Fly Fishing Idaho’s Secret Waters: 12 Small Streams
Idaho’s fly fishing reputation rests on the Henrys Fork, the South Fork Snake, and Silver Creek. This guide covers twelve waters most visitors never reach. They are small streams, one desert river, and one set of carp flats, spread across four corners of the state.
Each water has its own full guide, linked from the tables below. This page is the map. It gives you the county, the length, the trout rule for 2025 to 2027, and what Fish and Game’s own surveys and stocking records show.
All twelve waters are open all year. Every rule in the tables was checked in September 2026 against the Idaho Fish and Game rule book and the department’s Fishing Planner page for that water.
How to Read the Tables (Checked September 2026)
Idaho counts “trout” as rainbows, cutthroat, browns, and their hybrids. Brook trout and bull trout are listed separately in every region. Brook trout carry their own limit of 25 in all four regions. Bull trout are catch-and-release statewide.
The possession limit is three times the daily bag, and you need an Idaho fishing license. Where a special rule applies, the table names it, so you can find it in the rule book. Where none applies, the table says which region’s general rules govern the water.
The “Fish and Game records” column comes from the Fishing Planner. It lists the species found in the department’s most recent survey of that water, and the date of the last stocking on record.
Eastern Idaho: Island Park and Palisades
These three creeks sit in the Upper Snake Region, near the famous water but off the guidebook maps. Two of them fall under the Henrys Fork tributaries rule, which flips from catch-and-release in winter to a six-trout limit in summer.
| Water | Where | Trout rule, 2025–2027 | Fish and Game records |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moose Creek | Fremont County, 13.1 miles, a Henrys Fork tributary | Henrys Fork tributaries rule: December 1 to the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, release all trout except brook trout; Memorial Day weekend to November 30, six trout, no cutthroat | 2022 survey: brook trout and rainbow trout. Last stocked June 2000, kokanee fingerlings |
| Bear Creek | Bonneville County, 22.1 miles, feeding Palisades Reservoir on the South Fork Snake | Palisades Reservoir tributaries rule: six trout, no cutthroat may be kept, no kokanee may be kept | 2024 survey: Yellowstone cutthroat, brown trout, rainbow-cutthroat hybrids, mountain whitefish. Last stocked 1984 |
| Sheridan Creek | Clark and Fremont counties, 28.3 miles, into the west arm of Island Park Reservoir | Henrys Fork tributaries rule, as Moose Creek | 2002 survey: brook trout and rainbow trout. Last stocked 1993. Best July to October |
The Upper Snake Region office in Idaho Falls answers at (208) 525-7290.
Southern Idaho: Desert Water
Three very different fisheries. One desert river that never reaches the sea, one canyon creek on the Oregon line, and the carp flats on the big Snake River reservoirs.
| Water | Where | Trout rule, 2025–2027 | Fish and Game records |
|---|---|---|---|
| Little Lost River | Butte County, about 49 miles, sinking into the desert at Howe | Two trout, all species combined; bull trout catch-and-release; no gear or bait restriction | USGS gauge: June peak near 178 cubic feet per second, 50 or less from August to October. Best late July to October |
| Snake River carp flats | American Falls Reservoir, Lake Walcott, and C.J. Strike Reservoir | Carp are unprotected nongame fish: no bag, possession, or length limit, up to five hooks per line | USGS water temperatures: King Hill reaches 55°F in April, Blackfoot in May. Flats exposed by the July to October drawdown |
| Jordan Creek | Owyhee County, 98.6 miles, an Owyhee River tributary | Southwest Region general rules, no special rules: six trout | Fish and Game “Recommended Fishing Water” for redband trout. 2020 survey: rainbow trout. Last stocked 1990 |
The carp flats span three regions. Southeast (Pocatello) answers at (208) 232-4703, Magic Valley (Jerome) at (208) 324-4359, and Southwest (Nampa) at (208) 465-8465.
Central Idaho: Salmon River Country
Three tributaries of the Salmon River system, split between the Southwest and Clearwater regions. All three carry young steelhead or salmon, and none has a steelhead or salmon season. In the Salmon River drainage a rainbow over 20 inches counts as a steelhead, so it goes straight back.
| Water | Where | Trout rule, 2025–2027 | Fish and Game records |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hazard Creek | Idaho County, 16.2 miles, a Little Salmon River tributary | Southwest Region general rules, no special rules: six trout; steelhead and salmon fishing prohibited unless a season is opened | 2026 survey: westslope cutthroat, brook trout, juvenile Chinook and steelhead. Bull trout in 2023. Hatchery steelhead released here through 2009 |
| Bear Valley Creek | Valley County, about 33 miles of high meadow at 6,400 feet, a Middle Fork Salmon headwater | Trout catch-and-release, no bait, barbless hooks; brook trout limit 25 | Wild Chinook spawn here from August to mid-September. Stay off the redds. Best July to September |
| Wind River | Idaho County, 14.3 miles, a Salmon River tributary | Salmon River tributaries rule: two trout | 2023 survey: cutthroat trout and steelhead. Bull trout in 2021. No stocking on record |
Hazard Creek belongs to the Southwest Region’s McCall subregion, (208) 634-8137. The Wind River sits in the Clearwater Region, (208) 799-5010, whose general stream limit is two trout.
Northern Idaho: Clearwater and Panhandle
Two Clearwater Region streams and one Panhandle river. The Clearwater Region’s general stream limit is two trout, and Kelly Creek’s drainage goes further, to full catch-and-release.
| Water | Where | Trout rule, 2025–2027 | Fish and Game records |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johns Creek | Idaho County, 19.6 miles, a South Fork Clearwater tributary | Clearwater Region general rules, no special rules: two trout in streams. On the South Fork itself, cutthroat are catch-and-release | 2024 survey: cutthroat, Chinook, coho, and steelhead. Bull trout in 2022. No stocking on record |
| Pack River | Bonner and Boundary counties, about 50 miles from Harrison Lake to Lake Pend Oreille | Six trout, no cutthroat may be kept; rainbows release-only and no bait from December 1 to the Friday before Memorial Day weekend; Grouse Creek closed 100 yards above and below Grouse Creek Falls | Wild lake-run bull trout. Forest Road 231 from U.S. 95 north of Sandpoint. Best July to October |
| Cayuse Creek | Clearwater and Idaho counties, 35.9 miles, a Kelly Creek tributary | Kelly Creek and tributaries rule: trout catch-and-release, no bait, barbless hooks | No stocking on record |
The Clearwater Region office in Lewiston answers at (208) 799-5010 and the Panhandle office in Coeur d’Alene at (208) 769-1414.
Rules Change: Check Before You Go
The rule book in force is Fish and Game’s 2025 to 2027 Seasons and Rules, second edition, dated 2026. The department also keeps a Fishing Planner page for every named water, with a rules block. When a creek is not named in the book, that block says which regional or special rule applies. It settled every row above.
Two of the twelve waters, Sheridan Creek and Moose Creek, are not named in the rule book at all. Their Henrys Fork tributaries rule comes from the planner. If you want a rule confirmed for the reach you plan to fish, call the regional office listed under each table.
Bears, Roads, and Redds
Three things the tables cannot fit.
- Food storage orders. The Caribou-Targhee National Forest around Island Park requires food and garbage to be in an approved container or hung, with no camping within 100 yards of stored food or a quarter mile of a carcass. The Idaho Panhandle National Forests along the Pack River run a seasonal food storage order. Both are grizzly country.
- Spring roads. Green Canyon Road to lower Sheridan Creek is usually snowed in until mid-May. Forest roads to the other high creeks open on the same rough schedule, so call the ranger district before a June trip.
- Spawning gravel. Chinook redds show up on Bear Valley Creek from August to mid-September, and Hazard, Johns, and Wind carry juvenile salmon and steelhead. Wade the edges, not the clean gravel.
If you are new to small water, our dry fly fishing tips and nymph fishing guide cover the two rigs that handle every creek on this page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which of these Idaho streams are catch-and-release?
Bear Valley Creek and Cayuse Creek are catch-and-release for trout all year, with no bait and barbless hooks. Moose Creek and Sheridan Creek release all trout but brook trout from December 1 to the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, and the Pack River does the same for rainbows. Bull trout go back statewide, and four waters ban cutthroat harvest.
When is the best time to fly fish Idaho’s small streams?
July through September, into October on the lower ones. On the five waters with USGS gauge records checked, the creeks run high through June and settle by mid-July. The Little Lost River, Pack River, and Sheridan Creek fish best from July to October, Bear Valley Creek from July to September. The carp flats start in April.
How do I check the current fishing rules for one of these streams?
Open the water’s page in Fish and Game’s Fishing Planner. Each page has a rules block for that water, and that block settled every row in this guide. The rule book in force is the 2025–2027 Seasons and Rules, second edition, dated 2026. All twelve waters are open all year, and the possession limit is three times the daily bag.
Are there grizzly bears on these streams?
Yes on the eastern and northern ones. The Caribou-Targhee National Forest, home to Moose, Sheridan, and Bear creeks, has a food storage order: food and garbage go in an approved container or hang, with no camping within 100 yards of stored food. The Idaho Panhandle National Forests along the Pack River run a seasonal food storage order. Carry bear spray.
Sources and Check Dates
- Idaho Fish and Game, 2025–2027 Seasons and Rules, second edition (2026): regional general limits and trout definitions for the Panhandle, Clearwater, Southwest, Upper Snake, Magic Valley, and Southeast regions; the Henrys Fork tributaries, Palisades Reservoir tributaries, Salmon River tributaries, Kelly Creek, South Fork Clearwater, and Pack River special rules; regional office listing. Checked 10 September 2026.
- Idaho Fish and Game, Fishing Planner pages for Moose Creek, Bear Creek, Jordan Creek, Hazard Creek, Wind River, Johns Creek, and Cayuse Creek: county, length, tributary, species observed in surveys, stocking records, and the rules block for each water. Checked 10 September 2026.
- The full guides linked above for the Little Lost River, Bear Valley Creek, the Snake River carp flats, the Pack River, and Sheridan Creek, each with its own source list: USGS gauge records, Forest Service directions, and the rules for that water. Checked 6–10 September 2026.
- USDA Forest Service, Caribou-Targhee National Forest forest orders (food storage) and Idaho Panhandle National Forests alerts (seasonal food storage order). Checked 10 September 2026.
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