Hi Guys and Gals, I am planning a cross country three month trip late next spring out west to trout fish, will be pulling a small camper from florida. Plan on working my way west up thru Arkansas, Missouri, South Dakota, Yellowstone, Montana, Idaho and back thru New Mexico. Plan on spending at least two weeks in Yellowstone and surrounding area. Any advice on sites I should research would be appreciated. Been reading alot on Yellowstone, heard there are excellant streams around Mount Rushmore, central Idaho, and the Navajo reservation in New Mexico, again thanks. Shacked, Dick Blakely
Hi Shacked,
I don’t know much that would help you on your trip but it sure does sound wonderful. I wanted to welcome you to our group. Don’t be a stranger and let us hear from you often. Great people, great advice and great information are to be found here. 8T 
You’ve come to the right place!! Investigate to your hearts content right here!!! You’ll find much to learn from the archives, anything under the main menu, and whole bunches from members on this board! Ask and ye shall receive!! By posting where you’ll be going and roughly when, you’ll even have members offer to show you the best fishing sites close to their homes!
Each of the states you’ve mentioned has wonderful delights in the fishing arenas (well, all except South Dakota … and we all know there are no trouts there!!:rolleyes::p:rolleyes:)
Again, welcome home! (ummm … new guy brings the donuts!)
shacked -
Welcome and greetings from SE Idaho.
Sounds liked quite the adventure you’ve got in store.
Like Betty said, post something of a rough itinerary and you’re bound to get at least as many ideas as you need.
Enjoy the trip - both here on the FAOL Bulletin Board and on your quest for trout.
John
Since you are coming west…and you mentioned New Mexico…Taos is the center of fishing spots in NM. I have not fished there however. BUT…do not miss the San Juan River at Navajo Dam Community. It is world famous for year round trout and there’s a reason. You will not be disappointed. But…'tis tricky. A real plus would be to hire a guide. I have only hired a guide one time in my life…the San Juan…and caught nice fish all day long. THAT guide is no longer there. I would recommend you contact Bubba Smith…who is a member here on FAOL and is a guide and lives there. Go to members list and find his name and shoot him a PM…private message. Maybe I will post some pics of my San Juan experince. Shucks…no spare time. So many things to do. Maybe…maybe not.
Gemrod
New Mexico - go to the Valle Vidal. See “Northern NM Sunset” thread. You won’t be disappointed.
Joe
Sounds like a great trip that you are planning.
One word of advise the I would give – and worth what you paid for it (i.e. nothing), is that spring time in the the Rockies might give you some problems - especially early spring - with water flows and when fishing seasons open. Do a little research and find out when the seasons open for trout fishing, when the parks are open, etc.
If we have a heavy snow pack this next winter, you might not even get into places like Yellowstone until late spring or early summer and then you might have to worry about run off. This happened to me this year in late May, tried to fish some of the rivers and lakes in Central Oregon – some were ok and others we too high. On one lake, we just happened to get there the first day the road had been opened - lake was still partially iced over with snow and ice on the beach.
Check with the park service to find out when camp grounds open up and also, for places like yellowstone, you might need to make advanced reservations for camp sites.
Hope I’m not discouraging you. Just saying to check into everthing so you will hopefully have a worthwhile trip. As others have mentioned, keep posting to this web site for information from others.
Good luck.
I really appreciate the response to my post regarding my trip and suggestions and I will surely follow thru as my plan becomes firmer. I belong to a good many fly fishing forums, but my initial thoughts are this has the others beat hands down. I know it is not a competition but I do appreciate the quick and helpful advice. Will be posting more, one question, before I leave. On an extended trip thru the west like that mainly fishing for browns, cuts, bows, and brooks, would you recommend a 4# or 5#, most of my fishing is salt for reds, trout, flounder and snook. and I use a 6 and 8 have a little reddington combo 3-4, but thinking about getting a sage rod and loomis venture to match any suggestions would be helpful. thanks, Shacked
Dick,
If you are serious about fishing in South Dakota, or Wyoming, I would pack a SMALL rod. Maybe around 6’ (5’6 or 6’6) and light, 3#(1-4 weight). The streams there are quite small, with a lot of willow growth on the banks. Some of the best are in canyons, and open prairie (but really narrow … deep, but narrow), and the smaller, lighter rods work very well. Furled leaders and light tippet work well too. Fish are spooky!
Betty
(NOT that I would EVER fish South Dakota, with it’s lack of trouts!!:p)
Betty, obviously there are no trout in South Dakota, but assuming a dummy like me wanted to give it a whirl, here are a couple of questions, if you don’t mind.
- can you wet wade comfortably in June in SD, tivos and wading shorts?
- what type of fishing works best during this time frame, dry, wet or nymphing?
- any suggested fly patterns and what size hooks?
- Please don’t be insulted, do you ever use a dropper set-up, dry on top, nymph on dropper and your feelings on strike indicators?
Now Please just assume there are TROUT in SD, any advice on the state campground at or around Mt. Rushmore and the stream availability in that area.
Regards,
Shacked, Dick Blakely
Shacked -
If you are only going to bring one rod to this neck of the woods, you would probably want a 9’ for 5 wt, which is pretty much considered the all around rod for the bigger and medium sized water and the trout in them - browns and bows to the mid 20"s and cutts more likely to 18" or so with an occasional larger one. A rod with a faster action for nymphing rigs and streamers would be preferable.
BUT, Betty’s recommendation for that OTHER place that has no trout, is a good one for the medium and smaller creeks out here, also. A 7’6" for 3 wt will fish well on most of the smaller water, and will have enough backbone to easily and quickly land anything you catch in those streams - browns and bows to the mid teens and cutts about as big, but a quality shorter rod, not lighter wt, could be a LOT of fun.
John
P.S. When you are ready to go, send me a PM when you will be in Idaho, and I’ll give you some ideas where to fish.
If you are set on spring and not summer, you might think about going the opposite way, as the San Juan fishes great right through spring, unless they decide to do a flushing flow, which will be announced ahead of time. Do give a lot of thought to how early you go, as almost all areas have great hatches starting after, or during runoff, but pre-runoff you have the Mother’s day caddis, which is actually around the middle of April, and aside from that the bug life is kind of skimpy. There are midges and BWOs, but they lend themselves to more nymphing than dries. Just some thoughts. As far as a rod, if you could bring a 3 and a 6 weight, that would be perfect, as the 3 would work for most instances, but we do get wind out here and a 6 would let you be a whole lot more effective.
Thanks John, I will be bringing multiple rods, I have a 3-4# 7.6’ reddington outfit, a 6# and 8# outfit also, have been looking at the sage launch 5# 2 piece 9’ and a loomis 5# venture reel, with that portfolio, I believe I will be able to cover just about all conditions, asking because this will be my first time trout fishing out west. I read where there is great trout fishing in Idaho south of Yellowstone for big browns, near Palisades I believe. thanks for your help and will be in touch. Shacked, Dick Blakely
Shacked -
You’ve got a PM.
John
That the administration on this fine website allows such trivial threads such as this one is a testament to their fortitude and patience.
Imagine espousing such a ridiculous theory as trout in South Dakota. The very idea.
What nonsense. If we allow rumours like this to spread the next thing you know they would be uttering such absurdities as the existence of fish in British Columbia. Even though it is well documented that the Nauga wars of 1888 -1891 and the Lert war of 1896-2007 completely wiped out any trace of our finny friends north of the 49the parallel. Remember the slogan?
Keep a lert! Save a fish!
If we were to believe there were trout in South Dakota We’d have to give credence to such whoppers as the Tooth fairy, the Easter Bunny, Bugs Bunny, Snow white and the seven dwarfs and even, dare I say it? Santa Claus himself!!! I have it on film The old white haired guy cursing a blue streak then driving off in a long white limo with Huff corporation emblazoned on the back. So I know for certain that Santa drove off in a huff after finding out that ………………
THERE ARE NO FISH IN SOUTH DAKOTA!!!
Although the part about the new guy bringing the doughnuts and beer is 100% true.
Dick,
I, myself, wouldn’t wet wade, or even wade, most of the streams in South Dakota. Many of them are just to small to wade. (plus, IF there were any fish there, and I’m not saying there are any, they spook real easy). IF you really want to wade them (or others) please take precautions for not spreading didymo around (ie; thoroughly clean your boots and waders between waters). Some places like Spearfish would be wadable, but quite cold!
I’ve always been a friend of the tiny dry fly, and will use them 95% of the time. Wet and nymph hold the remaining 5%. I use flies in the 12 - 28 range. (HA! how’s that for helpful??) I’ve never used multiple hook ups. Never used strike indicators. As it gets closer to time, I’ll fill you in on patterns and streams. A great resource for the area would be Steve Kinsellas book, Trout Fishing in the Black Hills.
Campgrounds? There’re a million of them. Best near Mt Rushmore would, in my estimation, be Custer State Park. What an incredible place! Puts you smack dab in the middle of everything, and a great place to strike out from. We usually stay in Hill City at the Super 8 … my kind of camping!!!
Betty
I would also add to Orthoman’s reply about spring runoff, is the fishing season in Yellowstone Park does not open until the Saturday of Memorial day weekend. I don’t think the upper Yellowstone river opens until July 15th. Although with three months I am sure you can plan your itinerary to get the most out of your trip. Sound like you’re in for a trip of a lifetime!
Glenn
I have fished some in the areas you are going to visit. In the Yellowstone area I like the Yellowstone River east of the Gardner entrance. The Slough Creek, the Madison, and the Snake near Moose falls are good areas. Since you are on the road, I would try to make some time to fish the Green River in Utah. Try to time your visit to the Green during the week as it does get busy on the weekend. The San Juan in New Mexico is hot and busy, but good fishing. There are other streams in the northern part of NM, like: Pecos River (far north end), Jemenez River, Chama River and the Animas. Lees Ferry in northeast AZ. is a very beautiful and productive place to fish. You are actually fishing in the east end of the Grand Canyon. And since you are on the road so much you should try the “dream stream” in southern CO. If I had unlimited space for equipment, I would take a 3,4,5, and 6 wt rods for a trip like that.
Happy Trails
The tailwaters in N. Ark. can be fished year - round. In a normal spring there are wadefishing opportunities on the White, North Fork and Little Red rivers. The White and NF are tucked in the north part of the state and are not convenient to any freeways, but it would be worth it for a 4-5 day side trip. The fishing will all depend on the weather - lots of rain = muddied water and high water from dam releases. Less rain = more wading opportunities. The Little Red river is not as far off the freeway and is a little easier to get to if you are traveling xcountry.