Yellowstone River

GAGE LOCATION

DAY/YEAR
GRAPHS

CURRENT
STAGE/FLOW

WHAT TIME

Shields near Livingston

7 30 year

2.32 / 148

10 pm

Boulder at Big Timber

7 30 year

/

N/A

Lamar near Tower Falls

7 30 year

/

N/A

Gardner near Mammoth

7 30 year

2.14 / 100

10 pm

Yellowstone at Lake Outlet

7 30 year

2.91 / 554

10 pm

Yellowstone at Corwin Spring

7 30 year

1.41 / 1090

10 pm

Yellowstone near Livingstone

7 30 year

/

N/A

CITY

Gardiner

NOAA

Accuweather

TWC

Livingston

NOAA

Accuweather

TWC

Billings

NOAA

Accuweather

TWC

HATCH

NYMPH/
LARVA

PUPA/
EMERGER

DUN/
ADULT

EGG-
LAYER

Blue-winged olive

October caddis

Green caddis

Golden stonefly

Salmonfly

Cranefly

Midge

Sculpin

Baitfish

Big streamers are king here in November as the river's brown trout turn aggressive.

On the surface, look for midge and blue-winged olive hatches in the early afternoon. The blue-wings are typically size 20-22. The best dry fly action will be on cloudy days. The blue-wings will taper off as the cold weather deepens.

Dry fly anglers should search for "foam pockets." These typically form behind large rocks, logs, and other obstructions. They indicate places where trout food, such as drifting blue-winged olives and midges, will be trapped. Trout have easy swimming and a supply of food, so they tend to gather in those places.

Another tip for anglers is to fish a "type" of water; see Where, Not What for an example of this approach. If you're drifting the river in a boat, look for places where trout are holding: are they in tailouts, backeddies, bankwater? Once you've figured out what type of water holds fish, concentrate on those places.

For more on November tactics and flies, see the Rivers in General report.