Saddle Up, Barbs Down: New Fishing Regs in the Cowboy State

The state of Wyoming isn't afraid of controversial laws. For example, it's against the law to be drunk in a coal mine or on a ski slope. One Wyoming law prohibits spitting on walls, floors, and steps of buildings. Another law in the Cowboy state makes it illegal to wear a hat in a public movie theatre if it obstructs the view of others.

Beginning on January 1, 2026, the Wyoming Department of Game and Fish (WDGF) will add a few new laws to the books. In two special sections of the North Platte River (Pathfinder Dam downstream to Alcova Reservoir and Gray Reef Dam downstream to the Highway 220 bridge), "fishing [will be] permitted by the use of single-point barbless hooks, [and] artificial flies and lures only." In these two areas, fishing with pegged attractors, such as trout beads, will be prohibited. In two other special sections of the North Platte (Miracle Mile and Alcova Dam to Gray Reef Reservoir), the single-point barbless hooks only regulations will apply, but anglers will still be able to use pegged attractors and bait.

Trace a law back to its origin, and you'll usually find good reasons for its inception. Granted, not always. In my home state of Nebraska, we have a law making it illegal to drive recklessly on dangerous mountain roads. But if you've made the uneventful trek across our state on I-80, you know that we don't have mountain roads. We're one of the flattest states in the nation, making it likely that someone borrowed this regulation verbatim from another mountainous state's transportation code. Since I consider the North Platte River in Wyoming to be my home waters, I went searching for the reasons.

I found them and they're solid.

Regulation Rationale

Mark Smith, the Fisheries Management Coordinator for WDGF explained: “About four years ago, we started to notice a marked increase in the number of severely injured fish. Most of the injuries were in the head, mouth, and gill areas of the trout we examined. So, our biologists in Casper who do annual population monitoring on all the popular stretches of the North Platte River developed a numerical framework to keep track of what they were observing.”

I was curious about the research and this “numerical framework,” so I tracked down Jeff Glaid, the Fisheries Biologist with the WDGF who developed the research project and fish-injury-measuring metric.

“In 2018, our crew was sampling the Miracle Mile, and we noticed a significant number of injured fish,” Glaid said. “We didn't have an injury-ranking system at that time, but I started keeping track of whether or not fish had hook scars. Over 60 percent of the fish I observed had injuries.”

Visible injuries are not the primary concern of WDGF. Both Smith and Glaid told me that as fisheries managers, they're primarily concerned with the overall body condition and reproductive ability of the entire fish population in a river system. Glaid’s initial examinations of injured fish revealed that those with severe injuries to the head, mouth, and gill areas appeared thin and unhealthy in ways that likely hindered their life span and reproduction–that's what triggered further investigation and research.

Glaid developed a numerical scoring system for objectively measuring and ranking hook injuries. He applied the same principles used in human and veterinary wound grading and developed a scale of zero to four. A zero grade signaled no visible injury, while a score of one or two meant the fish had a visible injury that likely didn't impact its health or reproduction. Grades three and four signaled severe and massive injury, respectively.

With the scale in place, Glaid and a team of researchers examined a total of 6,355 trout from various sections of the North Platte from September 2020 to October 2021. They used jet boats and rafts to electrofish 14 sections of the river. Because WDGF focuses on the reproducing population of fish, they measured and assessed only the trout over 8 inches long.

Glaid's research revealed that “all river sections upstream of Government Bridge [which includes all the popular and well-known trout-fishing sections] yielded samples with greater than 61.5 percent of trout showing any level of hooking injury. The Miracle Mile section yielded the highest prevalence of damaged fish (72.6 percent), with 23.4 percent of all individuals having sustained severe to massive injuries." In summary, the research revealed that nearly 1 in 4 fish from Gray Reef up to the Miracle Mile ranked three or four on Glaid's scale, meaning they were seriously or massively injured.

As alarming as that sounds, Glaid mentioned that the nearly 1-in-4 results might not communicate just how serious the problem is, because while some 8- to 13-inch fish can reproduce, the most crucial size group for spawning are trout longer than 14 inches.

“The proportion of the population with breeding and angling potential (roughly 14.0 inches or greater) that exhibited biologically meaningful injuries was much higher than 25 percent," Glaid told me.

Following the hooking-injury study, WDGF conducted an email-based survey in late 2024 that was sent to nearly 85,000 licensed anglers, along with holding multiple information-gathering meetings in early 2025. Although not required by regulation, preliminary surveys and meetings were used to determine angler sentiment for substantial changes before WDGF drafted new rules. Following these results, WDGF submitted formal regulations and opened a public comment period from April 28 to June 10, 2025. On July 16, the Commission approved these new regulations, which will take effect on January 1, 2026.

Local Buy-In

Trent Tatum, co-owner of The Reef Fly Shop and North Platte Lodge in Alcova was excited about the new legislation.

“It's not perfect–because I think that more could be done–but it is progress,” he said. “It’s a big win for the fish in this river.”

I asked Tatum if he and his guides are seeing the same injuries as WDGF is reporting.

“Yeah, we see quite a few injuries to the head, mouth, and gill areas. We also see many adult fish that don't appear healthy enough to spawn, or at least spawn productively. It seems likely that they're not eating properly because of some of these injuries we're seeing.”

When I asked Tatum if he thought these regulations would negatively impact his fly shop or guiding business, he didn’t seem worried.

“We've been fishing with barbless hooks for a long time. These new regulations are only going to bring positive changes because they should improve the entire fishery. Healthier fish and a larger spawning population, that's what we all want. It's all positive.”

Not everyone is going to love the new laws. There was likely a cowboy or two out there who had some choice words about having to take off his 10-gallon lid so that someone behind him could better see a movie screen. Indeed, one guide I connected with strongly disagreed with the WDGF hypothesis that pegged attractors might be causing unique damage. He told me that he and his clients make sure the trailing hook is no more than an inch and a half from the bead, and that he’s never had a client hook a fish in a sensitive spot (i.e., gill or eye) using that method.

It seems few have casual feelings about pegged attractors–they either love them or hate them. The guide I spoke to is in the former camp. In his opinion, pegged attractors are better for the fish because, if rigged correctly, they hook trout in the jaw just outside the mouth rather than in the mouth, or worse, the throat or gills.

But Glaid wasn’t so sure.

“Previous work completed by my supervisor, Matt Hahn, showed pegged beads fished beyond two inches [from the hook] did cause more injury, but he plans to conduct future research to determine whether pegged attractors are still part of the problem.” Glaid explained how these new regulations purposely implemented “no pegging” rules on two of the four special sections of the river, while allowing the other two sections to continue using pegged attractors. Glaid’s goal is to repeat the study five years from now to determine if there is a marked difference between the sections that outlawed pegged attractors and the sections that allowed it to continue.

It's clear that Glaid’s focus is on the scientific process and results. In addition to being a fisheries biologist, he’s a fly fisherman who cares not only about the fishery but about the local fly shops, guides, and anglers. He also seems willing to go wherever the science takes him. In response to the criticism the guide shared with me, Jeff replied, "In five years, if we see that pegged attractors aren't harming fish or hurting reproduction, I'll be happy to admit that our hypothesis was incorrect."

Commercial Impact?

When I asked Smith about how the public is responding to the new, upcoming regulations, he said: “The angling public seems to be on board because these injuries to fish are so visible. However, we did receive a criticism that we don't necessarily disagree with… a few people mentioned how [in addition to barbed hooks and pegged attractors], the Game and Fish needs to examine the commercial use of the river.”

According to a different study conducted by WDGF, approximately 4,500 boats float the 12.5-mile stretch from Gray Reef to Government Bridge each year. Approximately 90 percent of those boats are commercial guides, and based on catch rates, they’re estimated to catch between 45,000 and 55,000 trout per year. By that math, over 4,000 trout are caught per mile in that section alone.

“The guides on the North Platte are incredibly good at their jobs, and their anglers have a lot of success on the water,” Smith said. “A lot of success means a lot of fish are caught and released. That's certainly playing a part in things we're seeing.”

What's clear in talking with Glaid, Smith, and Tatum is that they want the same things. They’re all noticing significant injuries and a reduction in the spawning population in these beloved sections of the North Platte. They all appreciate that the issue is complex, which means the solutions will be varied and perhaps complex as well. The new regulations are simple and relatively low-cost attempts to move the fishery in the right direction. Nobody wants to shut down the river to specific demographics, such as non-residents or commercial anglers. All three agree that the goal is to start with relatively easy changes, such as those going into effect in 2026, and hope they improve the fishery so that WDGF can avoid more difficult adjustments in the future.

So the next time you head to central Wyoming to fish the North Platte, throw in a pair of forceps for crimping your barbs. And if your journey sends you through the Cornhusker state, take it easy on our mountain roads. We've got a law, and we'll be watching.

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Zeke Pipher is a pastor, author, and freelance outdoor writer from Central City, Nebraska. His latest book, The Far Bank: 40 Devotions for Anglers, hit shelves August 5.

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