Seeing all the snow when entering Yellowstone via the south entrance in mid-June made me think any chance of hitting the rivers would be a washout anyway.

And, in fact, many of the rivers were bursting over their banks and off-color. The lone exception was the Firehole, which looked like combat fishing at its finest as we drove by on the way to Old Faithful.

I had resigned myself to be happy with the incredible luck we were having viewing wildlife - the final tally was nine grizzly bear, nine black bear, three wolves and the usual smorgasbord of hoofed mammals.

Leave it up to my nearly 4-year-old daughter to save the day.

"I want to go fishing, Daddy," she said with that look in her eyes that I haven't yet figured out how to resist.

I had taken a special Father's Day trip with my son and my father not long before our Yellowstone adventure, and she figured it was her turn.

I've fished some of the smaller streams and creeks in Yellowstone, but I eventually gave them up for the glories of bigger, world-famous waters of the globe's first national park.

I knew of a creek we would be staying near one night and figured we might be able to sneak in some time throwing the rod the next day. We grabbed the rod, put on some sunscreen and made the short walk to the creek.

She wanted to cast by herself - she's an independent little girl - but quickly realized Dad might need to help if she wanted the fly to hit the water.

The first hole was a bust, but the second one yielded a small brook trout. She was thrilled beyond belief, at least until our friends showed up with a baby later that day. I was also excited because I knew fishing would be good. Brookies are like cockroaches: If you catch one, there are at least a hundred more.

The kids each caught a couple of their own fish and then left me to rediscover the joys of landing brook trout after brook trout in a tiny trickle of water.

Thanks to my girl.

brettp@sltrib.com

Help special-needs kids have fun fishing

The annual C.A.S.T (Catch A Special Thrill) event that helps kids with special needs get out fishing is Aug. 9 at Rockport Reservoir. The sponsoring Utah Bass Federation and Bureau of Reclamation are looking for people to volunteer their boats and their captain skills for a fun day on the water with the kids. Contact Valerie Harrison at vharrison@uc.usbr.gov if you are interested.