Print it. Bag it. Bring it.Phones die, screens crack, and most of this water has no signal. Print this map, fold it into a zip-top bag or dry bag with your license, and you have a backup your electronics can’t give you. Every marker is numbered so you can say exactly where you are.
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Firehole Springs Yellowstone NP backcountry site | Campsite | 44.40468, -110.82717 | Designated backcountry site; a park backcountry permit is required and sites are reserved. Walk-in only. |
| 2 | Upper Firehole Yellowstone NP backcountry site | Campsite | 44.41391, -110.81922 | Designated backcountry site; a park backcountry permit is required and sites are reserved. Walk-in only. |
| 3 | Lone Star (OA1) Yellowstone NP backcountry site | Campsite | 44.41685, -110.81374 | Designated backcountry site near the Lone Star Geyser trail; permit required. Two nodes are mapped 130 m apart; the closer one to the river is used. |
| 4 | Kepler Cascades Waterfall on the Firehole | Dam / hazard | 44.44554, -110.80587 | A stepped drop in the canyon above Old Faithful, with a roadside overlook 11 m away (mapped separately in OSM, one point here). Not wadeable. |
| 5 | Grand Loop Road bridge above Old Faithful Regulation section limit | Regulation section limit | 44.45394, -110.81949 | Upstream end of the park's closed reach, which runs from here downstream to the Biscuit Basin road bridge. The park describes it as the bridge about half a mile above Old Faithful. Check the park's fishing page. |
| 6 | East Lot Picnic Area NPS picnic area, Old Faithful | Access / boat ramp | 44.45633, -110.82491 | Picnic area off the Old Faithful east parking area, 290 m from the river. |
| 7 | Firehole River at Old Faithful USGS 06036805 | USGS gauge | 44.45933, -110.82227 | Real-time flow and water temperature. The OSM monitoring-station node sits on the roster coordinate to seven decimals. A second USGS station, Firehole River near West Yellowstone, is mapped 25 km downstream at the canyon. |
| 8 | Old Faithful Ranger Station National Park Service | Agency / conservation office | 44.45686, -110.83175 | Ranger station in the Old Faithful developed area; park fishing permits and current closures. |
| 9 | Upper Geyser Basin Thermal basin along the river | Park / conservation area | 44.46228, -110.83741 | The basin the Firehole runs through above Biscuit Basin. Boardwalks and thermal ground on both banks - stay on the boardwalk and off the crust. |
| 10 | Riverside Geyser Thermal feature on the bank | Spring | 44.47347, -110.84092 | Erupts from the east bank out over the Firehole; the most river-bound geyser on the reach and a reliable landmark. |
| 11 | Biscuit Basin road bridge Regulation section limit | Regulation section limit | 44.48296, -110.85242 | Downstream end of the park's closed reach, which runs upstream from this bridge to the Grand Loop Road bridge above Old Faithful. |
| 12 | Biscuit Basin Thermal basin along the river | Park / conservation area | 44.48555, -110.85501 | Thermal basin on the west bank at the lower end of the closed reach. |
| 13 | River Spouter Thermal feature on the bank | Spring | 44.51748, -110.83209 | Named for its discharge straight into the Firehole; one of the warm inflows on the Midway and Lower basin reach. |
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Excelsior Geyser Largest thermal inflow on the river | Spring | 44.52627, -110.83674 | Excelsior's crater discharges continuously into the Firehole and is the single biggest heat load on the river; the reach below it runs warm in summer. |
| 15 | Midway footbridge Regulation section limit | Regulation section limit | 44.52765, -110.83608 | Centre of a short closed span - the park closes 200 yards either side of this footbridge. Check the park's fishing page before you fish. |
| 16 | Grand Prismatic Spring Parking NPS parking, Midway Geyser Basin | Access / boat ramp | 44.52907, -110.83612 | The Midway lot; the closest parking to the river on this reach, 86 m off the water. |
| 17 | Goose Lake Yellowstone NP backcountry site | Campsite | 44.54469, -110.84405 | Designated backcountry site; a park backcountry permit is required and sites are reserved. Walk-in only. |
| 18 | Ojo Caliente Spring Thermal feature on the bank | Spring | 44.56294, -110.83879 | A large hot spring discharging into the Firehole at the Fountain Flats meadows. |
| 19 | Sentinel Meadows East Yellowstone NP backcountry site | Campsite | 44.56489, -110.85337 | Designated backcountry site; a park backcountry permit is required and sites are reserved. Walk-in only. |
| 20 | Maiden's Grave Spring Thermal feature on the bank | Spring | 44.57140, -110.83351 | Roadside hot spring on the Firehole at the Nez Perce Creek meadows. |
| 21 | Nez Perce Picnic Area NPS picnic area | Access / boat ramp | 44.57860, -110.83141 | Picnic area at the Nez Perce Creek confluence, 72 m from the river. |
| 22 | Fire Hole Picnic Area NPS picnic area | Access / boat ramp | 44.59331, -110.83106 | Riverside picnic area above the canyon reach. |
| 23 | Cascades of the Firehole Waterfall in Firehole Canyon | Dam / hazard | 44.61639, -110.85525 | A drop in the canyon above Firehole Falls, alongside the one-way Firehole Canyon Drive. |
| 24 | Firehole Falls Waterfall in Firehole Canyon | Dam / hazard | 44.62881, -110.86333 | A 40-foot fall in the canyon. Historically the barrier that kept the river above it fishless; the park does not use it as a regulation boundary. |
| 25 | Madison Junction Picnic Area NPS picnic area | Access / boat ramp | 44.64356, -110.86042 | Picnic area at the Gibbon confluence, where the Firehole ends and the Madison begins. |
| 26 | Madison Campground NPS campground, Madison Junction | Campsite | 44.64445, -110.86614 | The developed campground at the mouth; reservable. Serves the lower Firehole, the lower Gibbon and the upper Madison. |
Gauge: USGS 06036805 — Firehole River at Old Faithful, YNP. Live flow on the web page.
Species: Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Mountain Whitefish, Rainbow Trout
Regulations: wgfd.wyo.gov/regulations
Emergency: call 911 and give the number of the nearest point on this map plus its coordinates.
Old Faithful - the gauge reach, with parking at the visitor complex and walk-in access above and below.
Biscuit Basin - roadside pullouts along the Grand Loop Road reaching the middle river.
Midway Geyser Basin - foot access to the meadow water below the Excelsior discharge.
Fountain Flat Drive - the classic meadow reach, with a gravel road and several pullouts.
Firehole Canyon Drive - fast pocket water in the canyon, reached by the one-way loop road.
Nez Perce Creek - the largest tributary, joining the river on the Fountain Flat side.
Madison Junction - the downstream end, where the Firehole meets the Gibbon.
Spring: the best window of the year, with heavy baetis and pale morning dun hatches as soon as the season opens.
Summer: thermal input pushes water temperatures high and most anglers move to colder water.
Fall: the river cools and fishes well again, with baetis on grey days and browns on the move.
Winter: closed to fishing within the park for the season.