Fly fishing in Montana has many rewards,as there are many lakes and rivers too choose from. ♥Also many species of trout and other species of fish to catch. 

I have found streams that you can fish on all day and never see another person.

It is a great place to raise a family,as there are many lakes,and rivers full of trout.

Silver lake in the photo is one of my favorites.It is full of brook trout,which grow to around 10 inches in this lake.

I also fish in Moore lake,which is right below the Idaho border.It is full of Brookies also.

The stream below this lake holds Brook trout and Cutthroat trout,which I catch and release to get the population up.

I also fish the Clark Fork river for Trout, Bass and Pike.I am holding a stringer with a 5 lb. bass in my photo.

Fly fishing is fun in many ways as you can tie your own flies,which is fun especially when you catch fish on them.

Not a lot of competion in the back country,very relaxing,take your float tube out on the water kick back and drift with the wind.

Take the family picknicing,and teach some one how to fish as I did with the children.

When it comes to fishing in Montana, what do you think of? Beautiful mountains, amazing scenery, wide open species, and great trout fishing, right?

 Well, that's about right, and in some parts of Montana, a bear attack is never out of the question as well. You know, just to keep your adrenaline pumping.

Which means to pack a canister of bear spray with you on these outings,for you never know when you will run into a bear.

I run into bear all the time when I am out there in the wild flyfishing for trout.

If you see one up close make alot of noise and move away from the bear slowly,not turning your back on it.Remember to utilize your bear spray if it comes towards you.

If you are carrying fish,drop them on the ground and keep moving away from the creature.

I have never used my bear spray,but I have moved out of harms way a few times.  

Montana is well known for all outdoor activities, including hunting, hiking, and skiing,huckleberries,wild crab apples,wild choke cherries, but the great state of Montana is probably best known for fishing.

Trout fishing opener is May 16th,this year,but be very careful because the streams are flowing at a very high peak,and pose a danger for those who venture into them wanting to fly fish.We just recorded as record temperature today the 18th of May at 90*.So the snow is melting fast and will pose a hard time for the fisherman to catch trout.

But don't panic as you can camp and enjoy barbequeing or the wonderful weather the west is having..

Good Luck:

Last year 390,000 anglers purchased fishing licenses. Residents comprise about 59 percent of the state's fishing-license buyers. About 33 percent of all adult Montana residents purchase fishing licenses annually. Nearly 82 percent of angler days are spent seeking trout and salmon. Some of the rivers that generally receive the most fishing pressure include the Madison, Missouri, Bitterroot, Clark Fork, Bighorn, Yellowstone and Gallatin rivers

Western rivers are becoming so crowded that some anglers

consider casing the long rods for good. Others are

disappointed by the size of the fish they're catching and

blame increased pressure and catch-and-release mortality

on the decline. Unfortunately, if you listen to those anglers,

you could overlook opportunities that provide lifetime

memories.

That's what I've learned during my forays to northwest

Montana's South Fork of the Flathead River--a wild cutthroat

fishery that flows through the largest chunk of designated

wilderness in the Lower 48. If I listened to the pessimists

about how angling pressure on that stream is unbearable

and that the fish aren't what they used to be, I would have

missed one of the most quintessential camping and fly-fishing

experiences an angler can find in Montana.

On the South Fork of the Flathead, I am pleased to report,

enterprising anglers can find remote campsites, solitude,

and scads of native westslope cutthroat. It's a river offering

a return to our fly-fishing infancies when camping and

camaraderie, incredible scenery and seclusion, and

catching naïve trout on bushy

dry flies was more paramount than the opportunity for a

20-incher. You place worth on the experience in its

entirety--from blistered feet on the hikes in and out of the

wilderness, to passing a flask around the campfire, to the

daily duties of filtering water and cleaning the camp dishes.

The fishing is frosting on an already tasty cake.

The River

The South Fork of the Flathead begins deep in the

Bob Marshall Wilderness at the confluence of

Danaher Creek and Youngs Creek. It gains volume with

the contributions of the White River, Big and Little Salmon

creeks, Black Bear Creek, and other small tributaries.

Overall, the South Fork flows more than 60 miles through

designated wilderness and National Forest lands before

emptying into Hungry Horse Reservoir.

Some anglers who have fished the South Fork for 30 years

complain it isn't as good today as it once was.

They say anglers used to catch nearly 30 cutthroats a day

between 15 and 20 inches. I believe those reports, but today

fish average between 8 and 14 inches with an occasional

17- to 20-inch fish.

Most people credit the river's decline to increased pressure,

and they are probably correct. The South Fork of the

Flathead is no different from other Western rivers, and

you should expect to encounter other anglers and campers

and be passed by pack trains--but it's not the end of the

world. Those willing to venture away from the beaten path

will find refuge from people, especially in late June and early

July when high water recedes and again during fall as

visiting anglers head home.

To help boost the average size of fish, the portion of the

South Fork inside the wilderness boundary is strictly

regulated and anglers may keep up to three trout a day

smaller than 12 inches. The stretch between the Meadow

Creek footbridge and the Spotted Bear footbridge is

catch-and-release only.

  Caddis emerge

 quite quickly once they reach the surface, often too quickly

 for trout to have a chance to eat them.

 Trout know this and 

often will not waste their time or energy trying to feed on

 adults that are not crippled or in the process of emerging.

 

   It represents those emerging and/or crippled caddis

 that the trout key in on. The Z-lon shuck represents the

 pupal shuck of the natural and the lack of hackle allows 

it to sit low in the water like an emerger or cripple. What is 

even better than how well this fly works is how easy it is to

 tie.

 It is a perfect pattern to crank out late the night before a 

trip. So tie some up, get a good dead drift, and hang on. 

Tie this pattern in sizes 12-18.

 Step 1 Start your thread and coat the shank of the hook 

back to the bend of the hook. Take a small clump of Z-lon 

and tie it in extending off the bend of the hook. Tie the

 butts of the Z-lon down about half way up the shank of the

 hook and tie them down to the bend of the hook. Clip the 

butts off.

Step 2 Now clip the shuck to length, roughly 

1 ½ times the gap of the hook, and thin the end of it with 

the tip of your scissors. You do not want to the shuck to

 have abrupt edges; they look unnatural on the water. Dub 

a tapered body up the shank of the hook, stopping just shy 

of the eye of the hook so there is enough room to tie in 

the wing.

Step 3 Cut, comb and stack clump of elk or deer 

hair and tie it in, tips facing the bend of the hook. 

The wing should be tied in directly behind the eye of the 

hook and extend the length of the body. Cut the butts of 

the wing off even with the front edge of the eye of the 

hook and whip finish

 

Madison River

After crossing into Montana from Idaho's Highwat 20 you hit 

Montana 287 and follow it along the Madison River for some 30

miles until you hit Ennis,Mt.You can camp and fish from the bank

along most of this stretch of River.It runs wide and shallow

and about 5 miles an hour.Nice big Rainbows can be caught along this

stretch of River.

Overview: The Madison is, in many people's opinion, 

Montana's river of superlatives, with a list including highest

 trout density, most consistent action, best dry fly fishing, and 

the most spectacular scenery. Not surprisingly, this 

southwestern Montana jewel is also the second most 

heavily used river fishery in the state, growing more

 popular annually. 

Key species: Rainbow trout, brown trout, 

Yellowstone cutthroat trout, whitefish, and Arctic grayling. 

Use: The section from Hebgen Dam to Ennis Lake ranks 4th 

statewide and only the Missouri River below Holter Dam 

receives more river fishing pressure. From Ennis Lake down 

to the mouth it ranks 18th statewide for angling pressure. 

The Upper section gets the least pressure but is still

 heavily used by Montana standards, ranking 35th statewide. 

Key flies and lures: Flies-Bitch Creek Nymphs, Girdle Bugs,

 Yuk Bugs, Parachute Adams, bead-head Pheasant Tail,

 Sofa Pillow, Bird's Stonefly, Elk Hair Caddis, Royal Wulffs,

 hoppers, Woolly Buggers, and Marabou Streamers. 

Lures-Rooster Tail Spinners; gold, silver and black lures; 

and black Daredevles. Bait-hoppers and worms. Be sure to 

check current regulations on bait restrictions.

I fish the Clark Fork more than any other river in Montana,because

it is close to where I live,.It has an enormous amount of different

species of fish to catch,My favorite fish to catch is the Northern Pike.

It also has Trout,Burbot,Bass,Whitefish to name a few species.

The Clark Fork River has its headwaters in the Silver Bow

(or Highland) Mountains, originating at the confluence of

Silver Bow and Warm Springs creeks near Anaconda, Montana.

The river flows north and west 350 miles through broad,

semi-arid valleys, high mountain ranges, and steep-sided

valleys and terminates in Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho.

The Upper Clark Fork, bordered on the north by the

Garnet Range and on the south by the Flint Creek Range,

meanders most of its first 38 miles through the flat plains

of the Deer Lodge Valley. Vegetation is sparse, due partly

to the effects of the mining boom, the greatest historical

influence in the Upper Basin. Downstream from the mouth

of the Little Blackfoot River, the river flows through a steep,

narrow canyon. Between Garrison and Jens the river

channel has been shortened by highway and railroad

construction activities, but past Jens the Clark Fork

meanders away from the transportation corridor and

native trees and shrubs appear along its banks.

From below Flint Creek the river runs 26 miles through

Bearmouth Canyon to emerge and widen to 150 feet for its

final miles to Milltown Reservoir. The Middle Clark Fork

River extends about 115 river miles from Milltown Dam to its

confluence with the Flathead River and is entirely free

flowing. Its drainage is mountainous and covered with large

forested tracts, broken by grazing and cropland areas in the

lower valleys. From Thompson Falls Dam, its upper

boundary, the Lower Clark Fork River flows through

sedimentary formations and a landscape sculptured by the

massive outflows of glacial Lake Missoula. It runs into

Cabinet Gorge Dam, just outside the Montana border.

Between the backwaters of Cabinet Gorge and the

tailwaters of Thompson Falls Dam the river is inundated

by Noxon Rapids Dam. When the Clark Fork crosses the

Idaho border, it is Montana's largest river, carrying an

average 22,060 cubic feet of water per second.

The Stillwater River begins high in the mountains of the

Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness area. The river flows for

more than twenty miles through the wilderness area before

leaving the mountains behind and spilling out into the rolling

prairie and canyons that lie outside the wilderness area.

Once it leaves the wilderness area, the Stillwater River flows

for another 45 miles through a mix of canyons, prairie and

forest until meeting up with the Yellowstone River near the

town of Columbus, Montana - which is about 45 miles from

Billings,Montana

The Stillwater River is an absolutely beautiful and wild river.

The Absaroka-Beartooth Mountains provide a stunning

backdrop to any fishing or float trip. Fishing pressure on

the Stillwater River is moderate - most out of state anglers

venture to the much more popular and well known nearby

rivers such as the Yellowstone River. That said, lots of

locals ply the waters of the Stillwater in search of the

plentiful rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout that are found

in the river.

Since the first twenty miles of the Stillwater River are in the

wilderness area, access is excellent, although it requires a

hike or horseback ride in to reach it. Once the Stillwater River

leaves the wilderness, access for most of its length is good

due to numerous road, bridge and designated fishing access

sites.

Gallatin

Been out a fair bit on the Gallatin in the past few weeks

and it's attractor dry and hopper dropper time right now.

We've been running a few trips on the

Upper Madison still and the fish are definitely looking up for all

sorts of dry flies, and the flows are plenty wadeable and

floatable. Fishing is the best it has been in over a decade.

Not since the 90's have we seen healthy flows like this on the

Yellowstone and the fish are happy and starting to eat

hoppers and goldenstone patterns.

The Milk River rising in the Rocky Mountains of northwest

Montana and flows about 700 miles northward to southern

Alberta, Canada, then east and south back to northern

Montana, where it joins the Missouri River. It is one of the

Missouri River's longest tributaries.

The Milk river was given its name by Captain Meriweather

Lewis of the Lewis and Clark Expedition who described the

river in his journal:

"the water of this river possesses a peculiar whiteness,

being about the colour of a cup of tea with the admixture

of a tablespoonfull of milk. from the colour of its water we

called it Milk river."

The lengthly Milk River meanders its way through remote

prairies and areas of cotton-woods that are seldom visited,

but are alive with wildlife. The River is categorized as a

Class I River its entire length. This makes it very suitable

for beginning river paddlers except at the time of high flows.

The Milk River is an exceptional choice for a long-distance

float trip which will provide many animals to views, great

scenic opportunities and solitude.

A portion of the area along the Milk River is dedicated to a

Wildlife Management Area.

The area is located about 20 miles northeast of the little town

of Malta, Montana.

The goal of the Wildlife Management Area is to provide

riparian/wetland habitats for wildlife, particularly waterfowl,

and to provide public recreational opportunities.

You can hunt in this area for waterfowl, upland birds and deer.

For safety reasons, deer hunters are allowed to hunt only

with shotgun, muzzleloader or bow and arrow.

If you'd rather do your hunting with a camera,

there are many viewing opportunities to see white-tailed deer,

upland game birds, furbearers and numerous other small

mammals which are present year round.

Waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors and a host of songbirds can

be seen during much of the year.

Did you know that Brook and Golden trout are the most gullible salmonids of the species.They will attack almost any type of bait that floats by them.

This may be the reason Goldens thrive at high elevations due to fishermen having to hike or ride horses into their habitat.

Brookies are a good fish to teach new combers to the sport on for this reason.

It is best to release Goldens back into the water after catching,because their numbers are dwindling.If you have the chance to ctch one you will most likely agree with me as they are a beutiful trout.

The photo below depicts only one color source of the Golden.

In fly fishing, fish are caught by using artificial lures that are cast with a fly rod and a fly line. The fly line (today, almost always coated with plastic) is heavy enough in order to send the fly to the target. This is one of the main differences between spinner and bait rods, which use heavy weight on the line to cast lures, bait, etc. Artificial flies can vary dramatically in all morphological characteristics (size, weight, colour, etc.).

Artificial flies are created by tying hair, fur, feathers, or other materials, both natural and synthetic, onto a hook with thread. The first flies were tied with natural materials, but synthetic materials are now extremely popular and prevalent. The flies are tied in sizes, colours and patterns to match local terrestrial and aquatic insects, baitfish, or other prey attractive to the target fish species.

 

Unlike other casting methods, fly fishing can be thought of as a method of casting line rather than lure. Non-flyfishing methods rely on a lure's weight to pull line from the reel during the forward motion of a cast. By design, a fly is too light to be cast, and thus simply follows the unfurling of a properly casted fly line, which is heavier and more castable than lines used in other types of fishing. The angler normally holds the flyrod in the dominant hand and manipulates the line with the other close to the reel, pulling line out in small increments as the energy in the line, generated from backward and forward motions, increases. The mechanics of proper rod movement are commonly described as "10 to 2", meaning that the rod's movement on the forward cast is at the 10 o'clock position (12 o'clock is rod straight up, 9 o'clock flat forward, 3 o'clock flat backwards) and the backcast at 2 o'clock. In proper casting, loops of line unfurl completely before the angler throws his rod in opposite direction. The effect resembles sending a wave along a garden hose to remove a kink. Newer casting techniques promote minimal wrist movement, a very open stance and movement of the arm parallel to the ground, discouraging the rigid boundaries of the 10 to 2 technique. Proper casting, regardless of technique, requires pauses in both directions (forward and backward) to allow the entirety of the line to unfurl parallel to the water's surface. As additional line length is desired for farther casts, the angler allows momentum generated by the forward and backcasting to carry slack line previously pulled free from the reel to glide forward through the non-dominant hand without bending the wrist. Flyline speed and orientation in three-dimensional space, in both the forward and back cast, yield a tighter or looser unfurling of the "loop" of line. As rhythm and line control improve, longer and more accurate casts can be achieved. Poor casts typically lead to tangled lines that pile up on the water's surface in front of the angler as he attempts to allow the fly to come to rest.

In broadest terms, flies are categorized as either imitative or attractive. Imitative flies resemble natural food items. Attractive flies trigger instinctive strikes by employing a range of characteristics that do not necessarily mimic prey items. Flies can be fished floating on the surface (dry flies), partially submerged (emergers), or below the surface (nymphs, streamers, and wet flies.) A dry fly is typically thought to represent an insect landing on, falling on (terrestrials), or emerging from, the water's surface as might a grasshopper,dragonfly,mayfly,ant,beetle,stonefly,or caddisfly. Other surface flies include poppers and hair bugs that might resemble mice, frogs, etc. Sub-surface flies are designed to resemble a wide variety of prey including aquatic insect larvae,nymhs and pupae, baitfish,crayfish, leechs,worms, etc. Wet flies, known as streamers, are generally thought to imitate minnows, leeches or scuds.

Some think people who call themselves "fly fisherman" can be elitist. There is a stereotype that fly fisherman look down on bait fisherman and others that don't haven't put in the time to become a skilled fly fisherman.

For your Information

Last year 417,000 anglers purchased fishing licenses.

Residents comprise about 59 percent of the state's fishing-license buyers.

About 32 percent of all adult Montana residents purchase fishing licenses annually. Nearly 80 percent of angler days are spent seeking trout and salmon.

 Some of the rivers that generally receive the most fishing pressure include the Madison, Missouri, Bitterroot, Clark Fork, Bighorn, Yellowstone and Gallatin rivers.

July 3,2009 was a good day fishing as we caught these Rainbow trout on the Clark Fork river.

One is 17 inches,

One is 10 inches and

one is 12 inches.

If you like too fish now is the time to get out and cast a line..

I caught these trout on a mosquito fly pattern.

 

Montana Rivers to Flow Free - but at What Cost?

story in the paper which I read from time to time to see how the trout fishing is up in Big Sky Country. Missoula is home to a handful of blue-ribbon trout fisheries, including nearby rock creek and the Bitterroot, Blackfoot (the inspiration for "A River Runs Through It") and Clark Fork rivers.

The confluence of the Blackfoot and Clark Fork, however, is anything but a fly fisher's dream getaway as the area has been converted into a construction zone of late. The good news is the construction is part of the Milltown Dam removal project, which will return the two rivers to their natural state for the for time in 100 years.

Problem is, researchers are uncertain how the dam removal will affect the Clark Fork's ecosystem. Clark Fork, for those who aren't familiar with Western Montana, is the river that runs through the heart of Missoula and is where a number of fly guides make their living. Fish kills are expected and the river could be three to five years away from returning to its natural state, so you can understand the concern in Big Sky Country as this project goes forward.