Guided Fishing Trips on the Green River

The Green River, located about one hour southeast of Jackson Hole near Pinedale, WY, is one of the unsung gems of western fly fishing. Unlike the more famous and popular tailwater section below Flaming Gorge Dam in Utah, the Wyoming section is a much smaller, free-flowing fishery with large brown, rainbow and cutthroat trout.

The Wyoming portion of the Green River headwaters in the Wind River Mountains and flows unimpeded until it reaches the Fontenelle Reservoir. It is this upper, free-flowing stretch of the Green that we concentrate on at High Country Flies.

The upper Green is a relatively small river, and much of it passes through private land. For this reason, float fishing is the preferred, and often the only legal means, of accessing the better sections of the river. While open all year, the best fishing, not surprisingly, follows the end of runoff. This will typically occurs sometime in late June or early July.

The Green will typically start fishing shortly after spring runoff abates, and we don’t necessarily need to wait for the Green to be crystal clear for it to start fishing well – in fact, many seasoned locals say that it fishes best when the river level is still dropping and the water is still a bit off color. Good fishing will continue throughout the summer (especially during hopper season) and we will fish the Green until flows become too low for floating…usually by some time in later August or early September.

Be forewarned that fly fishing on the Green River is not as easy as it is on the Snake River in Jackson Hole. Some prior experience is very helpful and beginners can be frustrated if their primary goal is simply expecting to catch large numbers of fish. As long as you realize this, novices can still have a great time. But it is a somewhat technical river, which tends to be a particularly great river for dry flies and streamers.