White Mountain Fly Fishing: Yellowstone

Spent almost a week in Yellowstone and the surrounding area. Was able to get away for a few hours each day to hit different spots. Managed to fish the Gibbon, Firehole, Madison and Lewis Lake while in the park. It was everything I hoped it would be. Cloudy wet skies and cold didn't hamper the fishing or my desire as I managed to catch fish at every stop. Swinging flies is a tactic infrequently used in the small water I am used to, but it is very effective on the larger water around Yellowstone, especially when the trout aren't rising. Fished the Firehole River first and it lived up to its billing for beautiful scenery and wildlife, and overall smaller fish. Good place to get the skunk off, I started my afternoon in the rain upstream from the Nez Perce river. The buffalo kept me from resting in one spot too long. Caught a half dozen or so brown trout and headed back to the Madison campground. Doesn't get dark until 9:30 pm up here so had some more time to explore the Gibbon River in front of our campsite where I landed several more browns upstream of Madison junction. Went back to camp cold and wet and happy! Next day went back to the Firehole near Biscuit Basin. After walking downriver a ways to avoid the crowds I managed to find a great hole that i had all to myself. Didn't have long to fish but caught several more with a mix of rainbow and brown now. Caught most on the swing with a white miller soft hackle, as recommended by the local fly shop. It was the ticket. The next day I had to head into West Yellowstone for supplies and since the Madison runs next to it for about 14 miles, I just had to stop for a little while. Fished the Elk Meadows section for a few hours. I had several ferocious hits swinging the DHM but just couldn't get a hook to set, or they were bumping it more than eating it. After trying for an hour or so I switched to a conehead streamer whose name I cant remember and started to land some fish. Caught about a half dozen browns that afternoon, all were good sized. They say only 20% of all fishermen who fish the Madison actually catch a fish. I was happy to be in the 20 percentile. Following my unexpected success on the rivers, I thought it might be time for some larger fish on larger bodies of water. Headed over to Lewis Lake through the snow and hail to take a shot. It was cold, really cold. There was a sign warning of the cold water in case you fall in, and it must have been about 34 degrees. Cold! Didn't bring the pontoon 1500 miles for nothing though so blew it up and threw it in. After paddling out a ways it started to sleet but I pressed on and caught two 18 inch lake trout, a first for me. Caught them on my tied up Wooly Bugger too which made it sweeter. It got cold fast and I only lasted an hour before paddling to shore. It was a long drive to and from the Madison campground but it was well worth it. Again went back to camp cold and wet and happy! Yellowstone is a special place for fishing. I am fortunate that my better half understands my love for fly fishing! Of course most of our time in Yellowstone wasn't fishing, it is an incredible place for the entire family. We saw animals and wonders that we never knew existed.
Lees Ferry, never drive this far and just keep on going!