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Driftless Area fly fishing trip
6 waters in the Driftless Area, Wisconsin, have a page here, the largest of them Black Earth Creek, Fennimore Fork and The West Fork. June, July and August carry the most recorded hatches, 21 insects in June, 23 insects in July and 20 insects in August. In range: 8 blocks of public land with a page of their own and 4 fly shops. Everything below is measured or published — no ranking on this page is ours.
The unglaciated coulee country — spring creeks, limestone, and more trout stream per square mile than anywhere in the Midwest.
The water
| Water | Miles | July mean |
|---|---|---|
| Black Earth Creek — named stretch | — | — |
| Fennimore Fork — named stretch | — | — |
| The West Fork — named stretch | — | — |
| Timber Coulee — named stretch | — | — |
| The Mecan Artificial-Only Water — named stretch | — | — |
| The White River Artificial-Only Water — named stretch | — | — |
Ordered by mapped length. July mean is measured at the USGS gauges standing in each river; a dash means no gauge on it reports temperature.
A 3-day plan
Black Earth Creek
No site in the state's access file falls within twelve miles of this water's centre, so the way in is public ground and road crossings.
Fennimore Fork
No site in the state's access file falls within twelve miles of this water's centre, so the way in is public ground and road crossings.
The West Fork
No site in the state's access file falls within twelve miles of this water's centre, so the way in is public ground and road crossings.
Assembled, not written: the days are the largest waters in range, longest first, and each one carries the nearest site in Wisconsin's own access file — measured from the middle of the water, so it is a place to start looking rather than a landing on that river. Fish them in whatever order the weather gives you.
Hatches to hit
The months with the most recorded hatches in the Wisconsin driftless: June (21), July (23), August (20).
| Insect | Months | Hook |
|---|---|---|
| Fish Eggs | October–January and April | #10–16 |
| Little Black Stonefly | January–April | #16–18 |
| Little Brown Stonefly | February–April | #12–16 |
| Blue-Winged Olive | March–May and September–November | #16–22 |
| Blackfly | April–June | #18–22 |
| Blue Quill | April–May | #16–18 |
| Cranefly | April–June and September–October | #6–10 |
| Grannom | April–May | #14–16 |
| Hendrickson | April–May | #12–14 |
| Little Black Caddis | April–May | #16–20 |
| Caterpillar | May–September | #8–14 |
| Crayfish | May–October | #4–8 |
| Inchworm | May–June | #12–16 |
| Light Cahill | May–July | #12–16 |
Recorded from the Wisconsin driftless, earliest first. The year-round records sit at the bottom because they are true and they are not news.
Public land in range
- Bear Creek Fishery Area — 11.6 mi
- Dell Creek Wildlife Area — 13.3 mi
- Baraboo Hills Recreation Area — 13.6 mi
- Mirror Lake State Park — 14.5 mi
- The 400 State Trail — 15.2 mi
- Devil's Lake State Park — 16.9 mi
- Hulburt Creek Fishery Area — 17.7 mi
- Dells Of The Wisconsin River Natural Area — 19.4 mi
Blocks of ground with a page of their own, nearest first. Ownership from PAD-US as Wisconsin publishes it.
Camping and lodging
We have campground records for Michigan and for no other state, so there is nothing to list here rather than a list somebody guessed. The public land above is where the dispersed camping is, where the state allows it.
Fly shops
- Castle Rock Dam Bait Shop — 30.1 mi, Friendship
- The Minnow Bucket — 33.5 mi, Oxford
- Fontana Sports — 41.0 mi, Madison
- The Driftless Angler — 43.0 mi, Viroqua
From OpenStreetMap and a curated list, across all five states on this site. Call before you drive — a shop in a file is not a shop that is open.
Before you go
- Wisconsin regulations
- Wisconsin fishing report
- Driftless Area fishing report
- Black Earth Creek
- Fennimore Fork
- The West Fork
- Timber Coulee
- The Mecan Artificial-Only Water
- The White River Artificial-Only Water