Lower Basin Lake Fishing in Teton County, Wyoming

• Overview

  The Teton County end of Wyoming holds Lower Basin Lake. Beyond the shoreline you have mixed forest. At 9 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Some 16 miles away sits West Yellowstone, the nearest settlement. Then Ashton, 44 miles, and Saint Anthony, 58 miles. Also within reach: Feather Lake (0.8 miles), Goose Lakes 1 mile away, Goose Lake (1 mile), Rush Lake 1.7 miles away and Mallard Lake (4.7 miles). It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Lower Basin Lake

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Records held for Teton County cover mountain whitefish, lake trout and Utah sucker. Species recorded across the county may be limited to a few waters. Lower Basin Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 56°F on average, January about 14°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough early May. The lid tends to go about early May and return around mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Anyone fishing Lower Basin Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. Parking is mapped about half a mile from the bank. A rest area sits about half a mile from the water. Facilities include toilets around half a mile from here. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Feather Lake, 0.8 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Check the position at Lower Basin Lake before loading the car.