Best month to fish the Snake River (Jackson Hole)

Month-by-month fishing quality

Why these months?

Two things decide your odds on the Snake River (Jackson Hole): flow and season. You need the river in its fishable-flow band — so a freestone in spring runoff is out no matter how good the hatch would be, while a dam-fed tailwater holds shape year-round. On top of that, the hatches and water temperatures line up best in March and April and October, which is why those months edge out the rest. The Snake River (Jackson Hole)'s season runs a jackson lake dam tailwater through grand teton national park; dam releases run flows high through the summer for downstream irrigation demand (the opposite of a natural snowmelt river), then taper sharply each fall into the best wading window.

The Snake River through Grand Teton National Park below Jackson Lake Dam is one of the most scenic tailwaters in the West, holding the native Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat trout against a backdrop of the Teton Range. Dam releases keep summer flows high and better suited to a drift boat, but as releases taper each fall the river drops into a genuine wade fishery with some of the best dry-fly cutthroat water in Wyoming.

Where to fish the Snake River (Jackson Hole)

Reach 1, immediately below Jackson Lake Dam near Moose, holds the most consistently wadeable water even at moderate flows; Deadman's Bar to Moose and the Wilson stretch downstream are the classic float sections once summer releases are running. Grand Teton National Park fishing permit required in addition to a Wyoming license.

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