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The Bitterroot
River
This incredible freestone river
has every attribute a fly fisherman could
ever dream up, and leaves no expectation
unsatisfied. With the upper reaches of
the East and West Forks twisting through
boulder fields, half-canyons, and the
mid-river characterized by long
meadow-lined banks and gin clear pools,
the Bitterroot is a river in constant
revision of itself.
From giant root
systems that have been at the edge of its
banks for decades, to the cottonwood tree
that fell in yesterday, the river
provides as many go-to holes as it does
surprises. Wild trout relish this
habitat, and thrive on the incredible
insect life that teems in this
river. This watershed
ebbs and flows to its very own rhythm.
 There is no other stream in the
West that changes so much in the course of
just a few months, from mid-spring to
mid-summer, and yet sustains such classic,
secretive lies for the trout to take
refuge in. Refuge indeed—we call them
"target areas!”
As it closes the distance to
Missoula, the river’s faster chutes and heavier
currents give way to more undercut banks and
log-jam mazes that hold big hungry trout,
waiting for the right drift of a huge dry
fly or streamer.
The Bitterroot offers eighty
miles of main stem, with another twenty miles
of the west fork. If one were to add up all the
channels, back waters and springs, not to
mention the countless tributaries that hold
trout at their mouths, they would find that
there is more fly fish-able trout water in
this valley, than most people could fish in a
lifetime.
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The Blackfoot
River
This is Montana fly fishing.
It's no wonder that Norman Maclean,
author of A River Runs through It,
wrote, “I am haunted by waters.”
The deep green-hued
pools seem bottomless, un-mapable, even
overwhelming to one who dreams of the
fish living at the bottom of such fabled
waters.
Of course Maclean’s comment
could also be taken philosophically, and we can
discuss its various meanings as we cast dry
flies the size of small birds into the roily
torrents and endless boulder strewn runs of
this mighty river.
 In June, you will see
Salmonflies and Golden Stoneflies that
rival the size of many fishermen's bass
poppers! The pace is fast and furious this
time of year, but at all levels, this
river rewards the angler. On the
Blackfoot, be it with dries, nymphs or
streamers, this river offers every fishing
challenge one would picture on a Montana
river. The water
changes character quickly, from long
glides peppered with Green Drakes, to
frothy plunge pools where anxious rainbows
hammer anglers’ imitations with
abandon.
And don't be surprised if
the 18 inch cutthroat you’re playing to the
boat gets attacked by a giant bull trout!
It's a sight you have to see
to believe. This river is a
streamer fisherman’s dream, with large hungry
brown trout, and big thick rainbows, happy to
give chase to a well-drifted sculpin pattern.
We love this river, and its challenges and
rewards are an unequalled
experience.
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The Clark
Fork
This river is named for Captain
William Clark, of the famous Lewis &
Clark expedition. It’s the "largest
water" we have in the immediate Missoula
are, and it boasts some amazing mayfly
and terrestrial fishing! Pods of fish
that at times number in the hundreds in a
single golf-green sized eddy, rise to
small mayflies such as baetis and tricos.
This productivity is truly amazing for a
freestone river, as these numbers are
usually only to be seen in a tailwater
environment. These “pods,” are of
course not in every run of the river, but
our guides know where to locate them, and
when they ease the boat into position on
one of these giant, foam filled back
eddies, you’ll realize---"Those
aren't waves in the foam! Those are fins
and heads
everywhere!"
At first this kind of fishing
might seem like fishing in a barrel, but
be forewarned: These critters are
not your normal rainbow. With the lift of
the rod, your prize may be in a different
zip-code by the time you realize what’s
happened. Our "infamous" Clark Fork
rainbow fights harder and makes longer
runs than normal fish of this size. A 20
incher here fights like a fresh
steelhead.
Most of us that live and fish here,
think of the Clark Fork as two different
rivers: the "lower river.” from Missoula, and
the Bitterroot confluence, all the way to Idaho
is what we call the "big water"; the "upper
Clark Fork" is considered everything east of
the old Milltown dam site, water that
gives one the feeling of being on a miniature
Blackfoot, with a little bit of the Bitterroot
mixed in. The dam has now been
removed, and for the first time in over one
hundred years, fish from all of our watersheds
are free to mix and mingle at their
leisure. With unlimited native
spawning habitat retained, we expect the Clark
Fork to become an even more amazing river in
the years to come. You can read
more about important updates and news on the
Clark Fork by checking out the Clark Fork
Coalition, or feel
free to contact
us for more information on this
subject.
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The Missouri
River:
The dry-fly enthusiast or nymph
fisher's dream-river, the Missouri offers
both personalities the chance to test
their casting and fish fighting
proficiency! Called the "World’s Largest
Spring Creek" by many, the aquatic life
on the Missouri is nothing short of
amazing!
The "Mo" has fifty river
miles of well-populated trout water, and a
river that boasts banks so far apart we often
use binoculars to view the wildlife on the
opposing shore. We concentrate chiefly on the
upper half of this massive watershed in
early spring, and when runoff hits the
Missoula area. This big water is primarily
a nymph fishing show, but as spring gives
way to warmer temperatures, the blue wing
olives, and caddis tempt the dry fly
angler away from the nymph rigs. We
usually holler, "off with his head!" as we
chop off our strike indicators, and attach
our dry fly leader of
choice.
If you were
sitting on the Missouri’s banks in the
upper half of the system near Holter dam
in July, you might see the sky darken on
you in the early morning, as clouds of
tricos rise from the edges and fill the
sky! Pods of fish that number in the
HUNDREDS, rise and circle, rise and
circle. Timing is everything here, and
such numbers of fish and aquatic insects
are truly a sight to behold. When you
hook up, hold on and grab a snickers bar,
because..."It's gonna be a while!"
East of the divide,
the Missouri river rainbow’s fighting
ability is unrivaled.
Hopper fishing the
mid-summer months can be fun, but without the
prolific hatches to bank on, and the good
chance we might want a "sail" on our boats this
time of year, we usually stay on our waters
closer to Missoula during this part of our
season, but we thoroughly enjoy a trip over
upon request.
It's around a two hour trip
over to the Missouri, so we like to try and
plan on two or three day trips here. We either
stay in Helena, or in one of several cabins and
other lodging facilities near the river. It's
completely doable to just do a single day over
here, but that single day is a long
one.
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