Freestone · Mixed · Wyoming/Montana

Soda Butte Creek

Soda Butte Creek venue image
Prime · Cutthroat Trout
Chubby Chernobyl · 6-10
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
River steady at a fishable height. On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.53 m
  • Water temp12.4°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Chubby Chernobyl
Chubby Chernobyl6-10
High-confidence seasonal pick
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.53 m
Water temp12.4°C
ClarityClear
Weather12°C
WindE 6 km/h
Pressure1019 hPa
Rain · recent0.7 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

Live readings — water temperature is an estimate where the gauge does not record it.

Water temperature for Cutthroat Trout
Ideal
12°C est.ideal 9–15°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Cutthroat Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though insect activity could be better.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 4 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

See the full sub-surface read with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 with Pro.

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Evidence
ModelledModerate confidence

Modelled from regional ecology — no survey or occurrence data for this water yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Western Green DrakeHatch
2
2
Flav (Small Western Green Drake)Hatch
2
3
2
Mahogany DunHatch
2
2
American March BrownHatch
2
3
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Cutthroat Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Yellowstone NP licence and native-cutthroat rules (barbless catch-and-release).
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Lamar River
8.0 km
Cutthroat trout
Slough Creek
14 km
77
Cutthroat trout
Gardner River
43 km
34
Cutthroat trout · Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Yellowstone Lake
48 km
Cutthroat trout
Gibbon River
49 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout · Brook trout
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Conservation note

Native Yellowstone cutthroat — barbless catch-and-release under Park rules.

Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Not assessed
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Soda Butte Creek' (MT43B002_031), 2021 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Insufficient Information. This is a Clean Water Act assessment-unit classification (the US analogue of WFD), not a live reading.

Status is for the Clean Water Act assessment unit covering this reach.

EPA ATTAINS (Clean Water Act) · MT43B002_031

The full read · show the working · for Cutthroat Trout · confidence 90%
How the 83 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time75 × 13%9.8
Pressure75 × 7%5.3
Insect activity55 × 12%6.6
Conditions total= 83
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • TroutSaturday of Memorial Day weekend → First Sunday in November
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts