Exploring New Water

As another fishing season slowly winds down here in Yellowstone country, I’ve found myself thinking back over my two seasons here at Blue Ribbon. Of all the things I’ve enjoyed about being here, the one that stands out most is exploring the vast amounts of trout water that are so relatively close to home. Growing up in eastern Pennsylvania, I did a lot of trout fishing, but I was limited to spending most of my time on the same three or four streams in the Philadelphia suburbs. When I went to college in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, I was suddenly surrounded by dozens of beautiful mountain brook trout streams, and I loved having a lot more places to fish. Coming to Yellowstone for the first time last summer, I was blown away by how many fishing options exist here. So, I’ve made it a point to fish as many new places as possible each season, while still leaving time to revisit some more familiar spots as well.

We are lucky to have so many different types of water here, and consequently we have many different types of fishing. In my opinion, this is one of the best parts of the Yellowstone fly-fishing experience: being able to constantly experience new and different things. We have tons of backcountry water to explore, as well as hundreds of more accessible miles of rivers to fish. We have beautiful lakes, tumbling mountain creeks, meandering meadow streams, big rivers, and everything in between. Why not spend some time exploring these places?

I understand that not everyone is capable of walking five or 10 miles into the middle of nowhere to search out obscure, rarely-fished waters, and that’s fine. I’m not necessarily talking about extreme backcountry trips, but rather a more general form of exploration. Sure, for some people that is what exploring means, but for others, it may be walking a quarter- or half-mile downstream from access points to see some new water. For some fisherman, this may mean trying a new type of fishing, like renting a boat and fishing one of the local lakes for a day, or coming at a different time of year than usual. And for yet another group of anglers, exploring may simply mean parking at the next pull-out and fishing a few hundred yards up or downstream, rather than fishing the same few runs each day.

The bottom line is, fishing new water can be extremely rewarding. Don’t get me wrong; I have my favorite spots like everyone else that I keep going back to, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. And if, like many of our customers, I were only here for a few days, I would certainly want to stick with places that I know best and have confidence in. But next time you’re here, if you have some time to spare and find yourself considering something a little different, go for it. Stop by the shop and we’ll point you towards something new. Or pull out a topographical map, find a spot that looks interesting, and go see what’s there. Not every trip will be a resounding success, but then maybe with this sort of fishing (or any kind of fishing, really), success shouldn’t be defined just by how many fish are caught or how big they are. There is a certain satisfaction in checking out a new place or putting in a little extra effort to get somewhere that is off the beaten path. If you’re willing to explore a little, you may find a new favorite place or two that you’ll go back to for years to come.