Thompson Hole Fishing Guide, Fremont County, Idaho

• Overview

  Thompson Hole sits in Fremont County, out in Idaho. The bank is 6,220 feet above sea level. Roughly 25 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. With about 1.0 miles of edge, you can try several depths in one session. Ashton sits 19 miles from the bank. The big place round here is Billings, 171 miles distant. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Thompson Hole

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. Inflow corners move water, and moving water gathers fish. Look for where the old bank line still shows under the surface. Public occurrence data for Fremont County names rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, brook trout, sockeye salmon and Coho salmon. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Thompson Hole gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 60°F in July and bottoms out near 17°F in December. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from late April. On average, late April opens the water and mid November closes it again. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. It holds true on Thompson Hole more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. No built facilities appear in mapping around this water. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Steele Lake sits 1.7 miles off and takes the overflow. Treat Thompson Hole as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.