Category Archives: Summer Fishing

Often times Montana fly fishing guides are asked which Montana river is their favorite. Most fly fishing guides in Montana answer with, "the one I am fishing." That may be a gross over-simplification to the answer, but with so many rivers in Montana to fly fish, is it really fair to ask a Montana...

The Smith River flows through a remote 60-mile canyon and is home to several thousand trout per mile. Unlike the tailwaters of the Missouri or Madison Rivers or the crystal clear Paradise Valley Spring Creeks, Montana's Smith River is a free flowing freestone river with streamflows and water...

The world famous Madison River flows for 183 miles north from its headwaters in Yellowstone National Park to its confluence with the Jefferson and Gallatin Rivers near Bozeman, Montana. These rivers merge to form the Missouri River. The Madison River and its nearby waters offer some of the best and...

Late summer in Montana—those weeks after the hatches of salmonflies and PMDs but before the frosty mornings of fall—have a unique set of circumstances for fly fishing in Montana. In most years, by late July and early August our local trout waters have experienced prolonged periods of bright sunshine...

During late summer in Montana or anywhere that trout swim— Chile, Argentina, Mongolia, or New Zealand to name a few—anglers and fly fishing guides are always on the look out for dry fly fishing with terrestrials. There’s a lot of hype associated with trout eating hoppers, ants, and beetles. And...

If you enjoy going fly fishing in Montana, we are sure you have heard of the salmonfly hatch. For most anglers and many Montana fly fishing guides, the salmonfly hatch is one of the most highly anticipated hatches of the year. And, for good reason--the adult insects are so large, often times the...

Spring and summer-time fishing in Montana is often defined by when snowmelt runoff begins and ends. From year to year, the exact timeframe of our runoff period varies, but it typically begins in mid-May and runs into mid-June. Montana’s freestone rivers like the Gallatin and Yellowstone often run...

Montana’s rich and varied wild trout fisheries offer anglers year round fishing opportunities. While it is difficult to elevate any one time of the year as the “best” time to fish the Big Sky state’s blue ribbon rivers, there is no doubt that the most anticipated time of year coincides with the...

Many of Montana’s most famous trout rivers flow through agricultural valleys flanked by towering mountains. These fertile valleys provide an ideal habitat for large populations of grasshoppers. The bulk of aquatic insect hatches take a pause in mid summer (with a few exceptions like tricos). Once...

The Salmonfly Hatch is one of the most anticipated events each year here in the northern Rockies. Locals and visiting anglers alike eagerly await the chance to fish dry flies so large that they often draw laughs or skeptical looks from those who have never witnessed the hatch. Yellowstone Park is an...