Spring 2018 Outlook

A few bears have been seen in the Yellowstone area, and we are always anticipating the reports of the first blue birds arriving. All of this is promising news despite the 30 inches of snow in my backyard. I love this time of year, we are still getting snow and it is biathlon season, ski in the morning and fish in the afternoon, one day is sunny in the 50’s and the next a white out powder day! Almost daily I am fielding phone calls, emails and texts about the upcoming fishing season. If you haven’t looked at the Snotel Map recently, I’ll bring you up to speed, we have an above average snowpack. This water is our insurance policy for cool water all summer long. As the snow starts to melt in the beginning of the summer, it will keep the lower elevation streams in the Yellowstone Park very fishable for the month of June. We should see emergences of several species of mayflies, a few caddis and juicy stoneflies soon after the park opens to fishing May 26. Down on the Madison we are excited that all the work on Hebgen Dam has been completed and we will see pre-2008 flow regimes, meaning cold water from Hebgen Lake flowing out of the bottom of the dam. Fishing should be great this summer. Early summer will see high flows and off color water for a portion of June during runoff. Stay tuned for Summer update and fishing report! Send us a message or give us a call to set-up your summer 2018 guide trips in the West Yellowstone area.