Fly Fishing Grebe Lake Yellowstone National Park
Grebe Lake in Yellowstone National Park offers a accessible slice of backcountry wilderness for hikers and fly anglers seeking a combination of remote scenery and standout fishing for Westslope Cutthroat trout. and Arctic Grayling.
Grebe Lake sits at 8,023 feet above sea level, nestled in north-central Yellowstone just south of Observation Peak and northwest of Canyon Village. The lake spans about 156 acres surrounded by gently rolling terrain, lodgepole pine forest and open meadows. Grebe Lake also offers several backcountry campsites to overnight in if you choose to extend the hike into a multi-day adventure. Grebe's shoreline alternates between marshy stretches and firmer grassy banks, giving anglers fairly easy acess to the lake’s perimeter.
Grebe Lake’s fishery is renowned for its populations of Arctic grayling and more recently Westslope cutthroat trout. Originally fishless, the lake was stocked with lacustrine (lake-dwelling) Arctic grayling nearly a century ago to establish a refuge for the species. Between 1931 and 1956, Grebe Lake became the source for over 72 million grayling eggs distributed to hatcheries across the western United States.
In 2017, the National Park Service launched a major restoration project within Grebe Lake. Using rotenone, they removed rainbow trout and the non-native lake-dwelling grayling, then reintroduced native fluvial (stream-dwelling) Arctic grayling and Westslope cutthroat trout. These two species are now the lake’s primary fish, with ongoing NPS efforts to sustain their populations as a refuge for Yellowstone’s native fishery. Fishing this lake for the first time in 2025, my friends and I experienced a fishery that is truly flourishing.
Fly anglers seeking to catch the rare Arctic grayling will want to consider Grebe Lake. Fishing Grebe is permitted during Yellowstone’s angling season, typically from late May to early November, with late June through July offering the hottest bite. Cutthroat and grayling are aggressive feeders and will taking a range of flies, including Wooly Buggers, Bead Head Nymphs, damselfly nymphs, and dries like Hoppers, Parachute Adams or Renegades.
Trail Access
Access to Grebe Lake is straightforward but requires some hiking. The main trailhead is found along the Norris-Canyon section of the Grand Loop Road, approximately 3.5 miles west of Canyon Junction. The standard route to the lake is a moderate 3 mile hike (one way) or about 6 miles round trip, along a mostly flat, old fire road turned trail.
