Articles

Yellowstone, Wyoming and other western states announce big changes for the 2026 fishing season

A roundup of regulation changes in the Rocky Mountain for the coming season

by Chris Hunt - Friday, Feb 6th, 2026

Fishing the Firehole River in Yellowstone National Park (photo: Chad Shmukler).

If you’ve devoted any time at all to fishing the storied waters of Yellowstone National Park, you’ve probably put in some time on the Firehole River. And, if you’ve fished the Firehole any later than, say, the second week of June, or before mid-September, I’m betting there’s a chance that you didn’t do too well.

Conflagration

Everything they had built and planned vanished like a spooked trout you wasted a morning stalking

by Jon Tobey - Wednesday, Feb 4th, 2026

Photo: Tom Woodward / cc2.0.

Thayer is an old man’s name, and the man wore it well. Once tall and lithe, he now walked with a slight crook in his shoulders, but his gray eyes were still fierce and focused. He passed the brand-new, tarped tractor that his son Lonnie had bought with his enlistment bonus. When Thayer asked why he needed it, Lonnie had said “So you have more time.”

“To do what?”

“To go fishing when I get back.”

Are you qualified to judge a fly rod?

Take the School of Trout's new test to find out

by Todd Tanner - Saturday, Jan 31st, 2026

Photo: Todd Tanner.

In the grand scheme of things, fly fishing really isn’t all that important. We’re not curing cancer, or ending world hunger, or housing the homeless. That said, our fishing is indeed valuable to us on an individual level. It makes us smile, helps us relax and gives us the perfect excuse to spend more time in nature. And since that’s the case, there are very few of us who would want to waste our hard-earned dollars, or diminish our time on the water, by using mediocre or poorly-designed fly rods.

Colorado again offering up $10k for anglers to help save one non-native species from another

Every fall for decades, the Gunnison River has been home to what many consider the best kokanee salmon run in the country

by Chris Hunt - Friday, Jan 30th, 2026

Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

This winter and spring, through April 30, Colorado Parks and Wildlife is offering up more than $10,000 in prize money to anglers who pull lake trout out of the Centennial State’s largest reservoir — Blue Mesa, situated just west of Gunnison. Officially dubbed the 2026 Blue Mesa Lake Trout Tournament, the event is in its fifth year, and, according to fisheries biologists, it’s helped the reservoir’s prized kokanee salmon population rebound of late.

Orvis launches 3rd generation Recon fly rod lineup

The Vermont rodmaker has centered durability and versatility as hallmarks of its new Recon 3

by Hatch Magazine - Wednesday, Jan 28th, 2026

The new Orvis Recon 3 (photo: Orvis).

Orvis is leaning into its heralded Helios technology as it launches its new Recon line of both fresh and saltwater fly rods this week. The newly designed Recon is reported to be 20 percent stronger than the previous Recon iteration, and is “built to be thrown in the back of a truck.” Made at the company’s Manchester, Vermont, shop, the new Recon will retail just under $700, putting it in a price range more anglers are likely to appreciate.