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Book a TripThis NO BS Livingston Montana fishing report is valid from October 10 through October 31.
General Comments
Everything is changing today. After several weeks of well above normal temperatures and generally blue skies, fall is coming down like a hammer today. Yesterday, October 9, it was 80 degrees in Livingston. By Sunday the 11th, we’re forecast to see high temperatures struggling to get much above freezing along with heavy rain and snow. In the high country, up to a foot of snow is possible, and even here in town we expect to see a couple inches.
This is going to pause fishing for a couple days most places (due to cold, muddy water from snowmelt). Elsewhere, and everywhere once the storm passes, we will be fully into late fall mode: poor early morning fishing, no more grasshoppers, good opportunities for fall-run browns, and BWO hatches.
Here is the current list of hoot-owl and complete closures in the state of Montana. Note that this list lags by a few hours.
Here are YNP news releases. Closures will be noted in new or updated releases.
Montana Fisheries Reports
Waters are first organized by approximate distance from Livingston, with fishery categories (such as “small creeks”) coming after.
Yellowstone River Fishing Report
Mud may be an issue due to rain and snowmelt, especially prior to Thursday or so of this upcoming week. Today (Saturday the 10th) is probably it for attractor dries and terrestrials on their own. Instead look for BWO and midge hatches from late morning until around 4:00-5:00PM or fish indicator rigs or streamers. Unless you want to try for one or two big eats on a streamer, there’s not much point starting before late morning from here on out.
- Hatches: Baetis (aka BWO) and midges are likely to be the only hatches of note from here on out.
- Dries: We will not fish dries again this season except during hatches. Fish a #18 copper or purple Hazy Cripple, #18 Hi-Viz Gray Baetis, or similar #18-20 BWO dry, maybe behind something a notch or two bigger. Soon you’ll see midges mixed in with the BWO.
- Nymphs & Wets: #16-18 silver, red, or PT Spankers, #18 Radiation Baetis, #18 Little Green Machine, #20 Lightning Bug, #12-14 soft hackle Hare’s Ears and similar. Stonefly nymphs trailing eggs will kick into gear by October 20.
- Streamers: Yes. Pretty much all streamers are worth a shot for the next few weeks. Aggressive fall-run browns might want big, flashy, articulated monsters on cloudy days, whereas when it’s bright and sunny you might instead want to swing a #6-8 olive and white Double Bunny or something similarly naturalistic. With water temps dropping, plan to swing your streamers more often than stripping and ripping them.
Boulder River Fishing Report
The Boulder River: is very low and cold. No point in fishing above Natural Bridge. Below, fish a stonefly nymph with a BWO nymph or egg dropper. The lower river close to Big Timber will likely offer the best fishing.
Madison River Fishing Report
The Upper Madison should pick up with the drastically cooler, grayer weather. Look for BWO and midge hatches, or nymph with a stonefly or worm trailing an egg or BWO nymph. Afternoons will be best.
The Lower Madison will hang in there better in late fall than other rivers, especially for all-day fishing. The same BWO you might see everywhere else could hatch here. Nymphing with Perdigons, crayfish, and BWO nymphs is also a good bet. Due to somewhat warmer water here than elsewhere, stripping a streamer remains a good bet, especially on gray days.
Madison @ Ennis Dam (Beartrap Canyon) Gauge
Stillwater River Fishing Report
Nymphing with stoneflies, eggs, and BWO nymphs is the most likely tactic, but BWO hatches and maybe remnant Tan Drakes are possible. The later into October we get, the more likely you are to tangle with a good brown that has run up from the Yellowstone. No point in fishing much above Absarokee due to cold water.
Stillwater River Gauge, near Absarokee
Missouri River Fishing Report
Three Forks to Toston Lake and Toston Dam to Canyon Ferry Reservoir: The onset of cold weather should start bringing in some monster browns from Canyon Ferry into the Toston Dam to Townsend stretch. Swing streamers or nymph the obvious runs with stoneflies and eggs. This is not at all a numbers game, but if you catch two fish, odds are one of them will be 20+ inches, potentially a lot “+.”
Hauser Tailwater (aka “Land of the Giants” or “Land of Zero Ethics”): Nymphing with small sowbugs and BWO nymphs will be the top tactic right now, but be on the lookout for spawning kokanee. Fish pink eggs downstream of them for a “mini-Alaska” experience, or snag a few for the smoker. Streamers and heavy BWO hatches should increase now that it has cooled off a bunch.
Holter Tailwater (The Famous Section): The cold/wet will do wonders for this water. BWO hatches are what you want to see. If you don’t see them, streamers are a good option. If you must, nymph with BWO nymphs, sowbugs, and Zirdles.
Montana Small Stream Fishing Report
Low Elevation Meadow Streams (Example: East Gallatin): The East Gallatin and other odds and ends like the Musselshell are reasonable bets with streamers and nymph combos. Maybe some BWO.
Rough Mountain Streams (Example: Mill Creek): With the big cooldown, all steep mountain streams are now done for the year.
Paradise Valley Spring Creek Fishing Report
Gross weather is STRONGLY desired to kick out BWO hatches. Absent that, you might see smatterings of several species of midges or cream Baetis, all of which will be TINY. Absent a hatch, nymph the riffles with Zebra Midges, Sawyer Pheasant Tails and similar skinny mayflies, etc. This weather is very not ideal on the creeks, especially if you want hatches and larger rising trout. Winter rates start at mid-month.
Local Lake & Reservoir Fishing Report
Dailey, Bair, Newlan Creek, Sutherlin, Cooney, Martinsdale, Deadman’s Basin: No recent reports, and TBH we probably won’t have reports until ice-fishing season.
Canyon Ferry, Hauser, Holter: A long way from here, and there are some better reports available online published by FWP. Google “Helena Area Reservoirs Fishing Report.”
Hebgen, Quake, Ennis: The inlet areas of all these lakes will be the hot spots, as browns will be staging and eager to head upstream as soon as a cooldown hits. Fish streamers and chironomids.
Beartooth Lakes: Now basically done for the year due to cold nights at high elevations.
Private Ranch Ponds: This is getting to be “silly season” on these ponds, when the fish go nuts for streamers and leeches in preparation for a long winter under the ice. The weather might make the access roads nasty, and some ponds close to make for better elk hunting. On those that are open, we’d probably start with a #6 black or peacock Woolly Bugger with a #12 olive Mohair Leech behind it, then cycle through combinations of various colors of Pigpen Leeches and Mohair Leeches before sighing and putting on a chironomid.
Yellowstone Park Fishing Reports
Waters are first organized by approximate distance from Livingston, with fishery categories (such as “small creeks”) coming after.
Gardner River
Upper Gardner – Headwaters to Osprey Falls: Too late in the year for this water due to cold water temps.
Middle Gardner – Osprey Falls to Boiling River: Too cold in the mornings, and the pocket water on this stretch is also an unlikely bet due to cold water, even in the PM. The bigger pools are excellent places to fish a stonefly nymph trailing a big attractor nymph or an egg. Do not fish shallow gravel after about October 20. Only so-and-sos target actively spawning browns.
Lower Gardner – Boiling River to Yellowstone Confluence: Still weedy, unfortunately. That said, the cooldown now makes this stretch a much better option. Both pocket water and pools will fish on this stretch. Fish the pockets with a stonefly with an attractor nymph or an egg. Euro or other high-stick nymph techniques are best for this water – no need for an indicator. In the pools, put on that indicator and tick the bottom. You might see BWO, especially on calm afternoons. Every rock in the river turns into a 12″ rainbow when there’s a good hatch here. Avoid the shallow gravel after October 20.
Yellowstone River
Headwaters & Lake to Falls: Will rapidly turn to ice water with the big cooldown, and many days at this elevation won’t get out of the 40s even when it’s still 60 in Livingston. If you insist, swing streamers while crossing your fingers for a BWO hatch.
Grand Canyon – Silver Cord Cascade to Lamar Confluence: Will remain a fair option in the afternoons as long as the water is clear and the weather is 50+ for a high. Fish streamers absent a hatch. No reason to get fancy. A big Woolly Bugger with a little one on the dropper works fine. What you want to see is a good BWO hatch. They are most likely from noon to 4:00PM or whenever the shadows cover the water, whichever comes first.
Black Canyon – Lamar Confluence to Gardner Confluence/Park Boundary: Similar to Grand Canyon, but as you progress downstream it is more likely that nymphing may be necessary. On bright days in particular, this water can be kind of tough this time of year.
Lamar River, Soda Butte Creek, and Slough Creek
Lamar River: Too cold.
Soda Butte Creek: Really too cold. In all seriousness, this is winter fishing despite the calendar.
Slough Creek: If you want to be really frustrated, this is the place to fish.
Madison River System – Madison River in YNP, Firehole River, Gibbon River
Madison River in YNP: The fall run of browns and rainbows from Hebgen is the main show for the remainder of the season, and the big push should now be underway with the cooldown. Expect intense crowds unless the weather is terrible. The classic thing to do is to swing streamers like Spruces or “new classic” wet flies like those sold by Blue Ribbon Flies in West Yellowstone, but a stonefly nymph trailing an egg or attractor like the Bead, Hare, and Copper will produce more fish. If you’re fishing the Barns Pools and Beaver Meadows near West Yellowstone, follow the established etiquette: start at the top of a run and take a step downstream after every cast. This allows everybody a shot at the pool.
Firehole River: Below Firehole Falls might turn out a fall runner with lower crowds than the Madison. In the classic meadow water from the Old Faithful closure that ends at Biscuit Basin down to Firehole Cascades, you might still see some remnant White Miller caddis, but they are fading fast. BWO are far more likely. The BWO here are tiny. #22 is not too big. Absent a hatch, nymph the geyser ledge pools with skinny BWO nymphs or swing soft hackles.
Gibbon River – Grebe Lake to Norris Hot Springs: Too low and cold.
Gibbon River – Norris Hot Springs to Madison Jct: In the meadows, hope for BWO hatches. In the rough water above Gibbon Falls, attractor dry/dropper combos might produce, but to be honest we don’t like this water in the fall. Below the falls, nymph with stonefly and attractor nymphs (or eggs, San Juan Worms, etc.) hoping for an early runner.
Other Rivers in YNP
Streamers in the lower Lewis Channel or the Lewis between the lake and the falls may work for lakers and early browns starting to nose in. The famous water in the middle of the Lewis Channel might have some runners already, but the last week of the season is the best period for this water. Streamers in the pool below Lewis Falls and down into the Lewis Meadow can turn out some big browns or some hammer handle lakers. Some BWO and other hatches are possible on the Snake just inside the park boundary. The Gallatin is awfully cold and will remain so until next summer.
YNP Small Streams:
Brook Trout Streams (All): Basically too low and cold now.
Non-Brookie Streams Draining the Central Plateau: Those with some geyser water like Nez Perce might still turn out a fish or two on nymphs in the PM, but there are many better places to fish.
Mountain Creeks Containing Trout Other Than Brookies: Too cold.
YNP Lakes:
Yellowstone Lake: Generally tough in the fall. Fish gray/white Double Bunnies or similar in the West Thumb area if you’re trying for lake trout.
Lewis & Shoshone Lakes: The inlet/outlet areas can produce lake trout on streamers and eggs now.
Grebe, Wolf, Ice, and Cascade Lakes: Too far to walk now that the fish will start going deep.
Trout Lake: Honestly too late in the year for consistent fishing.
Other Lakes: The brook trout lakes in the northern part of the park can turn out some colored-up fish this time of year on scuds and leeches. They can also turn out some really tough fishing on bright days. Keep that in mind before you hike into Fawn Lake…
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