Fishes Pacific Creek
Creek · Teton County, Grand Teton National Park at Moran, draining the Teton Wilderness and Two Ocean Plateau south to the Snake River below Jackson Lake Dam · Wyoming
Pacific Creek Fishing Guides
A Snake River tributary at Moran in Grand Teton National Park, draining the Teton Wilderness and carrying the snowmelt and sediment that shape the river's famous cutthroat water below.
Gauge location. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Guides on the Pacific Creek
Claimed profiles take booking requests. Unclaimed profiles are built from public records so the river is never empty; the guide can claim or remove one any time.
About the Pacific Creek
Pacific Creek enters the Snake River at Moran, immediately below Jackson Lake Dam, and its importance to anglers is out of all proportion to its size. Because Jackson Lake traps the sediment and much of the runoff from the upper Snake, Pacific Creek is the first significant unregulated tributary the river receives, and what it delivers governs conditions on the celebrated cutthroat water downstream through Grand Teton National Park. When Pacific Creek is blown out with spring snowmelt, the Snake below Moran is unfishable no matter what the dam is releasing.
The gauge at Moran reports discharge, stage and water temperature, and all three matter. The creek drains the Teton Wilderness and the Two Ocean Plateau, high and snowbound country, so runoff is a late and prolonged affair that can keep the creek dirty into early July in a heavy snow year. Once it clears, flows drop steadily through the summer and the creek becomes genuinely wadeable, cold and clear. The temperature reading is useful for judging when the fish will move and for the ethical calls that late-summer angling in the park increasingly requires.
The fish are Snake River finespotted cutthroat trout, the native subspecies that makes this drainage a destination, and they use the creek both as resident water and as a spawning and rearing tributary. Mountain whitefish are abundant, and brown, brook and rainbow trout appear in smaller numbers, with the occasional lake trout dropping down out of Jackson Lake. This is grizzly country with a serious wildlife presence, the creek is inside the national park with park regulations in force, and Jackson-based guides run it as a walk-and-wade alternative to the main river when the Snake itself is crowded or running high. Bear spray, company and a willingness to turn back are all part of fishing here responsibly.
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Access
Moran - the junction and park development at the gauge, at the creek's mouth on the Snake River.
Pacific Creek Road - the park and forest road that follows the creek upstream toward the wilderness boundary.
Grand Teton National Park - park access, permits and regulations govern the whole lower creek.
Teton Wilderness - the upstream headwaters, reached only on foot or horseback from the road end.
Jackson Lake Dam - immediately upstream on the Snake, with formal access and the Snake River put-in.
Jackson - the nearest town, an hour south, with guides, fly shops and lodging.
Pacific Creek Campground - the developed forest campground on the road above the park boundary.
Seasons
Spring: high, cold and dirty with snowmelt, unfishable in most years and the reason the Snake below Moran runs off-colour.
Summer: the season, clearing in July and dropping steadily into cold clear wadeable water with strong cutthroat fishing.
Fall: low clear flows, spawning-run movement out of the Snake, and the best sight fishing of the year before the snow returns.
Winter: snowbound and inaccessible, with the road unplowed and the creek locked up under ice and drifts.
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Questions
What is the current flow on the Pacific Creek?
As of Oct 18, 4:30 pm, the USGS gauge Pacific Creek at Moran, WY reads 52 cfs, with water temperature 49.5 F. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Pacific Creek?
Anglers target Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Lake Trout, Mountain Whitefish, Rainbow Trout on the Pacific Creek in Wyoming.
Are there fishing guides on the Pacific Creek?
GuidedFloats lists 1 guide and outfitters on the Pacific Creek. Claimed profiles accept booking requests; unclaimed profiles are built from public records and link to the business.
Where can you access the Pacific Creek?
Moran - the junction and park development at the gauge, at the creek's mouth on the Snake River. Pacific Creek Road - the park and forest road that follows the creek upstream toward the wilderness boundary. Grand Teton National Park - park access, permits and regulations govern the whole lower creek. Teton Wilderness - the upstream headwaters, reached only on foot or horseback from the road end. Jackson Lake Dam - immediately upstream on the Snake, with formal access and the Snake River put-in. Jackson - the nearest town, an hour south, with guides, fly shops and lodging. Pacific Creek Campgro...
When is the best time to fish the Pacific Creek?
Spring: high, cold and dirty with snowmelt, unfishable in most years and the reason the Snake below Moran runs off-colour. Summer: the season, clearing in July and dropping steadily into cold clear wadeable water with strong cutthroat fishing. Fall: low clear flows, spawning-run movement out of the Snake, and the best sight fishing of the year before the snow returns. Winter: snowbound and inaccessible, with the road unplowed and the creek locked up under ice and drifts.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Pacific Creek?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Wyoming agency site: https://wgfd.wyo.gov/fishing-boating/fishing-regulations