We’ve been counting the days until the opening weekend of fishing in Yellowstone National Park all winter and it’s finally here. Saturday, May 24 marks the start of a new season and conditions couldn’t be better to find good fishing on the opener.

Water conditions look ideal for the opener. Cool weather this week has kept snowmelt to a minimum. Flows on the Firehole  are clear, and have been dropping from a high around 450 cfs last week to around 300 cfs approaching the opener. Weather forecasts are showing a cool weekend which bodes well for mayfly hatches, and the first opportunities at rising trout of the season.

As is the case every year, the best fishing will be found on our nearby favorites, the Firehole, Madison, and Gibbon Rivers. Both water levels and clarity are looking great and you can expect to find fish rising to hatches of size # 18-20 Baetis and size #14-16 Pale Morning Dun mayflies. With daytime highs breaking into the 60’s, mayfly hatches may begin as early as 11:00am on the Firehole. It’s important to keep in mind that both air and water temperatures play a big role in the timing of mayfly hatches, and water temps will vary drastically from one section to another on the Firehole depending on the proximity to thermal areas. There are many micro-climates on the river. So, if conditions look good, and you’re not seeing bugs and rising fish where you are at, don’t be afraid to jump in your vehicle and move up or down stream to a different section.

A good portion of this year’s snowpack remains in the high elevations throughout the park. The Black Bear Snotel Site is a good reference for the snowpack in the high plateau above the the Firehole River. Currently, Black Bear shows 54 inches of snow remaining on the ground with a Snow Water Equivalent of 24 inches. With that much snow (and water) still on the ground, any periods of warm, sunny weather, or rain on snow events, will likely bump the Firehole back up, making fishing, especially with dry flies, more difficult. So, keep a close watch on the weather, and follow the Firehole River flows HERE. (For reference, this time last year the black Bear site was reporting 62 inches of snow on the ground with 28 inches of snow water equivalent.)

Cool nighttime temps this week have also tempered runoff on the Gallatin River in the park as well leaving the water clarity very fishable. Water temps are still cold here. And it will be sometime until we have consistent hatches and rising fish. However, nymph fishing with tight line or dry-dropper rigs could still be productive here in the afternoons. Keep an eye on daytime temps this coming week as highs in the 70s will likely bring back muddy water and higher flows.

Many of our other favorites waters in YNP open to fishing this weekend as well, but water conditions remain too cold, high, muddy, or all of the above. With warmer weather predicted by early next week, expect to see many of the park waters return to a state of run off as they swell with melting snowpack.

We will do our best to keep you updated on the progress of snowmelt and fishing conditions through the coming weeks. In the meantime, if you have any questions about river conditions, or need a fresh stream report, give us a shout at 406-646-7801 or swing by the fly shop at 39 Madison Ave in West Yellowstone. 

Here’s to another great season exploring Yellowstone Park with rod and fly!