Midwest guy here but I’m heading on a week long trip to Jackson Hole in August and want to start buying now. I’ll probably wet wade with some Simms shoes but.... flies? Rod? Line? Etc. I prefer Orvis for sentimental reasons. Thanks.

budget?

Not going to do this again for awhile. I have no budget.

I think other rod companies make a better rod for the money than orvis. You want to throw big streamers in addition to dries?

Id pick up a 9 or 10 ft 5 wt.I like 10 ft 5 wts, but I nymphs a lot too. Lamson reel, an additional spool, SA WF line, sink tip line.

August means working the banks with hoppers to me!

Any 8-9’ 5 or 6 weight with a WF line will work fine. If you’re set on Orvis give the outlet store in Manchester a call and see what they have in stock. Same rods minus the breakage warranty for about half price.

My brother lives in RI... I’ll send him

It has been over a decade since I fished the Gros Ventre, but I remember it as being a small, shallow, river that had a lot of easy to catch trout and a lot of people flailing the same pockets and runs. I saw some trout in the 16" to 20" inch range, but never got a fly down to them as the 8" to 12" fish would shoot up and grab the flies. High floating #12 Humpys, Irresistibles, and Wulffs with a #16 Tellico or Zug Bug dropper worked for me.

I also fished the Buffalo Fork and Pacific Creek up by Moran Junction. I got run off Pacific Creek by a momma moose with a calf in tow. If I go back, I'll probably take a look at the Hoback River south of Jackson.

Come to think of it, I also caught a few trout on a #12 Hornberg wet.

The reason I’ll be at this river is the ranch we’re staying at owns 2 miles of frontage or something crazy like that. I’ll start stocking up on flies!

Thomas & Thomas
Hatch

Buy your flies locally....

Can’t go wrong with a 9’ 5wt. Sounds like maybe you are staying above Slide Lake, the river is a bit shallower there. Where it runs thru Grand Teton NP it get fished pretty hard, but the fish are cooperative. August is hopper season and best is to get fly's locally as they will tell you what is on when you are there. Keep your eyes open for moose, especially in the park section. Bear spray is a real good idea. If you are staying where I think you are, they do some real nice trail rides into awesome country. Often see bighorn sheep when we backpack or hike in that area.

The name of the place is tha Gros Ventre Ranch, which is a fitting name lol

Nice, just below Slide Lake. Beautiful country, enjoy!

I have not fished the Gros Ventre but I am seen it and am somewhat familiar with it. I would think a 9ft 5wt would work just fine there If you can take two rods to that area I would recommend a 4wt and a 6wt. The same for the Hoback. Flat creek in Jackson Hole, in the Elk Refuge, is a challenging place to fish and in August the terrestrials (Hoppers) would work great.

A little farther south is the Green River right above Pinedale Wy. I have fished it and would highly recommend traveling the hour or so south to fish that river. There is good access via BLM land. Turn left off off Route 191 at the Warren Bridge and from the bridge upstream is all BLM land with good access to the river.

Drive up the Gros Ventre and fish Crystal Creek. I fished it a few times a summer when I lived there. Don't overlook Flat Creek on the elk refuge. It's open in August. Those fish are a bit more challenging than the GV. Hoppers for the dumb ones in the GV. Technical drys from local shops for the smart ones in Flat Creek. More info available if you want it.

Sounds like you have some experience there... the ranch we’re staying at has like a mile of the GV running through it. I’m going to be there with my whole family so I probably won’t go far, I just have to out fish them all haha.

I would bring two different rods. A softer action 4 weight for dries and a faster action 6 weight for nymphs and streamers.

Scott G series 8'8" 4 weight or a Winston TMF 8' 4 weight for dries.

Scott Centric 9' 6 weight for streamers and nymphs under an indicator.

Reels, I'd look towards Ross or Abel (which are owned by the same parent company). Abel can do a lot of different custom finishes, but you pay for it. Ross makes a lot of solid stuff lately. But Abel TR is my favorite trout fly reel by far. You really don't need more than a click pawl fly reel on a trout rod.

Crystal got blown out a couple years back. Was off color and high most of the summer. Has not fished the same since. Still a beautiful day hike though.

I put myself through college working as a guide (both white water and fly fishing) in Jackson. The GV is a ton of fun for mostly mid size (11"-14") fish. For me it would be dry droppers all day long. think foam flies on top that float well and tungsten bead nymphs underneath. Hoppers, humpys, stimulators, Chernobyl ants, Moodha poodha, Grumpy frumpy on top. bead head prince, copper johns, rainbow warrior, red dart underneath. Look at Fly Fish Food web site for flies. Give Lance, Curtis or Cheech a call
As for rods as others have said, 9' 5 wt with a WF floating line like a Rio gold, If going with 1 rod. I'd go with 2 rods and go 9' 5 wt and a 9' 6 wt if you want to throw streamers.
For streamers look up the Cheech Leech, sloppy seconds, Zonker, Barely Legal. Use a sink tip for the streamers
I know you said your an orvis guy and the Helios is a great stick and the Recon is decent also. You do want a rod with some power because the wind does blow out here in the West. I'm more of a Sage fan and believe the Sage X is the finest rod ever built and I've cast most things out there. The new Sage Sonic is pretty impressive also for a less money. I just cast the 9' 4 wt last weekend and now have one coming.
If you want a challenge, fish Flat creek in the elk ranch and have a few #18-20 drys and 7x tippet. 20" cutties in very clear, thin water.
The Snake can be a lot of fun also if you float it.

Also as a side note, do not skimp on fly line. get a great line from a good company and you will be happier Think Rio Gold or SA Amplitude.

BangPop and fishnut pretty much nailed it. I lived on the Gros Ventre in Kelly for 10yrs. Personally it's a 9' 4wt stream IMO. Black and cinnamon ants will catch a lot of fish on the GV and there are a bunch of sculpins in there.

There are some good lakes up in the GV drainage, Crystal Cr is good above Red Rock Ranch too.

I think I have a pretty good game plan now boys. Thank you.

Pretty country! You are in for a great time in that area. It wasn't on the Gros Ventre River, but we camped in the Gros Ventre campground two years ago (June) and got into these fish in streams hiking back in from parking areas on the west side of Hwy. 191 just north Moose, WY. Have fun planning and best wishes for a great trip!


Layne struck "gold" in the Grand Tetons