Seasons

The Yosemite Region has a huge variety of diverse year round fishing opportunities for the fly fisher willing to explore this vast area.

Late Winter and Early Spring
Late winter and early spring can be a productive time to fish the lower Merced just outside the Park. The lower section of the Merced river is open to year round fishing and with its low elevation of only 2,000ft the fish remain active through out the winter. This time of year it is mostly nymph fishing but overcast days can bring hatches of Baetis Mayflies with some good fish taken on dry flies. Little black winter stoneflies can also bring some fish to the surface. When fishing during this time of year it is not uncommon to have miles of river to yourself. Winter is a great time to be on the water and cure cabin fever with some early season fishing.

Spring and Early Summer
California general trout season opens on the last Saturday of April. Many years the opener coincides with the high water of spring runoff in those drainages that begin on the high snowy peaks. A good fishing option for this time of year are the many lower elevation creeks that don't receive the same quantity of snowmelt that the bigger rivers do. These streams are at their best until mid to late June depending on the winters rain fall. These lower elevation creeks in the 4,000ft to 6,000ft range will often contain more and larger fish than those found in the high country. Most of these streams get little or no fishing pressure and are worth the effort to find and fish.

Summer to Early Fall
This is the time for trips into the regions highest elevation streams. The best fishing is between the 7,000ft to 11,000ft elevations where cool nights and afternoon thunderstorms keep the water temperatures right for trout to feed on dry flies. This is also the time of year for extended trips into the backcountry for a chance at a four species grand slam day for the intrepid fly fisher who is willing to hike.