooks must be barbless, and sinkers and weights cannot be made of lead. Only flyfishing is allowed in the Madison River, Firehole River, and Gibbon River below Gibbon Falls. Check the National Park Service website of Yellowstone Park for a detailed description of the fishing regulations.
If you’re willing to pay for a Wyoming or a Montana, or an Idaho fishing license, there are plenty of great places to fish outside the park, including a float trip down the Madison, Gallatin, Yellowstone, or Henrys Fork Rivers. Walter Wiese ([email protected]) is the head guide out of Parks Fly Shop (parksflyshop.com) in Gardiner, Montana (just north of Mammoth Hot Springs). Walt can probably handle anything for you in the northern part of the park and in Montana outside of the park. Even if you don’t contact him, check out their website.
Another guide I could recommend is J.D. Miller who guides out of the Henry’s Fork Anglers fly shop in Island Park/Last Chance, Idaho. J.D. guides on the Henry’s Fork and Madison Rivers, and all of Yellowstone. E-mail him at [email protected] or check the website for Henry’s Fork Anglers (henrysforkanglers.com). At present I hear that J.D. is doing some guiding in Chile but he should be back for the summer.
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