OT - MGoAnglers - any advice for Yellowstone??
Heading to Yellowstone with the GF and kiddos (13 and 18) next week. Plan to fish very, very hard. Certainly willing to hike in to good fishing, but overnight jaunts into the backcountry will unfortunately not be part of the agenda. Any advice out there from my flycasting bretheren??
I don't have any fishing advice, but I would strongly encourage you to make friends with a couple of the the folks driving around with the large whip antennas. They often spend the whole summer in their RVs in the park and will radio back and forth all day with bear and wolf sightings, etc. They're also pretty willing to share their spotting scopes when they've found a good spot. A few years ago we got to watch young wolves chase a herd of bison because we'd said hello to some retirees over breakfast.
Enjoy. One of the greatest places on earth. Will be a little crowded this time.
You might know already that Yellowstone has a lot of rules and regs for fishing within the park: Check https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/fishing.htm.
Check in with the park ranger's office on your arrival. The rangers always have good advice about fishing in the park and park procedures in general (bear spray?) both for you and the young'uns.
And by all means bring a camera --- not just your smartphone, but a good point-and-shoot if you don't want to carry a DSLR. Yellowstone is a gigantic and amazingly beautiful place
I suspect we have a somewhat similar life story.
I spend a hell of a lot of time on those types of surfaces, yes. Eight months a year actually. Did I have to google it? Yes also.
I have seen monster fish in Slough Creek which drains into the Lamar River Valley. I hear they are experienced and will look at your lures in a skeptical fashion. If you do visit the area, I would drive to Cooke City simply because Barronette Peak's ledges are distinctly beautiful. Also for the kiddos (and yourself really): no screens allowed. Banish them. Off and under the seat.
Yellowstone is not necessarily the most stunning national park, but it is the best for many short adventures outside of the car. Don't rush; stop everywhere and plan time accordingly. It is drive-through heaven. No park better for family that is not inclined to camp in the backcountry. Of course, it is amongst the most wild (along with Glacier/Bob Marshall country) backcountry the lower 48 still has, but that is a different thread...
We just returned from 2 fabulous weeks in Yellowstone and Jackson Hole. I highly recommend hiring a private wildlife guide, especially with the young ‘uns you have in tow. They’re available through the Yellowstone Institute (a public/private partnership of some sort) for about $600 per day. Our guide was Brad Bulin, who has a master’s in wildlife biology from Wisconsin (Oshkosh, I think). He was great - Google him for a glimpse. I think he can be hired through a private firm - https://www.yellowstone-wild.com/ - perhaps for less $, but I don’t know.
For fly fishing, also hire a guide. The rivers were high when we were on the water in early July, so the fishing wasn’t great (although my son caught an 18” cutthroat!). The guides will know where the best spots are located at any given time. We hired out of Jackson Hole, but instead of fishing the Snake, we drove 1.5 hours to the Green, which eventually flows into the Colorado. We were on a float boat all day for, you guessed it, $600 (+$100 tip). If you’re on the north side or west side of Yellowstone, the Madison or Gallatin will likely be your best bets, as the Yellowstone is probably still rocking with high water.
In the park, I think the guide suggested the river between Shoshone Lake and Lewis Lake, which in the southcentral part of the park. We passed on that, as we had already spent the best part of a week in the park and wanted to see something new. BTW – a fishing licenses inside the park is rather pricy. Outside the park, it is cheaper.
There is a small lake (pond) behind the maintenance shed south of mammoth springs that has a lot of small to midsize sized trout. If your kids are not great fisherman this is a spot that they will love. Took my kids there three years ago and they each caught several.
Love Yellowstone - whether fishing or not. Have fun!
And pan-fry the big ones
Use tact, poise and reason
And gently
I was out there last fall for a fly fishing trip with my father. We hit the Gallatin, Madison and Big Horn in Montana and Wood river and Silver Creek in Idaho, but we were not fishing in the park itself.
Definitely get a guide. They not only know the spots to find fish, but they will direct you within inches where to cast. After a week of guide fishing, we spent our last day without a guide and didn't get as much as a bite. Not to mention they know exactly what to throw. You'll have to book in advance and it's not cheap, about $500/day for the two of us, but it was a great time.
Not sure right now, but there might be some fires happening out there. Also check if there are any stream closures, there was a parasite outbreak that closed down some of the streams in the park last year.
Best of luck, have fun!
Learn to shadow cast.
maniacs who know the river. very cool guys, easy to work with. we fished with them on a float (i had two of the youngers with me - 4 and 7 at that time) and had a fine time and pumped them for information about other places to fish, what to throw, etc. then asked about rivers and hike combinations. worked out great. fun story, we got caught in a 70 mph front coming through while drifting. we hid out and let it blow over in about a 20 min time period, but the kids totally dug it.
if the kids are fishing then nymphing will work better/easier for them, but i'm guessing you already know that. you won't need anything big, maybe your 4 and 6 wt, and it wouldn't surprise me if your 6 didn't get used much. of course the yellowstone guides will have a much better idea about what is working, where.
have a great time jmd. post pics on the blog. talking trout tuesday.
here is their website: https://www.yellowstoneangler.com/
'talking trout tuesday'. i like that alliteration, oh yes i do.
on the patio of the Old Faithful Inn and watch the guyser erupt. Then go inside and have another one (beer, not a guyser).
The lobby is arranged around a giant stone fireplace and the atrium goes up at least four stories. In the evening there is a live pianist (the dead ones don't play so well) and families and couples go to the atrium to play games, catch up on the day's activities, and plan their next day. Last time I was there there was limited or no cell service, which really is a big plus.
It is a great experience and for quite a few years we had at least one family vacation up there per year. We went back a couple years ago and again had a great time. I'm thinking it's time to go back again.
Have fun with the 18 year old twins, but look out for that 13 year old GF!
they've been known to take you to the worst spots in Yellowstone