Spring Creek · Mixed · Idaho, US

Warm River

Warm River, Caribou-Targhee National Forest

The Warm River is a small, spring-fed tributary up near Ashton that runs cold and clear and stays fishable when the freestones around it are blown out.

Today · A proper day on the water
Pink Shrimp
Forecast · Today
A proper day on the water
A proper day for it. Work the seams with an upstream nymph, switch to the dry when they show.
90% projected
Today's fly
Pink Shrimp
Pink Shrimp
Conditions on the water · Today
Proxy gauge
Level
Falling
Proxy
via Teton River
Water temp8.1°C
ClarityClearing
Weather7°C
WindN 12 km/h
Pressure1028 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from Teton River. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Brook Trout
Cool — slow
8°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brook 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
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 11am

12pm(now) — Western Blue-Winged Olive

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 53%
Also:Black Midge45%
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
Brook Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Idaho licence
  • Easy-access family water; check Idaho Fish & Game for reach regulations.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Gallery · 2
  1. Warm River, Caribou-Targhee National Forest
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The Warm River is a small, spring-fed tributary up near Ashton that runs cold and clear and stays fishable when the freestones around it are blown out. It's a family kind of place — easy access, a campground, eager rainbows and brookies that don't demand much of you, and a stretch where the hatchery presence keeps the catching honest. It won't change your life, but it's a fine, friendly little stream for an afternoon when you want fish in hand more than a story to tell.

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

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Warm River - Warm River Spring to mouth' (ID17040202SK002_04), 2022 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Not Supporting. Listed impairment causes: Temperature. 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) · ID17040202SK002_04

The full read · show the working · for Brook Trout · confidence 75%
How the 72 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature68 × 28%19.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time55 × 13%7.2
Pressure75 × 7%5.3
Insect activity48 × 12%5.8
Conditions total= 72
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowproxy via Teton Riverproxy
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
What would change the calculation
Warmer water — toward the 10–16 °C ideal band — would lift the temperature score.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • Trout Saturday of Memorial Day weekend → 30 November
Related guides
Booking & contacts