YELLOWSTONE Fishes of the Yellowstone National Park

The fishing season in the park does not ordinarily begin before July, by which time, according to one of the angling writers hereafter cited, "the plethora of water has disappeared and the streams flow swift, clear, and cold. At this season of the year trout fishing is at its best."

Information regarding the fishing in various localities may be found in the annual reports of the superintendent of the park, particularly the report for 1897, and in the annual circulars of information issued by the National Park Service. The following publications pertaining wholly or partly to fishing in the park may be consulted for detailed or special data:

Fish in the National Park and tributaries of Snake River. By J. E. Curtis. Bulletin U. S. Fish Commission, vol. IV, for 1884, p. 335-336.

A reconnoissance of the streams and lakes of the Yellowstone National Park, Wyo., in the interest of the United States Fish Commission. By David Starr Jordan. Bulletin U. S. Fish Commission, vol. IX, for 1899, p. 41-63, with map and many plates.

A reconnoissance of the streams and lakes of western Montana and northwestern Wyoming. By Barton W. Evermann. Bulletin U. S. Fish Commission, vol. XI, for 1891, p. 3-60, with plates and maps.

A woman's trout fishing in Yellowstone Park. By Mary Trowbridge Townsend. Outing, vol. XXX, no. 2, May, 1897, p. 163-164.

A list of the fishes of Montana, with notes on the game fishes. By James A. Henshall. Bulletin of the University of Montana, No. 34, Biological series no. 11. 1906.

Wyoming summer fishing and the Yellowstone Park. By Ralph E. Clark. Outing, vol. LII, no. 4, July, 1908, p. 508-511.

Fly fishing in wonderland. By Klahowya (O. P. Barnes). 56 p. 1910.

The Yellowstone National Park. By Hiram Martin Chittenden. Fishes, p. 210-212. 1915.

The following annotated list of park fishing waters is based partly on information kindly furnished by Col. L. M. Brett, United States Army, formerly acting superintendent of the park; partly on notes taken from the works before cited; partly on observations by A. H. Dinsmore, of the Bureau of Fisheries, in 1919 and 1920; and partly on the senior author's observations in 1914 and 1919.

YELLOWSTONE LAKE.

Yellowstone Lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in the world. It and some of the tributary creeks abound with the native or redthroat trout. There appear to be no other game species in the lake. Landlocked salmon planted in 1908 and 1909 have not been seen since. The rainbow trout, planted at the same time in some of the affluents, have shown no evidence of establishment, excepting on the statement of Mr. Croley, a hotel fisherman for 12 years, to the effect that he had seen only one fish other than the blackspotted trout. This fish "looked different and had a broad side band" and was thought to be a rainbow.

In 1919 the senior author found the Water of Flat Mountain Arm, though shallow, distinctly colder than in the lake, evidently owing to the inflow of springs and the creek at its head. Near the head of this arm he found the largest redthroat trout met with in the park, fine, clean, trim, vigorous fellows, not like those observed elsewhere.

All suitable tributary creeks contain redthroat trout. The most notable creeks on the east side of the lake, enumerated from north to south, are: Pelican, Cub, Clear, Columbine, and Beaverdam Creeks. All contain native trout. Sylvan Lake, which discharges through Clear Creek in times of high water, contains a few trout. It is a beautiful mountain lake, clear and moderately cold. Ralph E. Clark said of Pelican Creek:

One mile east of Yellowstone River outlet is Pelican stream, which rises in the cold snows of the mountains and empties its waters into the lake. Here you catch quan tities of uncontaminated trout, large, beautiful, fat, and gamy, as free from Worms as the fresh cold waters they swim in are free from pollution.

On the west side of the lake, named in the same order, are Bridge Creek, entering Bridge Bay; Arnica Creek, an affluent of the northwest side of the Thumb; Solution Creek, a small, narrow stream, with lava bottom and grassy banks bordered with willows, the outlet of Riddle Lake, sometimes going dry. Riddle Lake, so called because of the former mystery of its outlet, is a clear pond of roundish outline, about 1-1/2 miles in diameter, about whose outlet are numerous lily pads and other plants. Its shores are shallow, and its bottom is chiefly of lava gravel. The temperature is about 50° F. Trout are numerous.

Near West Thumb is another small, deep-set lake, named Duck Lake, which has no outlet. It formerly contained no trout, but redthroat trout and landlocked salmon were planted in it. Redthroat trout now appear to be abundant, but landlocked salmon have never been observed. However, the senior author found good-sized Loch Leven trout common in 1919.

Grouse and Chipmunk Creeks enter opposite sides of the southern end of the South Arm. Besides these there are numerous unnamed creeks, some of which go dry in summer. One, however, flowing into Flat Mountain Arm, was found by the senior author on July 17, 1919, to contain more water than many of the other creeks around the lake, probably never going dry. A creek that will flow as did this one during a period of drought, with the lake level one-third lower than ever before known, must be permanent. The creek, unnamed on the available maps, clear and cold, with beautiful green, grassy banks with trees here and there, meanders to an extraordinary degree through a broad, open valley, flowing over a gravelly bed, now with riffles, now with deep holes, making a charming trout brook. At its mouth is a flat much frequented by elk. This creek was found to contain numerous trout of season's hatch; some 3 to 5 inches long of the previous season; and older fish up to 12 inches in length.

YELLOWSTONE RIVER ABOVE THE LAKE.

Above the lake the Yellowstone River winds through marshy meadows, between wooded hills, behind which are the rugged peaks of high volcanic mountains. The current is sluggish, and, according to Mr. Dinsmore, the fall is so slight that it would be a comparatively easy matter in times of ordinary flow to travel by canoe the entire distance from the lake to the southern boundary of the park.

The principal tributaries of this portion of the river from the lake southward on the left are Cabin, Trappers, Mountain, Cliff, Escarpment, and Thoroughfare Creeks. On the other side in the same direction are Badger, Phlox, and Lynx Creeks. Good fishing is found in the river and in the creeks high up where they meander from the mountains.

YELLOWSTONE RIVER BELOW THE LAKE.

Below the lake to the upper falls there is no great descent, and the river flows for about 15 miles with a quiet current. Here its banks are bordered with low hills, some of them wooded, others forming open pastures. On the right side going northward the principal creeks are Cotton Grass and Sour Creeks, which unite to discharge their waters into the Yellowstone not far from Alum Creek on the opposite side of the river. On the west side of the river is Trout Creek, which is a clear stream, with grassy banks and gravelly bottom. It has a summer temperature of about 58° F. and is a good trout stream.

Alum Creek is a clear stream about 8 feet wide and 1 or 2 feet deep, rising in the Continental Divide opposite the head of Nez Perce Creek and flowing eastward through the grassy fields of Hayden Valley. Its bed contains much white alkali from the hot springs above, and there is a perceptible alkaline taste to the water, which has a temperature of about 60° F. in summer. In its upper course it has some hot tributaries. One of these is Violet Creek, with a number of hot springs and mudholes. Still another fork is charged with alum, but a third branch is said to be one of the best redthroat trout streams in the park.

YELLOWSTONE RIVER AND BRANCHES BELOW THE FALLS.

About 15 miles below the lake the river plunges into a deep canyon over two vertical falls 109 feet and 308 feet in height. This remarkable canyon is more than 20 miles long, with nearly perpendicular walls 800 to 1,100 feet in height. The current below the falls is swift until the river leaves the park.

The most important eastern tributary of the Yellowstone River is Lamar River. It is a large stream, sometimes referred to as the East Fork of the Yellowstone. It joins the Yellowstone not far below Butte Junction. There are many tributary creeks of various sizes, particularly on the north and northeast side. The principal of these are: Miller, Calfee, Cache, Soda Butte, joined by Amphitheater and Pebble Creeks; Slough Creek, the largest branch of which is Buffalo Creek. On the west side the creeks are smaller than most of those of the other side, the principal ones being Cold, Willow, and Timothy, near the upper course. Chalcedony Creek is farther down, and all but Cold Creek are in rather deep ravines near the river. Cascade Creek is a clear brook a few feet wide which enters the Yellowstone between the falls. The high, nearly vertical "Crystal Falls" (129 feet) is near the mouth of the stream and, of course, prevents the ascent of fishes. Redthroat trout were once planted above the falls.

Lamar River and most of its tributaries are inhabited by native trout. The junction of Yellowstone and Lamar Rivers is noted for fine fishing. Soda Butte is well stocked up to near its head, where a waterfall keeps the fish back. According to Mr. Dinsmore, Fish Lake, where the Bureau of Fisheries has for a number of years collected native trout eggs and where in 1921 a small hatchery was established, is a very remarkable water, with an area of only 75 acres. It contains a dense growth of vegetation, which in the late summer blossoms near the surface. After sundown the fish, which average about 2 pounds each, will come up out of the weeds and take gray-hackle flies almost as fast as they can be placed upon the water.

Slough Creek is said to be well stocked with trout up to the lakes at its head, only one of which, Lake Abundance, in Montana, contains trout.

Hellroaring Creek, which joins the Yellowstone from the north below the mouth of Lamar River, is abundantly supplied with native trout in its lower part.

The tributaries of the west side of the Yellowstone worthy of mention all enter this river below the Grand Canyon. The uppermost is Antelope Creek, which joins the river not far from the mouth of Tower Creek. It contains native trout. Tower Creek, for almost its whole length, is hidden in dense forests. Its current is swift, and it is perhaps the coldest stream in the park, the summer temperature being about 45° F. Carnelian Creek is one of its upper branches. About one-fourth mile from its mouth the creek forms a singularly picturesque, quite vertical fall of 132 feet, which is surrounded by lofty towers of volcanic conglomerate. Below the falls is a deep canyon, where the stream is about 10 feet wide and shallow. The waters above the falls were barren previous to the introduction of eastern brook, rainbow, and redthroat trouts.

The lower tributaries of the Yellowstone in the park are Geode Creek, Blacktail Deer Creek, and Gardiner River. Geode Creek is small. Rainbow trout planted in it in 1909 have not since been observed. Blacktail Deer Creek is a clear, rather cold (55° F.) stream running largely through open pastures, with willows along its course. It has no canyons or falls. Its bottom is of laval gravel and rocks, with some water weeds. In summer it is usually 5 or 6 feet wide by 1 or 2 feet deep and is well stocked with native redthroat trout and rainbow trout. Eastern brook trout were planted in 1912, 1913, and 1914.

GARDINER RIVER AND ITS BRANCHES.

In the park Gardiner River may be said to be formed by two branches, designated on the maps as Lava Creek and Gardiner River, but the latter is sometimes referred to as the "Middle Fork."

Lava Creek is a clear, mountain stream in its upper course, flowing through evergreen forests on the north side of the mountain range. The stream is normally about 10 feet wide and 1 or 2 feet deep. Toward its mouth it cuts its way into a broad, flat shelf of lava, forming two falls about one-tenth of a mile apart. The upper falls, called Undine Falls, are vertical for about 30 feet, with two additional leaps of about 20 and 10 feet. The lower falls are vertical and about 50 feet high. Below these falls the stream flows through a highly picturesque canyon, joining Gardiner River above Mammoth Hot Springs.

Lupine Creek is a small tributary of Lava Creek, entering it above the falls. Near its junction with Lava Creek this creek has a cascade about 100 feet high called Wraith Falls. Notwithstanding the barrier offered by the falls, Dr. Jordan said that it was reported on good authority that small trout had been taken in Lava Creek above the falls. His attention was called to a possible means of access from Blacktail Deer Creek to Lava Creek in times of high water. In Lava and Lupine Creeks the only trout is the native redthroat. Below the falls native redthroat and Loch Leven trouts occur in Lava Creek.

Gardiner River, or Middle Fork, rises on the east slope of the Gallatin Mountains in the northwestern part of the park. It flows eastward, southward, then abruptly northward, bending around Bunsen Peak and forming a deep canyon, toward the head of which are Osprey Falls. Gardiner Canyon is some 800 to 1,000 feet deep, with vertical walls of lava, basalt, etc., and in grandeur is surpassed only by the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Osprey FaIls are about 150 feet high and nearly vertical. The principal headwaters of the Gardiner are Fawn, Panther, and Indian Creeks, which, with their branches, unite near Seven-mile Bridge. Winter and Straight Creeks unite into one stream and join Obsidian Creek to form Willow Park Creek, which also joins the Middle Fork near Seven-mile Bridge. Obsidian Creek originates in or near Twin Lakes, according to Jordan, and some of its branches in other small lakes, notably Lake of the Woods, which flows into Beaver Lake. At first the creek is very small, and its course for 2 or 3 miles is full of hot springs, solfataras, boiling mudholes, and various similar heated areas. Lower down cold springs enter the stream, and at Beaver Lake the water is clear and cold. Beaver Lake is a shallow, grassy pond, about a mile long, formed in the stream by the beavers. Eastern brook trout are reported as plentiful, but the rainbow trout, also planted there, have never been heard of. Below this lake the creek receives the clear, cold waters of Winter Creek and Straight Creek.

Winter Creek is a large stream which heads in Christmas Tree Park at the foot of Mount Holmes. Straight Creek flows through dense woods, open grass-grown meadows and narrow canyons. It is a very pretty stream, with many riffles and deep holes behind prostrate logs, and wide, shallow, gravelly reaches. In the course of Straight Creek is Grizzly Lake. It is a gem, with steep, wooded banks, clear, cold water, with shelving bottom and quite deep center. After their junction the waters of these creeks, under the name of Willow Park Creek, flow through Willow Park, a large mountain meadow, at the foot of which it meets the waters of Indian Creek and the others which have been mentioned, forming the Middle Fork of Gardiner River. Indian Creek is a clear, cold stream similar to the Gardiner.

All of the aforementioned creeks, previously barren, now teem with eastern brook trout, the only trout occurring in them. Jordan reported that Obsidian Creek with Winter Creek was one of the best eastern brook trout streams in the park. Its summer temperature is about 50° F. Its bottom is composed of laval gravel, lined with grass, algae, and other water plants in which small crustaceans abound. The senior author observed that Straight Creek teemed with brook trout of all sizes up to 12 inches long. Hundreds, mostly about 6 or 7 inches long, were observed. The fish were the most beautifully colored seen in the park. Males only 3 or 4 inches long showed the brilliant coloration of the fully developed fish in breeding season. Females 6 inches in length and upward had well-developed eggs. Grizzly Lake contains very large brook trout.

Above Osprey Falls the Gardiner is a clear, cold stream, having a temperature of about 50° F. The bottom is composed of numerous stones and bowlders, and there are many deep holes. This previously barren stretch of water now contains the introduced eastern brook, Loch Leven, brown, and rainbow trouts. About halfway down from the falls to the junction with the East Fork Glen Creek the river on the left side. Glen Creek has been called the West Fork of the Gardiner. It rises in the Sepulcher Mountain region and flows southeast to Swan Lake outlet, thence northeast, joining the Gardiner at the foot of the canyon. It is a small stream, only 5 or 6 feet wide and 1 or 2 deep, which runs mostly through open meadows, with gravelly and grassy bottom. Its waters are very cold, about 48° F. in summer. Glen Creek has a waterfall some 70 feet high, known as Rustic Falls, at the Golden Gate near the base of Bunsen Peak. A small lake in the vicinity of Sepulcher Mountain was stocked with eastern brook trout in 1912, but the results are as yet uncertain. Below the falls the deep canyon is so choked with bowlders and talus that fish can not ascend it.

Swan Lake is a small, roundish pond about a half mile long, with a bottom of crumbled lava. While the water near shore is very shallow, the depth at the center seems considerable. The water is clear and cold and abounds with insects and crustaceans.

Eastern brook trout abound in the creek above the falls, but those planted in Swan Lake, it is said, seem to have left the lake for the small streams, as they have not been found in the lake. Near the junction of the Gardiner with the East Branch the stream is rough and bowlder strewn, but of a good volume, much like the Gibbon in character. The lower course of the Gardiner below the falls is well stocked with native redthroat trout and introduced eastern, rainbow, and Loch Leven trouts. Indigenous whitefish, suckers, and minnows also occur.

Below Mammoth Hot Springs the scalding waters of those springs discharge through "Hot River" into the Gardiner. It is said that in winter native trout are especially abundant at the mouth of the stream.

GIBBON RIVER ABOVE FALLS, GREBE AND RAINBOW LAKES.

Gibbon River issues from Grebe Lake, which is located in a marshy area in the highlands. Grebe Lake is about a mile long and is one of the most attractive small lakes in the park. It was stocked with redthroat trout in 1912, but the results are not definitely known.

Approximately a mile or a mile and a half below Grebe Lake is another small lake visited by the senior author and Mr. Dinsmore in 1919. They proposed to name it Rainbow Lake. The lake drains a very extensive marshy area whose arms extend far into the hills, with greatly meandering, clear, cold streams. The lake has a gravelly' bottom, gently sloping shores, and a deep center. At several points are extensive beds of yellow water lilies, and the mouth of the large main affluent is covered by the same plants. Large rainbows frequent the lake and the effluent, and smaller fish abound in all the minor streams.

Gibbon River emerges from the southeast corner of Rainbow Lake. About a mile below the lake are hot mineral springs which discharge into the river, and for a mile or more the water is warm, distinctly impregnated, and fishless. Then cold springs entering the river from the hillsides render the stream again inhabitable by trout, which occur all the way to the Upper Falls of the Gibbon. These falls are too high to permit of the passage of fish upward.

From Virginia Cascade to Norris Station the river, with Solfatara Creek, affords fine fishing for eastern brook trout. Mr. Dinsmore reports that on July 26, 1919, he had wonderful fishing for this species and no other species was observed in this section of the river, although rainbows occur above Virginia Cascade and in the Gibbon below Norris Station.

Below the falls Canyon Creek, entering the river from the eastward, contains redthroat trout. From the falls to the junction of the Gibbon with the Madison the fish are the same as those occuring in the Madison and below the cascades of the Firehole.

MADISON RIVER AND ITS BRANCHES, FIREHOLE RIVER, NEZ PERCE CREEK, LITTLE FIREHOLE RIVER, ETC.

Native redthroat trout, whitefish, and grayling are abundant, as are also the introduced Loch Leven and brown trouts in the upper Madison.

The Firehole River, about twice the size of the Gibbon River, joins it from the south. This stream heads just west of Shoshone Lake, separated from it and from the head of Bechler River by a relatively low divide, according to Gannett. It flows through Madison Lake, which is nearly dry in summer, but below it is reinforced by the fine, clear Spring Creek from the east. In its upper course the Firehole, like Spring Creek, is a clear and very cold stream, flowing through dense woods, with narrow marshy valleys alternating with small canyons. Keppler's Cascades, above the Upper Geyser Basin, is a series of very picturesque falls probably impassable to trout. Along the Firehole are the most noteworthy of the geyser basins, and a great volume of hot water is poured into it without, however, rendering its waters at any point really warm or unfit for trout. The principal tributaries are Iron Creek and Little Firehole River, in the Upper Geyser Basin. At the lower basin the Firehole receives the waters of Sentinel Creek, Fairy Creek, and the larger and more important Nez Perce Creek.

Nez Perce Creek comes in from the east, is nearly half as large as the Firehole, and is similar in character and temperature of the water. It is fed by numerous short streams, none of them hot and most of them confined to a narrow canyon.

Madison River.—The name Madison is used only for the river below the junction of its chief tributaries, the Firehole and Gibbon Rivers. The principal tributaries of the Madison as thus defined join the river beyond the park boundary. Named in order from the south to north they are Cougar, Gneiss, and Grayling Creeks. Within the park Cougar Creek receives the waters of Maple Creek, the principal tributary of which is Duck Creek. These upper waters are inhabitated by native redthroat trout. Campanula Creek joins Gneiss Creek beyond the park boundary. It also contains redthroat trout, as do the upper waters of all three of the main creeks mentioned, and in their lower courses they have whitefish and grayling besides native trout. The main Madison appears to contain a mixture of all the trouts that occur in the park, as well as whitefish and grayling.

SNAKE RIVER DRAINAGE.

Above its junction with Heart River the Snake pursues a northwest course, receiving numerous small tributaries, the most important of which is, perhaps, a branch which heads in Mariposa Lake. Two relatively large tributaries come in from the northeastward—Crooked and Sickle Creeks.

Mariposa Lake is a small body of water in the southeast corner of the park about a mile north of the park boundary. It is said to be alive with native redthroat trout and to afford wonderful fishing for large trout. About a mile beyond the boundary Bridger Lake is another remarkable native trout water.

Heart Lake, about 3-1/2 miles long and not quite 2 miles in width, lies in a deep depression at the eastern foot of Mount Sheridan. Near the head of the lake and in the lake are numerous geysers and hot springs. Its bottom is of laval gravel, rather shallow near the shore but becoming deep in the middle. It receives some small tributaries, principal of which are Witch and Beaver Creeks. Heart River, its outlet, just below the lake receives a comparatively large tributary known as Surprise Creek.

Witch Creek has its rise 2 or 3 miles above the lake, in the singular collection of geysers, hot springs, and steam holes known as Factory Hill. Its water is at first scalding hot, but it gradually cools, receiving the waters of one cold tributary as large as itself. The lower course of Witch Creek winds through grassy meadows, with a bottom of fine laval gravel and sand. The creek at its mouth has a temperature of about 75° F. Native redthroat trout are numerous, occurring most commonly about the mouth of the creek. Besides the trout are suckers, chubs, and shiners, and the blob, or fresh-water sculpin, also occurs. There is plenty of fish food in the lake. The temperature varies according to the nearness to hot springs and geysers. Trout are said not to ascend Witch Creek, although the other species do, the chubs ascending until the water is fairly to be called hot.

Beyond the mouth of Heart River the Snake bends to the southward, thence later to the westward, receiving a number of tributaries, the largest being Basin Creek, Red Creek, and Forest Creek from the north. All the tributaries flowing directly into the Snake contain native redthroat trout.

Lewis River, which joins the Snake just within the park boundary, is the outlet for the waters of Shoshone and Lewis Lakes.

SHOSHONE LAKE AND TRIBUTARIES.

This lake has a length of about 6-1/2 miles and a width of one-half to 4-1/2 miles, being dumb-bell shaped or constricted in the middle. Its area is about 12 square miles. Its shores are mostly bold, rocky, and densely wooded, the eastern shore being especially abrupt, and the bottom is there made by large lava bowlders. On the other side somewhat different conditions obtain, there being a considerable growth of aquatic vegetation. The lake is clearer and colder than either Yellowstone Lake or Heart Lake. The principal tributaries are Shoshone Creek at the northwest corner and De Lacy Creek at the northeast corner. Moose Creek from the southward enters the southern side of the eastern expansion of the lake. Shoshone Lake is connected with Lewis Lake at the southward by a stream of still water known as the "Canal," about 3 miles long.

Lewis Lake occupies a rounded basin with rather low banks. It is pear-shaped, about 3 miles long by 2 miles broad, very clear and cold, and apparently in every way suited for trout. Its bold shores are heavily wooded and without any large tributary streams. A few hot springs enter it on the western side.

Below Lewis Lake Lewis River enters a deep and narrow canyon. At the head of this canyon is a cascade of about 80 feet, of which 20 feet at the top is perpendicular. Toward the end of the canyon and not far above the junction with the Snake is another cascade some 50 feet in height. Owing to the falls in Lewis River no fish were able to ascend to Lewis and Shoshone Lakes, which were therefore uninhabited by any trouts until they were introduced.

Loch Leven and lake trouts are numerous, and eastern brook trout abound in Shoshone Creek. Mr. Clark wrote that the Shoshone and Lewis Lake region was probably the best fishing in the park:

These two lakes and their outlet, Lewis River, are full of native trout and have been stocked with Mackinaw and Loch Leven trout, which are increasing in number and size most successfully. These fish will not rise to the surface and take the fly as do the regular native trout, and it is necessary to go down into the water for them. In the lakes you can catch them by trolling if you can find the particular cove where they happen to be running. However, in spite of the uncertainty of the lake trolling, there is one place where you can troll with assurance of success, and that is the canal between Shoshone and Lewis Lakes. This is a natural body of water with little or no current and not very wide. In Lewis River just below Lewis Falls, in the deep pools where the eddies are covered with foam, you are sure to find good fishing.

Rainbow trout said to have been planted in De Lacy Creek in 1895 have never been observed, but eastern brook trout of small size are numerous.

FALLS RIVER AND BECHLER RIVER.

Falls River pursues a sinuous course near the boundary in the southwestern corner of the park. It rises by two branches, one originating in a marshy area, the other in Beula Lake, near which are Herring Lake and another smaller one, both mere ponds, and flows to the eastward. In the Birch Hills it passes through a short ravine, flowing over two falls, Terraced and Rainbow Falls, the latter being the most westerly. Before joining Bechler River it receives a considerable creek, Mountain Ash by name, which flows down from the south side of Pitchstone Plateau.

Bechler River rises on the northwest side of Pitchstone Plateau and winds to the southward to its junction with Falls River just north of the boundary. It passes through a deep gorge in which are several falls, notably Iris Falls, and a short distance below Colonnade Falls. Below these falls it receives several tributaries, the most important of which is Boundary Creek, which rises across the border and flows southeastward to its junction with Bechler River.

In 1920 A. H. Dinsmore visited this region and reported it as one of the most beautiful, if not the most beautiful, of the valleys in all the park—flat as a floor, abounding in wild and domesticated grasses, meandered by fine, clear streams in which native trout of good size may be taken in large numbers. At the head of the valley, within an area of not more than 3 miles, not less than eight streams fall from the timbered plateau over falls and cascades which rival any in the park excepting the Great Falls of the Yellowstone. So close to the valley are these waterfalls that many of them are in plain view as one rides through it.

Native trout are abundant in Falls River, probably up as far as Rainbow Falls, and in Mountain Ash Creek to Union Falls; also in all the waters below the falls.

In order to prevent undue destruction of fish and depletion of the park waters, certain restrictions have become necessary, and it is believed that anglers generally will be in full sympathy with the protective measures that the park authorities find it desirable to a opt from time to time. The general policy is to curtail fishing as little as may be compatible with the maintenance of the supply and to depend largely on increased fish-cultural operations to prevent the depletion of park waters.

Following are the fishing regulations now in force:

1. Fishing with nets, seines, traps, or by the use of drugs or explosives, or in any other way than with hook and lines, or for merchandise or profit, is prohibited.

2. Fishing in particular waters may be suspended by the superintendent.

3. All fish hooked less than 8 inches long shall be carefully handled with moist hands and returned at once to the water, if not seriously injured. Fish retained should be killed.

4. Ten fish shall constitute the limit for a day's catch per person from all waters within 2 miles of the main belt-line road system. In the case of other waters the superintendent of the park may authorize a limit of not exceeding 20 fish for a day's catch per person.