On the Fly Magazine: The Greater Yellowstone Fishing Resource

Early summer in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is when the bugs come out to play and anglers come out to pursue the fish that they have been fantasizing about since last fall. Late May, June and July are the months when the big hatch occurs on several of our area rivers. The big hatch I am specifically referring to is the salmon fly hatch.

For those of you not familiar, imagine a small hummingbird – that is the size of these stoneflies – and the trout love them, possibly even more than anglers like fishing with them. This hatch occurs on several of our area rivers and is a signal to the trout that summer is here and it is time to start gorging themselves again. This hatch signifies the beginning of the trout fishing season to many anglers. Generally, the hatch occurs on the Henry’s Fork near Ashton, ID around Memorial Day weekend.

This is when the majority of the river opens to fishing and the bugs are very close to emerging or have already started emerging on certain parts of the river. As time passes the bugs work their way up the river. Overall this hatch can last three to four weeks. After the Henry’s Fork lights up, the salmon flies can be found on the South Fork of the Snake, if the water conditions are right, which this year looks like it will be perfect.

You can read the rest of this article in our print publication.
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