Montana Suggestions - Help ASAP!

[Kevin Huntington]

Hey everyone,

I've been going back and forth with myself for the last few weeks so figured I'd get some input from the group.  I'm heading out to Montana the beginning of next week with my dad for a couple days and then we're meeting up with a larger group.  We basically have Monday afternoon (we land at about 1:00 PM local time), and then all day Wednesday as free days.  We are staying in Bozeman Monday and Tuesday night, but need to be out in the Livingston area Wednesday afternoon.  My questions are....

- If you have approx. 5 hours of daylight on Monday afternoon after landing in Bozeman and needing to be back in Bozeman that evening, where are you heading to fish?  My original plan was the Gallatin just for proximity, but I'm debating just sacking up and driving another 45 minutes towards $3 bridge and the Slide Inn on the Madison.  My father has never fished out here and I would love for his first fish to be a memorable one.

- If you wake up Wednesday morning in Bozeman, and just need to be in Livingston at approx. 3-4 PM local time, where are you going to fish?

The agenda for the rest of our trip is:

- Tuesday: full guided day on the Madison 

- Thursday-Saturday: guided floats on the Yellowstone

I had thought about one of the Paradise Valley spring creeks for Wednesday, but didn't want to book another guide and wasn't sure how that would work out if they are super technical or if they're similar to our eastern spring creeks.  Really open to any suggestions.  We'll have a car so getting around will not be an issue.

Thanks in advance!

[Carl Z.]

I would call one of the local fly shops, or at least someone local.

This is the height of runoff and a lot of rivers might be blown out. The spring creeks might be your best bet.

Carl

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Carl Zmola

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[Carl Z.]

OK, my internal calendar is off, you might be before runoff, but local knowledge is your key.  This time of year, you are temperature dependent.

Carl

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Carl Zmola

[Yambag Nelson]

I have never fished out there this time of year, but I highly recommend the spring creeks. I have fished depuys and enjoyed it greatly. You do not need a guide. I think it is around $100. It is pretty technical fishing though.

The gallatin is super close to bozeman and is pretty fun to fish but the fish are smaller on average than other rivers in the area. Very pretty river though.

The big hole is my favorite river in that area but is the wrong direction from where you are heading.

[Andrew LaVigne]

If the East Gallatin is in shape, it's a good option - basically in the city of Bozeman, easy to get to. however, if it's been warm out there, it will blow out fast. 

I talked to a buddy from there last week, planning my own trip around Memorial Day, and he said that the Lower Madison will be your most reliable option in that area when everything is blown. The Paradise creeks are not quite as tough as Mossy - still technical, but not that bad.

If you're willing to drive a bit more, an option that could be interesting is the Ruby. It's about 90 minutes from Bozeman, and the lower section is below a dam. When runoff gets kicking, it will still blow out, but right now, should be in awesome shape. It's a smaller river, but there are a lot of fish, and some decent sized browns in there. There are a couple public accesses right below the dam that are easy enough to find, and very wadeable. 

and if you really have time to drive, go to the Missouri, especially if your crew has boats available. 

[Jeffrey Silvan]

So you didn't specify trout, so I'm going to throw out a crazy idea. There's some great carp fishing in Montana in many of the rivers and ponds. Lots of "urban" fishing in Bozeman too. I haven't fished carp out there, but I do around here all the time. It's a blast and not too different from bonefish fishing. Might be a unique thing to try that one of the times you only have a couple spare hours.

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[Bamboo Ed]

Hi, I just extended a work trip to fish around Laramie, WY on the north Platte for 3 days and found that the conditions varied from hour to hour and from one drainage to the next depending on snow melt. Since you already have a couple guided days, you can be assured that you will catch fish on this trip, so I might see the places you want to see on your free time. $3 bridge is iconic but tough. It's a beautiful place though. I really like this spot. And this spot. And this spot. 

I know the West Yellowstone area much better than Bozeman so I dont have a sense of the distances involved or how that fits into your schedule but all of those places are the best places I've ever fished. 

On Wednesday, April 13, 2016 at 2:25:27 PM UTC-4, Kevin Huntington wrote: