Man fly-fishing from a boat on a lake, watching a steam geyser erupt near a pine-forested shoreline.

Yellowstone Lake Float – Yellowstone National Park

Two people in hooded jackets and sunglasses ride a speedboat leaving a foamy wake across calm blue water, mountains on the horizon.

World’s Largest Population of Inland Cutthroat Trout

At 280 square miles, Yellowstone Lake is North America’s largest mountain lake and boasts the world’s largest population of inland cutthroat trout. When the lake opens to fishing on Memorial Day, we begin guiding both fly and spin fishermen.

All our fishing is done from one of our comfortable guide boats. Lunch, transportation, park entrance, and loan equipment are all included in the price. You will just need to get a license and a few flies or lures, and you’re set to go. We begin guiding fly fishermen on the Yellowstone Lake starting Memorial Day.

A grizzly bear grazes on grass behind a fallen log in a snow-patched meadow near a forest edge.

A grizzly bear standing on a grassy hillside, looking toward the camera with a forest of pine trees behind it.

A spotted trout swims just beneath the surface of green-tinted water, its dorsal fin and tail breaking through.

Two smiling anglers in fly-fishing gear hold up a large spotted cutthroat trout on a lake, with forested hills in the background.

A smiling angler holds a speckled lake trout with orange-tinged fins over green lake water.

Smiling woman on a boat holding a large speckled trout with both hands, lake and shoreline in the background.

Angler on a boat holding a spotted trout with both hands, with a lake and shoreline in the background.

Three anglers cast fishing rods with bent lines from a bass boat on a green-blue lake, with distant hills under a clear sky.

Character of the Water

This is an extremely productive lake in which most of the fish you catch are between 18 – 22 inches and the average tends to be about 19 inches. Both wet and dry flies work on this lake and which you use will depend on the time of the year and hatches. Sometimes we troll wet flies and other times we anchor and cast from a stationary boat.

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Two men on a boat give thumbs up while holding a large cutthroat trout, with a lake and cloudy blue sky in the background.

Time to Fish

We guide on Yellowstone Lake from Memorial Day into October, so it can accommodate a wide variety of trip timing. Find out more about how your trip schedule will affect the fishing conditions.

View Trip Timing

Angler in a Grand Teton Fly Fishing cap sits in a boat on calm water, displaying two open tackle boxes filled with colorful fishing flies, with a dog visible beside him.

What’s Hatching

If conditions are right, we will cast a dry fly to a cruising trout; this is much like stalking a bonefish on the flats. Spin fishing also works well on Yellowstone Lake, and we are happy to take spin fishermen. We use ultralight rigs with 6- to 8-pound lines. If you don’t wish to bring rods with you, we will be happy to supply you with a loaner.

View Hatch Chart