Thompson Reservoir Fishing near Saratoga, Wyoming

• Overview

  In Wyoming, Thompson Reservoir falls inside Carbon County. The setting is rolling bush. Surface area runs to about 9 acres — small enough to read in one session. You are 19 miles from Saratoga. Rawlins is 50 miles and Steamboat Springs 50 miles. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it. In wet weather the last stretch of track is the awkward part.

• Where to Fish on Thompson Reservoir

  We hold no depth figure for this one. Inflow corners move water, and moving water gathers fish. The arms fish better than the open middle whenever the water is up. Public occurrence data for Carbon County names brown trout, brook trout, rainbow trout, white sucker and walleye. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Read Thompson Reservoir for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 63°F, the coldest about 22°F. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. The lid usually goes in mid April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. The water is typically free of ice between mid April and late November. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. At Thompson Reservoir the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. This one is mapped as intermittent, so a wasted trip is a real risk in a dry year. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Should this one be busy, Cotton Reservoir is 1.3 miles off. Signs at Thompson Reservoir carry more weight than any list.