Try peering over the edge of a bridge, squinting into the shadows, and seeing dozens and dozens of foot-long rainbow trout. Now picture all your fishing equipment being 23 miles away.

It isn’t far from the tourist haven of Jackson Hole to the quiet solitude of Idaho’s Teton Valley. But it seems like forever when you’re trying to find an Idaho fishing license, you’re a half hour from your fly rods, and the rainbow trout are grinning lazily at you from the clear blue stream.

Don’t let that happen on your visit to the quiet side of the Tetons. Teton Valley lies along the eastern border of Idaho snug against the 13,000 foot peaks of the Grand Teton range. The communities of Driggs, Victor, Tetonia and others share the Tetons with their more sophisticated neighbor to the east. Toward the west is the Bighole Mountain range. The valley averages 6200 feet above sea level.

Experienced anglers from around the world know about the trout streams in Eastern Idaho…the Henry’s Fork River and the South Fork of the Snake are household names. But the Teton River which flows gently through the middle of Teton Valley is a well kept secret.

The upper Teton is a fly fishing paradise. Huge rainbow and cutthroat trout live throughout the entire river. You can often fish all day and not see another person. The water is much like a flat spring creek running through pastureland. Well maintained dirt roads wind through grain and potato fields and ranchers’ summer pasture.

Willows line the bank of the upper Teton, and it is a dry fly paradise. Mayfly and caddis work particularly well. The bottom is gravel lined with deep pools and long runs, and is very navigable for the 15 miles above Harrop Bridge. There are three bridges in this upper section (Teton Creek, Bates and Cache) that provide easy launching for a canoe, a drift boat or an inner tube. And the floats in between are so mellow you could nod off if it weren’t for that cutthroat on your line.