Fly Fishing Soda Butte Creek - Fly Fishing Yellowstone National Park

**Soda Butte Creek** ranks with any
of the park’s streams from a
beauty standpoint and the fishing
action is usually fast.

**Bison** are abundant throughout
the area, especially in the lower
section of Soda Butte Creek. You
have to keep an eye out for them.

**A beaver dam** almost stops the
flow of water in this small off-shoot
of Soda Butte not far from the
Lamar River. Cutthroat will move
into these type of areas.

**This is an appropriate sign** for the
Soda Butte area. Both black and
grizzly bears make this area their
home.

**Casting a hopper** right next to the
banks. This is a good method to
use in August. Most terrestrial
insects work fine.

Soda Butte Creek is one of the main tributary streams of the Lamar River. It flows through one of the most beautiful valleys in the World. The scenery is spectacular. Soda Butte Creek begins outside the park in Montana and flow inside the Northeast corner of the park. The stream has mostly cutthroat trout but there are also a few smaller rainbows.

Upper Part:
The upper part of Soda Butte Creek flows through a deep ravine called Icebox Canyon. The icebox canyon is a narrow, deeper section of canyon that rarely sees the sun. Ice stays in the bottom of the canyon most of the year. This also helps keep the water temperature of the stream low even during the summer months.

The fish are usually larger below the Pebble Creek confluence; however, the upper part of the stream is full of smaller, eager trout very willing to take your fly.

The stream is very easy to access. It flows along the Northeast Entrance Highway. The uppermost part of the stream starts near Cooke City just outside the Northeast entrance.

Lower Part:
The lower part of the stream near the Lamar River confluence, flows through large meadows and host the largest fish in the stream. Large cutthroat trout, up to 18 inches and even better, can be taken from this section of the stream.

The average length of the fish is probably 12 and 14 inches. Soda Butte Creek has a very good supply of aquatic insects that makes the fishing even more interesting. Stoneflies, caddisflies, mayflies and several types of terrestrial insects makes up the ample food supply for the trout.

Pebble Creek:
Pebble Creek is a small tributary stream of Soda Butte Creek. It contains a population of cutthroat. The trout are larger than you may expect in a small creek of its size. It has cutthroats up to 14 inches long in some parts of the stream. Most of them are smaller and probably average 6 to 12 inches long. Campgrounds are available along the Pebble Creek Trial including one at its confluence with Soda Butte Creek.

The lower part of the stream is accessible from the campground but from there upstream you will have to hike. This is probably a good thing because you will most likely not see many, if any, other anglers.

Comments:
Soda Butte Creek is one of the most beautiful trout streams in the United States. The magnificent scenery of the mountains surrounding the stream makes it the picture perfect fly-fishing setting.