Fly Fishing Green River Wyoming
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone and Tailwater
Species
Brown Trout
Rainbow Trout
Cutthroat Trout
Size
Large
Location
Western Central Wyoming
Nearest Towns
Pinedale
Season
General Wyoming season
Access:
Varies by Area from Good to Poor
Special Regulations
None
USGS Real-time Stream Data:
Below Fontenelle
At Warren Bridge near Daniel
Non-Resident License
State of Wyoming
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 & 12 ft., 5 or 6X, Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Superb Five or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Green River Wyoming Fishing Report, April 27, 2024
The tailwater discharge is still a little below a normal level and the water is clear. The freestone section is above a normal level and stained. Our articulated sculpin streamers have been working good in the tailwater. There are good light green and red or blood midge hatches and Little Black Caddis taking place along with Skwala stoneflies. Call or write us for fly recommendations. We update the Green River Wyoming fishing report weekly.
USGS Real-time Stream Data:
Below Fontenelle: Discharge 577 cfs
Flow: 11.13
At Warren Bridge near Daniel: USGS Real-time data:
Rate: 513 cfs
Height: 2.11 ft.
Weather:
Recommended Flies:
Brown Sculpin and White Belly Sculpin and Articulated streamers, size 6/4
Black Matuka and Olive Matuka Sculpin, size 4/6
Blue-winged Olives: size 16, 18 nymph, emergers, duns and spinners
Aquatic Worms, size 12, pink, red, and others
Midges: Cream and Red (Blood) midges sizes 20/22, larva, pupa and adult. Our larva and pupa midge flies, pre-rigged in tandem, are very popular here. You can fish them under a strike indicator keeping the larva fly near the bottom. https://perfectflystore.com/product/pre-rigged-tandem-midge-larva-pupa-tippet
Skwala Stoneflies: size 10, nymphs and adults
Little Black caddis, size 18, pupa and adults
March Browns, size 12/14, nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners
Fly Fishing On The Green River In Wyoming: The Green River in Wyoming is one of the most overlooked rivers in the Western United States. If it was located anywhere else in the nation, it would probably be fished several times more than it is. It lies in one of the most beautiful sections of the state where the antelope roam the sage brush and people are few and far between. Fly fishing the Green River can be done in complete solitude. To begin with there are one-hundred and forty miles of freestone stream. In addition to that it has an excellent tailwater. The stream starts from the Green River Lakes just north of Pinedale on the western side of the Wind River Mountain Range. It flows through National Forest land for thirty miles where access is excellent. The trout average from fourteen to sixteen inches in this section. The water is fast flowing and is often fished from inflatable rafts. It leaves the National Forest and flows through private land for about twelve miles to the next public access.At Warren Bridge on highway #191 there is more public water, a boat launch but a lot more anglers. From the Warren Bridge to Daniel Junction there are several public access areas. Below Daniel Junction the river flows for seventy more miles into Fontenelle Reservoir. Below Daniel Junction you must float some lengthy stretches to get back out at the few bridge access points. Below the dam at Fontenelle Reservoir, the river has some huge trout. Although the numbers are not all that great, the tailwater section has some big ones. Brown, rainbow and cutthroat trout over twenty inches get no ones attention. The Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge provides an ample amount of public access to the river. Most likely you will be fishing in the presence of more moose than other anglers. The birds and wildlife in the refuge makes fly fishing the Green River even more interesting.Fly fishing techniques are different depending on whether your fishing the headwaters, middle freestone section or tailwater. They also vary with the seasons and hatches, of course. The river has about every type of water possible for a trout stream, from meadows, to fast pocket water, to long runs and riffles, to flats, to large pools, to the tailwater which varies greatly depending on the discharges from the dam. From the southern state line of Wyoming to Seminoe Reservoir, the North Platte River flows ninety miles through canyons and wide valleys. The most popular area is located from the Wyoming – Colorado state line down to the town of Saratoga. Access is available where the stream runs through Medicine Bow National Forest. Below that it runs through mostly private land but there is still plenty of access.
Fly Fishing Guide to the Green River: This river provides a great diversity of water. Success depends on where and how you fish it. The uppermost part of the Green River in the National Forest area can be floated in a rubber raft type boat but there is a lot of white water than can be tough to navigate. I would suggest only doing that with someone experienced at it for the first time. It can also be fished from the bank and by wading the stream. Below the National Forest land, you will have to have permission to fish the river because most all of it is own private property. At the public access area just North of Warren Bridge on highway #191, you have plenty of water to fish by wading it. There is also a boat launch in case you prefer to drift fish the river. This area can get crowded during the peak fishing times. It is also popular with the Jackson Hole guides. This section is an eight mile drift with a takeout at the Forty Rod Access near the Daniel Fish Hatchery. This area can also be fished by the wading angler. Below the Daniel Fish Hatchery area, there is seventy miles of river before it reaches the Fontenelle Reservoir. There is little access and almost all of the river flows through private property. Access occurs only at the bridges. If you drift any of this part of the river, you must remember that you have to make it to the next takeout area to get out of the water. You cannot even drop anchor in the stream without violating Wyoming law.The river is not fishable for the month of June and part of July most years due to the Spring runoff. It is purely a freestone stream subject to Mother Nature. The next area to consider fishing is probably the best one – the tailwater below Fontenelle Reservoir. There are some huge rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout in the tailwater section. The water normally stays clear about the entire year except below Slate Creek which enters the river a few miles downstream of the dam.This area is extremely remote. There are no nearby towns and few facilities within miles. The river is easily accessed in the Seekakadee National Wildlife Refuge. There is also access just below the dam. The river can be floated in a drift boat or fished from the bank or wading in many areas.There are lots of big, deep pools and long, deep runs in this section of the river. The river is high during the spring runoff period, but it is still plenty fishable. Most of the fishing is done with large streamers and big nymphs. There is some dry fly fishing but by far the best way to catch one of its large trout is below the surface.The best way to fish the tailwater section is by drift boat. You can cover a lot of water and fish a variety of different places that the fish may be holding. While the river holds some huge trout, the numbers of trout are comparatively low with some streams.
Green River Hatches and Trout Flies: Our information on aquatic insects is based on our stream samples of larvae and nymphs, not guess work. We base fly suggestions on imitating the most plentiful and most available insects and other foods at the particular time you are fishing. Unlike the generic fly shop trout flies, we have specific imitations of all the insects in the Green River and in all stages of life that are applicable to fishing. If you want to fish better, more realistic trout flies, have a much higher degree of success, give us a call. We not only will help you with selections, you will learn why, after trying Perfect Flies, 92% of the thousands of our customers will use nothing else. 1-800-594-4726. The hatch times on the tailwater section vary some from those of the freestone stream. Also you will find the freestone part varies also with the elevation. The higher the elevation, the colder the water and the later the hatches will occur. The Blue-winged Olive is one of if not the most important aquatic insect to imitate on the Green River. There are hatches starting in March and lasting into May and then another hatch that occurs in the late summer and early fall from about the first of September through October into November in some areas. PMD’s or Pale Morning Duns hatch from the last of June through the month of August. They are one of if not the most important hatches. Trico mayflies hatch in late September until the first week of October. During the later part of July, the Gray Drakes hatch. This is a good hatch that can last through the month of August. Little Yellow Stoneflies, or Yellow Sallies, hatch at different times depending on the elevation of the stream. Normally from about the first of July through August you will find them at some point on the river. There are some Golden Stoneflies and even some Salmonflies in the upper headwater section of the river. The Goldens show up around the end of July and the Salmonflies a week or two earlier. This is usually near the end of the spring runoff time. Caddisflies are very plentiful, especially in the tailwater section. There are hatches of Spotted Sedges from May through August in different part of the river. There are several species of these and the tailwater section usually has one of them hatches just about any time during this period. There are also hatches of Short-horned Sedges that start in June and last about a month. Green Sedges hatch from about the first of June through August, again depending on the particular section of the river. There are several other caddisflies that hatch on the Green River but those listed above are the largest hatches. Terrestrial insects start becoming important in July. They will last until the first frost of September or early October. Imitations of beetles, grasshoppers and ants work during this time.Don’t forget about streamers. They are especially important in the tailwater section where there are lots of sculpin and all types of small minnows and baitfish present. The large ones are popular for the large brown trout, especially during the fall spawning season.If you haven’t done so already, we ask you to try our “Perfect Flies”. We have specific imitations of everything that hatches on the Green River. We feel certain you will find them very effective.