Going fishing in Yosemite..HELP!

[oneyedeer]

Anybody know where i should go? just for the weekend...thanks!

[tacklejunkie]

I didn't have much fun or luck finding fish in Yosemite.

[Cangler]

Go up to Tuolumne Meadows

[oneyedeer]

yea last year i went there was a lil stream by our camp... got two tiny browns the size of minnows so was wondering if anybody knows any spots

[seal]

I've caught nice fish in the Merced in the Valley, but that was years ago.....

[ityperx]

I don't remember if its part of yosemite but there's a few lakes coming from 395 hwy to 120 hwy tioga pass. (not certain if its before or after the east entrance) I've fish there a few times a couple of years ago. The lakes are call Ellerie(Ellery) and saddlebag lakes. Also, out of sheer luck I've caught two small trouts from Tenaya lake.

[EL_CHIDO]

There was another thread about Yosemite and someone else said it best - Don't fish Yosemite. Enjoy the scenery. That's it, just enjoy the scenery.

I know myself included are just dying to fish each and every spot I visit (went to some Golf Resort in Indian Wells and all I thought about was how I should have brought my bass pole), but Yosemite is so beautiful, I would only go there to hike and enjoy the view and clean air.

[troutslayer05]

There is fun fishing in Yosemite dont let anyone tell you different. Like Cangler said, fish Tuolumne Meadows. I was there last summer and landed 10 + fish. Small with one large brookie thrown in the mix. Use the smallest panther you can find. C&R of course. Try to find the pockets and hike along the river. Good Luck. BTW Bishop is only an hour down the 395 from there ;)

[oneyedeer]

Yosemite is beautiful only way i would wake up at 430am after a long night of drinking is fishing :) so it's a need Toulumne it will be....Hehe Bishop is the best was there for season opener limited out by 9am DFG checked my licensed and wrote on my license limited date and time :(

[oneyedeer]

Oh and if you ever go to Bishop early in the season...Sabrina lake is a must...ICE FIshing! hella fun

[Cangler]

There is fun fishing in Yosemite dont let anyone tell you different. Like Cangler said, fish Tuolumne Meadows. I was there last summer and landed 10 + fish. Small with one large brookie thrown in the mix. Use the smallest panther you can find. C&R of course. Try to find the pockets and hike along the river. Good Luck.

That's the way to do it . Keep your eyes peeled , my brother found a nugget there once . Don't fish by the bridges

[FLYNSTEALTH]

fished it this last week did really well.fish the white water away from where all the swimmers are.caddis larvas worked amazing

[jerr-dog]

There was another thread about Yosemite and someone else said it best - Don't fish Yosemite. Enjoy the scenery. That's it, just enjoy the scenery.

I know myself included are just dying to fish each and every spot I visit (went to some Golf Resort in Indian Wells and all I thought about was how I should have brought my bass pole), but Yosemite is so beautiful, I would only go there to hike and enjoy the view and clean air.

Cool man Indian Wells? You wernt there for tennis in March were you? The Pacific Life tournament which is now BNP Paribas? Just logged in saw Yosemite & wanted to check it out. All have a good day :Big Grin:

[Natural Lefty]

Personally, I prefer fishing in places like Yosemite to the usually advertised spots. For those who don't appreciate wild trout, maybe they would be better off trying to find a hatchery to fish in or following a stocking truck, but I would rather catch 7 inch Brookies and 9 inch Browns to 1 pound stockers anytime.

National parks have not been stocked at all since the 1960s, I think it was, so all of the fish are wild in the national parks. Last time my wife and I went to Tioga Pass, we didn't go inside the park because of the expense (seems the entrance price has gone way up), but I have fished Yosemite quite a few times before, usually catching 10+ trout per day, maybe even 30 or more on a good day. Mostly, I have fished places which require fairly short hikes, or even roadside, although I did go on a backpacking trip to Merced and Washburn lakes on the Merced River once (excellent fishing). Many of the lakes have gone fishless because of lack of spawning for trout, but the ones with adequate spawning usually have very good fishing. Any permanent creek or river in Yosemite probably has a good trout population, though. Tops for me is the Tuolumne River in Tuolumne Meadows, same as several other people suggested. Soemtimes when the runoff is really high, the fish don't bite, but they should be biting by the time you go there. It has mostly Brookies and Browns up there, plus some Rainbows. I would try a bobber/fly technique there, or even a fly rod. A good lake reached by a one mile hike is Middle Gaylor Lake, which has lots of fat Brookies around 8-9 inches. It is near Tioga Pass. The lakes and streams on the east side of the pass also have good fishing. The biggest fish we have caught from the Tuolumne was a Brown Trout of about 11 inches my wife caught (seems like the wife always catches the bigger ones:Smile:), so they aren't big, but they are beautiful, abundant and some are nice size for wild fish. I think it's okay to keep some to eat (and they are tasty) as if anything the fish are probably overpopulated in many places in Yosemite, but don't overdo it. I haven't noticed any downgrade in the fishing over the years. In fact, if anything, I keep doing better than before.

There are some large trout in Yosemite Valley, but beware, you are not allowed to keep Rainbows there, although they encourage people to keep Browns. This is because the Rainbows are indigenous there, and Browns of course are not. I think only artificial lures are allowed there too. There was a poster here who naively caught a large, 20 inch Rainbow from the Merced River in the valley on salmon eggs, and wrote about it a couple of years ago on this site. He fed it to his family and said it was pink meated and delicious. I think I ended up warning him that what he did was illegal although he didn't know that at the time. Make sure to check the rules first. However, most places in Yosemite are under normal trout fishing rules.

[oneyedeer]

Thanks to all had lots of fun caught 3 1-1.5lb rainbows coudn't tell if they were farm or wild. couldnt tell if fins were marked or not so didn't want to take the chance and released them....beautiful fishes! :( hiker died the day i left...

[oneyedeer]

used the smallest sized mepps and pinched the barbs

[Cangler]

Thanks to all had lots of fun caught 3 1-1.5lb rainbows coudn't tell if they were farm or wild. couldnt tell if fins were marked or not so didn't want to take the chance and released them....beautiful fishes! :( hiker died the day i left...


I'm glad you had fun , you fished the Tuolumne River ?

[SierraPeaks]

Seriously...although there is no place more beautiful than Yosemite on the planet...don't waste your time fishing anywhere within the park. Fish Saddlebag just outside the east entrance. It's loaded with fish and you have a good chance at landing a hog there too.