Upland Natural Lake · Mixed · Idaho

Henrys Lake

Aerial view of Henrys Lake at sunset with mountains along the far shore, Idaho, Greater Yellowstone region

Henrys Lake is a shallow, fabulously fertile natural lake up near the Idaho-Montana line, and it grows trout the size of footballs — big cutthroat, brook trout, and the famous hybrid 'cutbows' that pull like freight trains.

Marginal · Cutthroat Trout
Callibaetis Nymph · 12-16
A patient day, if you fancy it
Glassy and bright — hard work without a breeze. A flat lough is a quiet lough — wait for the breeze.
40% confidence
limited data
What moved it
  • WindE 4 km/hCalm
Today's fly
CN
Callibaetis Nymph12-16
High-confidence seasonal pick
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Wind
Calm
E 4 km/h
N
E
from the east
WaveFlat calm
Water temp
Air temp13°C
CloudBroken
Pressure1019 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

Some readings unavailable — check directly before fishing.

How to fish it · for Cutthroat Trout
When
Spring and autumn for the big shallow-moving fish; avoid warm midsummer
Where
With limited drift, anchor or fish static from sheltered positions. Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point. In the calm, a single dry fly or a slowly-fished nymph tends to out-fish an active retrieve.
The plan
Plan A

With limited drift, anchor or fish static from sheltered positions. Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point. In the calm, a single dry fly or a slowly-fished nymph tends to out-fish an active retrieve.

Plan B

If the main plan is not working, switch to a smaller, more imitative pattern fished slower and deeper. A change of drift angle can also make a difference.

Watch for

Evening tends to be the best period in summer — stay late if you can for a sedge or spinner fall.

Bank

Flat calm suits bank fishing near features — points, weed beds, and inflows where fish patrol.

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 3 guilds with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 with Pro.

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Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Flying AntsHatch
1
1
Gray DrakeHatch
1
1
CallibaetisHatch
1
2
2
2
1

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.
  • Idaho stillwater regulations — check Idaho Fish & Game.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
65%
Cloud70%
Wind65%
Temp60%

A reasonable day here, though temperature isn't quite in the sweet spot.

Other water nearby · 5
Gallery · 2
  1. Aerial view of Henrys Lake at sunset with mountains along the far shore, Idaho, Greater Yellowstone region
    Henrys Lake at sunset, Idaho
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Henrys Lake is a shallow, fabulously fertile natural lake up near the Idaho-Montana line, and it grows trout the size of footballs — big cutthroat, brook trout, and the famous hybrid 'cutbows' that pull like freight trains. It's a stillwater game played from a tube or a boat, working damsels, leeches, and scuds along the weed edges and spring inlets. The lake gets warm and weedy in high summer and fishes best on the cool shoulders, spring and fall, when those heavy fish move shallow and a slow retrieve gets eaten hard.

  • Lake
  • Mixed
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic lifeNot assessed
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Henrys Lake' (ID17040202SK032L_0L), 2022 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Not Assessed. 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) · ID17040202SK032L_0L

Why this score
  • summer conditions with mixed skies and calm wind.
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • TroutSaturday of Memorial Day weekend31 October
Related guides
Booking & contacts