Best Fishing Spots in Wyoming

A Deeper Look at Fishing in Wyoming

Fishing Heritage in Wyoming

Wyoming is, for serious trout anglers, hallowed ground. The least-populated state in the country contains some of the most spectacular trout water in North America, including world-renowned tailwaters, alpine lakes scattered across the Wind River Range, the headwaters of the Snake River and the Yellowstone, and the famous Miracle Mile and Grey Reef stretches of the North Platte that have produced more trophy brown and rainbow trout in recent decades than nearly any other water in the West. The state's fishing history begins with the indigenous Shoshone, Arapaho, and Crow peoples who fished cutthroat trout in the high country for centuries before European arrival. Trappers and explorers, including the famed mountain men of the 1820s and 1830s, marveled at the fish populations of the Snake, Green, and North Platte.

Yellowstone National Park, established in 1872 as the first national park, contained Yellowstone Lake and its native cutthroat trout, plus the Madison, Firehole, and Yellowstone rivers, all of which became central destinations in American fly-fishing history. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department, formed in 1899, has managed the state's fisheries with a dual emphasis on protecting native cutthroat populations and developing world-class trophy fisheries on the major tailwaters. The completion of Pathfinder, Alcova, Seminoe, and Glendo dams on the North Platte transformed the river into a series of cold tailwaters that grow trout to enormous sizes. The Miracle Mile section between Pathfinder Dam and Alcova Reservoir, named in the 1950s for its incredible fishing, and the Grey Reef section below Alcova are nationally famous and produce 25- to 28-inch trout regularly.

Add to this the Wind River Range with hundreds of alpine lakes holding cutthroat, golden, and brook trout, and the Yellowstone Lake and Snake River fisheries, and Wyoming is unmatched as a trophy-trout fly-fishing destination.

The Best Fishing Spots in Wyoming

The North Platte River is the headline destination, and three sections in particular draw anglers from around the world. The Miracle Mile, between Pathfinder Reservoir and Seminoe Reservoir, runs through high desert scrubland and produces brown and rainbow trout averaging 17 to 22 inches with frequent 25-inch-plus catches. The Grey Reef section below Alcova Dam grows trout on a forage base of scuds, sowbugs, and cicadas, and 26-inch fish are not unusual. The Fremont Canyon section between Pathfinder and Alcova reservoirs is wadeable trophy water with picky but huge trout.

Yellowstone National Park, which sits mostly in Wyoming, contains some of the most famous trout water in the world. The Madison, Firehole, Yellowstone, Lamar, Lewis, and Snake rivers, plus Yellowstone Lake, the largest high-elevation lake in North America, all hold cutthroat or wild brown and rainbow trout. The Snake River south of Yellowstone, especially in Jackson Hole and the canyon section below, holds native Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat trout in classic dry-fly water. The Green River below Fontenelle Reservoir and Flaming Gorge sections produces big browns and cutthroat.

The Wind River Range, accessible from Pinedale and Lander, contains hundreds of remote alpine lakes holding cutthroat, brook, and the rare golden trout, with multi-day backpacking trips a Wyoming rite of passage. The Bighorn River out of Thermopolis offers tailwater trout fishing. Boysen Reservoir, Glendo Reservoir, and Flaming Gorge Reservoir provide reservoir fishing for walleye, lake trout, and trophy fish. Yellowstone Lake itself is a massive native cutthroat fishery now recovering from lake-trout invasion management.

Game Fish Species You'll Find in Wyoming

Trout dominate Wyoming fishing in nearly every cold-water environment. Wyoming has four distinct native cutthroat subspecies: Yellowstone cutthroat in the Yellowstone drainage, Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat in the Snake, Colorado River cutthroat in the Green and Bear drainages, and Bonneville cutthroat in a small portion of the southwest. Brown trout are the trophy species in many tailwaters and grow to genuinely enormous size in the North Platte system. Rainbow trout are stocked widely and reproduce wild in many waters.

Brook trout fill alpine lakes and small streams. The rare golden trout, originally native to California's Sierra Nevada, has been stocked in select Wind River Range high lakes and is one of the most beautiful and prized fish in North America. Mountain whitefish are abundant in many trout streams. Lake trout grow to over 30 pounds in Flaming Gorge and have become a management challenge in Yellowstone Lake where they prey on native cutthroat.

Walleye thrive in Boysen, Pathfinder, Glendo, and Seminoe reservoirs, with state-record fish caught on these waters. Smallmouth bass live in Boysen and Keyhole reservoirs. Sauger inhabit the Bighorn River. Burbot, locally called ling, are present in some western waters.

Channel catfish and largemouth bass round out the warmwater fishing in lower-elevation reservoirs.

Fishing Licenses and Regulations in Wyoming

Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) manages all fishing licenses and regulations. Anglers age 14 and older must have a valid Wyoming fishing license. Annual, short-term, daily, and game and fish combination licenses are available, plus the required Conservation Stamp for most license types. Children under 14 fish without a license.

Yellowstone National Park requires a separate park fishing permit, available through the National Park Service. Wyoming has many waters with special regulations, including catch-and-release sections, slot limits, single-hook artificial-only zones, and reduced creel limits. The Miracle Mile and Grey Reef sections of the North Platte have specific regulations that can change. Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Yellowstone Lake have a kill-the-lake-trout-keep-them rule for invasive lake trout and catch-and-release for native cutthroat in many areas.

Always check WGFD regulations and park rules before fishing.

Best Seasons for Fishing in Wyoming

Wyoming fishing follows elevation. Low-elevation tailwaters like the North Platte fish year-round, with winter midge fishing on Grey Reef a known producer of trophy trout. Spring brings runoff in May and early June, blowing out many freestone rivers but providing good streamer fishing on tailwaters. Summer is prime alpine season, with backcountry trips into the Wind River Range possible from late June through September.

Yellowstone National Park rivers open for fishing on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend and close November 1. Fall is the calendar highlight in Wyoming, with brown-trout pre-spawn aggression on the North Platte in October producing trophy fish on streamers, plus terrestrial fishing on Snake River and dry-fly action across the state. Winter fishing on tailwaters and ice fishing on reservoirs continues through the cold months for hardcore anglers.

Local Fishing Tips for Wyoming Anglers

For the North Platte tailwaters, hire a guide on your first trip; the Miracle Mile and Grey Reef can be intimidating with private-land access, BLM access, and complicated wading. The standard menu of nymphs is scuds, sowbugs, and small midges fished deep under indicators. Streamer fishing in fall produces the largest trout of the year on aggressive pre-spawn browns. Yellowstone National Park requires the park-issued permit and barbless flies are required in most park waters; pick up a current park regulation booklet before fishing.

The Madison salmonfly hatch in late June and July is one of the great experiences in fly fishing. For Wind River Range backcountry trips, plan for weather, altitude, and bears; pack a 4-piece rod and lightweight gear, and treat all water before drinking. Yellowstone Lake offers easy shore-casting for cutthroat near the boat-launch areas in summer. For trophy lake trout in Flaming Gorge, downrig with white tube jigs in 60 to 100 feet of water near structure.

Watch the wind on Wyoming reservoirs and high country; conditions can change in minutes and the state's open expanses produce some of the strongest sustained winds in the lower 48.

Wyoming Fishing FAQ

Sources & Further Reading

• https://wgfd.wyo.gov/
• https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Fishing-and-Boating
• https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Fishing-and-Boating/Fishing-Regulations
• https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/fishing.htm
• https://www.fs.usda.gov/btnf