Lander - Wyoming Game and Fish Department sampling and angler reports during July 2019 indicate golden trout fishing within the Popo Agie Wilderness is the best in recent memory.  The golden trout populations in Leg, Thumb, Windy, Upper Saddlebags, Lower Saddlebags, Lower Tayo, and Coon lakes are all doing exceptionally well.  Larger, 16- to 19-inch golden trout have been observed, particularly Upper Saddlebags, Lower Saddlebags, Lower Tayo, and Coon lakes.  Coon Lake contains a naturally-reproducing population, whereas golden trout in the other lakes are provided by Wyoming Game and Fish Department helicopter stocking every two years.

All lakes can be accessed by trailheads located along the Loop Road (Route 300) in the Shoshone National Forest.  Thumb, Windy, Upper Saddlebags, and Lower Saddlebags lakes can be accessed from the Christina Lake trailhead at Fiddlers Lake.  Thumb Lake is located in the Silas Creek drainage, and Windy, Upper Saddlebags, and Lower Saddlebags lakes are located in the Atlantic Creek drainage.  Tayo and Coon lakes can be accessed using the Stough Creek or Sheep Bridge trailheads at Worthen Meadows Reservoir.  The Sweetwater trailhead at the southern end of the Wind River Mountains can also be used to access Lower Tayo and Coon lakes.  Leg Lake is in the Roaring Fork Creek drainage and can also be accessed using the Stough Creek Lakes trailhead. 


Photos: Far above taken by Dirk Miller, picture above and video below by Aaron Black. 

- WGFD -