Yellowstone National Park Fishing Report 7/19/26

News: Closures on Three Rivers 

This week brings new closures to the fishing that is happening inside the park.  As a result of the recent high temperatures of the rivers, the Firehole, Madison, and lower Gibbon are under temporary closures as the water has an average temperature of 80-86o.  This is a major change from the 2:00pm restriction from the previous week. 

The Gallatin River:

Recent rainfall has added some color and sediment to the Gallatin over the past couple days.  Summer storms often turn it muddy fast in that drainage and it can take time to settle back down.  Flows bumped a bit too.  It seems the river has started to clear after similar events though.

The Gallatin still fishes pretty well even with the extra dirt in the water.  Its colder temps help a lot right now when the heat wave has other rivers shut down.  PMDs and caddis keep producing some dry fly action along with Yellow Sallies.  Salmonflies and golden stones are still around in the park section.  A dry dropper setup works well at the moment since fish take both the surface and the dropper.  Covering water with attractors helps.  When it starts to green up after a muddy spell the fishing can turn good fast.

Some anglers might think the color hurts the bite more than it actually does.  The bugs seem to make up for a lot of it.  In off-color water, nymphs tend to outperform dries since fish rely more heavily on their sense of vibration and smell to locate food when visibility is reduced.  Nymph patterns like Pat’s Rubberlegs, Pheasant Tails, Perdigons, and Duracells get plenty of hits in the murkier conditions. Blowtorches round things out nicely as well. 

The Northeast Corner- Lamar, Soda Butte, Slough Creek:

Recent rain bumped flows and added color to the Lamar and Soda Butte but it was pretty localized so things should clear up quickly. Slough Creek stayed in good mid summer shape and did not seem affected at all. I think it makes sense to watch the weather and flow if you are heading up that way.

The extra color does not hurt the bite as much as some people think.  Bugs are still around and fish keep feeding anyway.  Dry dropper rigs work fine when you want to cover bigger water.  In the off color nymphs like rubberlegs or perdigons or blowtorches can actually do better since the fish rely on vibration more.

Dry fly fishing is still solid in that part of the park though.  PMDs and green drakes plus gray drakes and caddis are happening along with hoppers and beetles and ants.  Cloudy afternoons and spinner falls seem to bring the best surface action.  Some of the details on timing get a bit messy if you try to plan it too tight.

The Yellowstone River:

Flows on the Yellowstone are dropping and clarity keeps getting better overall.  The Lamar and Gardiner can still push muddy water into the main river though after heavy rains hit the area. 

It seems like the river is hitting that midsummer stretch where bugs are really active.  Golden stones, PMDs, green drakes, and caddis are all around now.  Cutthroats look more willing to feed especially in the afternoons and evenings when mayflies and caddis come out. 

Some people figure the rain and higher flows messed up the fishing but it feels like the bugs are still drawing fish up to eat.  In off color water nymphs tend to do better since visibility drops and fish lean on other cues.  A big stonefly pattern with an attractor has worked well lately. Near bank spots riffle edges and softer seams seem to hold fish right now. 

Bugs are out there in numbers.  That part stands out when you are on the water.  Nymphing in those spots with perdigons or rubberlegs or blowtorches or pheasant tails or duracells or chubbies can pay off depending on the day.  I think the fish are responding but maybe not every spot will fish the same.

The Gardner:

Recent rains have added color and silt to the Gardner, and this drainage has a history of mudslides that can quickly turn this river muddy.  There has been an increase in flow and this river takes some time to stabilize its conditions.

Some fishermen may think that the addition of color will harm the bite more than it actually will do. In off-color conditions, dries are usually not productive while nymphs and streamers work better in such conditions since fish use smell and vibration to locate the baitfish. Nymph setups deep in complex current structures have worked well, as did streamer fishing along undercut bank seams and soft seams.  As the water clears and “greens up” after the muddied conditions, fishing becomes excellent.

Best Flies: Pat’s Rubberlegs, Pheasant Tails, Perdigons, Blowtorches, Duracells, Woolly Buggers, streamers.