Fly Fishing the Gallatin River - Fly Fishing Yellowstone National Park

**This is a wider section** of the
Gallatin River just below where the
stream first comes near highway
191.

**A good size cutbow.** These are
plentiful

**Moose** are a common sight
along the Gallatin River. You
should be aware of their
presence because the big bulls
can hurt you if surprised.

**This is a nice brown trout.** They get
much larger than this in the Gallatin
although they are not plentiful.

**Specimen Creek** crosses and is
accessible from highway 191
near the park’s North boundary.

**Specimen Creek** is relatively
small compared to other
Yellowstone streams. Make
noise in the willows and don’t
surprise a bear.

**The fast water** always holds fish
especially when the water warms
up to 60 degrees F. or better.

Lake high in the mountains and flows through a fast gradient for a few miles into a long meadow where it slows down but not much. The fish in this section are rainbows, cutthroat, some browns and cutbows that average from 5 to 10 inches long with a few going up to 12 inches or better.

Click here for More Information on the Gallatin River

The upper portion of the Gallatin River can be accessed from the Bighorn Pass Trail. The trailhead is located about 21 miles from West Yellowstone, Montana, about a quarter of a mile off the highway on a dirt road. The trail follows the stream fairly close upstream for a few miles.

Fan Creek to Park Boundary:
The portion of the Gallatin River below Fan Creek to the park boundary is a meadow stream with a mixture of grass and willows along the banks. It winds through the valley creating deeper outside bends and shallow inside bends in the stream. Typical pool, riffles and runs make up the medium gradient flow.

The fish are cutbows, cutthroats, rainbows, and some browns. They average from 8 to 12 inches with some going up to 16 inches.

The stream is never far from highway #191 and is accessible from several parking pullouts along the way.

Fan Creek:
Fan Creek tributary of the Gallatin River starts about a half of a mile from highway 191. It is a small stream that flows mostly through open meadows. The fish are smaller cutthroats, cutbows and rainbows that average 7 to 10 inches in length.

You can access the lower section, which has lots of willows along the banks of the creek, from the Fawn Pass Trail. It is located at the 21 mile marker on highway 191. To reach the upper sections, you will need to hike in about 2 miles on the Fawn Pass Trail and then take the Fan Creek Trail that follows along the stream.

Bacon Rind Creek:
Bacon Rind Creek is a very small tributary of the Gallatin River. The lower two or three miles are the only section that holds a decent population of trout. They are small, 6 to 10 inch long cutbows with a few cutthroats mixed in.

It is accessible from Bacon Rind Creek trail at the end of a short dirt road off highway 191 near mile marker 22.

Specimen Creek:
Specimen Creek is a small tributary stream of the Gallatin River. It starts on the Gallatin Mountain Range from some small lakes The upper parts of the two forks that form Specimen Creek are steep and small with few in any fish.

The lower couple of miles of the stream contains cutthroats, cutbows and a few rainbow and brown trout near its confluence with the Gallatin River. They are smaller fish averaging 6 to 10 inches with a few as large as 12 inches.

The stream flows into the Gallatin River 26 miles north of West Yellowstone, Montana just off highway #191. You can fish up the stream from the Specimen Creek Trail.

Comments:
Because most of the larger part of the Gallatin River can easily be accessed from Highway #191, the river can become busy with anglers when the word gets out the fishing is hot. It’s for a good reason, however. The stream can produce constant action, is easy to access and a lot of fun to fish. As we said, the Gallatin River offers small stream fishing at its best.

Click here for More Information on the Gallatin River