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Fly Fishing The Black Canyon of the Yellowstone River

The beginning of the Black Canyon:
This is probably the easiest place to access the canyon.
Cutthroat caught near the upper part of the Black Canyon

The Black Canyon of the Yellowstone River is about twenty miles long. The canyon gets its name from the dark color of the canyon walls. The Yellowstone River Trail follows the river the entire distance of the Black Canyon. At several locations, the trail is far above the river because sheer cliffs makes it impossible for the trail to follow along at the same elevation of the river. There’s a lot of water in the Black Canyon that will never be fished because of this. In many places the trail is very near the river.

Except at its upper and lower ends, the black canyon is between one and four miles from the road. It’s a relatively easy hike that takes between an hour or less to two hours to make. You can easily fish the river at the lower and upper ends of the Black Canyon during a day trip. Some trails to the Yellowstone River Trail would require an overnight trip if you wanted to get a good day of fishing in.