Spring Creek · Mixed · Idaho, US

Teton River

Teton river in South East Idaho

The upper Teton, up in the valley under the back side of the Tetons, is a spring-fed meadow river — slow, weedy, clear, and technical, with native Yellowstone cutthroat and rainbows that tip up to mayflies and refuse anything clumsy.

Today · About as good as it gets
Pink Shrimp
Forecast · Today
About as good as it gets
On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% projected
Today's fly
Pink Shrimp
Pink Shrimp
Conditions on the water · Today
Live gauge
Level
Falling
0.69 m
Dropping after lift
Water temp8.0°C
ClarityClearing
Weather7°C
WindN 8 km/h
Pressure1028 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

The nearest gauge doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Cutthroat Trout
Cool — slow
8°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
Good — water clarity is right today, though insect activity could be better.
Likely species
Mayflies
Chironomids
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 11am

12pm(now) — Western Blue-Winged Olive

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 53%
Also:Black Midge47%
Peak emergence window4 food groups active

Peak activity at 11am — Western Blue-Winged Olive (Western Blue-Winged Olive, Peak emergence window)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Supporters see the full sub-surface read.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 as a supporter.

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Evidence
Records-basedModerate confidence

Based on species-occurrence records, not local invertebrate surveys.

Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Western Blue-Winged OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Pale Morning DunHatch
2
3
3
2
TricoHatch
2
3
2
Freshwater ShrimpHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
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.
  • Idaho licence
  • Native cutthroat conservation rules apply — check Idaho Fish & Game
  • Approach the clear meadow water carefully.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 4
Fall River
29 km
76
Rainbow trout · Cutthroat trout
Warm River
37 km
Rainbow trout · Brook trout
South Fork Snake River
42 km
81
Cutthroat trout · Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Snake River
54 km
79
Cutthroat trout
Gallery · 2
  1. Teton river in South East Idaho
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The upper Teton, up in the valley under the back side of the Tetons, is a spring-fed meadow river — slow, weedy, clear, and technical, with native Yellowstone cutthroat and rainbows that tip up to mayflies and refuse anything clumsy. It's quiet, gorgeous water that asks for a careful approach and a long leader. Below the valley the river drops into a canyon and turns into a different, brawnier animal. The green drake hatch up top is the event people plan around, and it's worth planning around.

  • Mixed
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Impaired
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Teton River' (ID17040204SK017_04), 2022 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Not Supporting. Listed impairment causes: Temperature, Sediment, Habitat Alterations. 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) · ID17040204SK017_04

The full read · show the working · for Cutthroat Trout · confidence 75%
How the 74 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature75 × 28%21.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time70 × 13%9.1
Pressure75 × 7%5.3
Insect activity50 × 12%6.0
Conditions total= 74
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout Saturday of Memorial Day weekend → 30 November
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts