Describing Yellowstone National Park as the mecca of flyfishing is perhaps selling it short. You could spend a lifetime fishing the waters of the Park and still not cover them all. And if you spend a lifetime flyfishing and don’t ever make it to Yellowstone, well that would be too tragic to consider. From the fabled waters of the Madison to the tiniest backcountry streams, there doesn’t seem to be a body of water in Yellowstone not holding trout. Fish are, of course, on one link in the diverse chain of wildlife in Yellowstone. Since reintroduction, wolves have been thriving throughout the Park offering visitors a chance to see them firsthand.
FLIES & WADERS:
Early in the season, the Firehole River offers the best action. While warm days may bring some dry-fly activity, drifting, a partridge and yellow Soft Hackle or Hare’s Ear Flymph through the riffles and along the banks will almost always yield some action no matter what the weather. As summer gets in full swing, head over to the Lamar River for summer hopper fishing. Big stimulators and hopper patterns of all persuasions attract big trout hunkered down along the banks. Hold on tight.
WOLVES:
Speaking of Lamar, the Lamar Valley is one of the most active wildlife corridors in the Park. Two different wolf packs may be seen on the road and trails along the Lamar Valley, between Tower Junction and the northeast entrance. (This is the area where three of the original wolf packs were first released in the Park.) The Slough Creek area is home to the Slough Creek pack while the Druid pack is often seen from the Lamar River Trailhead.
Get to “Yellowstone’s Serengeti” early in the morning and you stand a better than average chance of catching one of Yellowstone’s wolf packs in action. Bears are frequent visitors to this area as well. Check with rangers to get the latest information of wildlife activity and be sure to pack binoculars or a spotting scope.
LEARN MORE: The Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone is a not-for-profit wildlife park and educational facility where visitors can witness these rare and extraordinary species feet away. Watch the bears forage for food, play in their ponds and with each other. Early morning and evening visitors may witness active wolf packs howling. Learn more at www.grizzlydiscoveryctr.org 