The Yellowstone has been the place to be for the past week with some truly epic fishing. Lots of bent rods and smiling faces and some monster trout coming into the net. Nymphing tight to banks or in soft water in low gradient areas has been the ticket with some trout just beginning to look for attractor dries. The trout are mostly along the banks, inside corners and around rocks with the whitefish just a bit farther off. Streamer fishing has also been very, very good during low light levels as is nymphing large stonefly patterns and sculpins trailed by basic bead head nymphs. In addition to the salmonflies, we have been seeing caddis and yellow sallies. Nymphing has been red hot. A nymph rig sporting a mega prince, pat's rubberlegs, FKA prince or a lil' spanker should get the job done. Target slower banks, inside bends, spillovers, and all "walking speed" water. Fishing a flutter bug, water walker, foam run caddis, or a small stimulator should get you a handful of eats on the surface.
Best Flies for the Yellowstone River Right Now:
Mega Prince #8-12
Pat's rubberlegs #8-12
FKA prince #12-16
Foam run caddis #12-16
Flutter bug #6-8
The Month Ahead:
As the river continues to drop expect trout to slowly slide into faster water. As banks recede the trout will move to deeper flats with 2-4 feet depth. Giant attracter dries won’t work as well as smaller patterns as the trout see more flies when throwing dries. Trout will continue to move into progressively faster water as temps increase. We are in the summer thundershower cycle so pay close attention to the hydrographs of tributaries like the Gardiner and Lamar and if you see them spike after turbulent weather expect some mud to come down.