Yellowstone River fishing trips are our bread and butter...
Yellowstone River fishing trips are the core of our Montana fly fishing guide service. The ‘Stone is the river we float the most and the one for which we have developed the majority of our custom fly patterns. Yellowstone floats can produce lots of fish and big fish, and can accommodate anglers of any skill level and almost any fitness.
We run over 120 miles of the Yellowstone. Some stretches are fast and turbulent, with tough access and whitewater thrills along with great fishing. Some stretches are mellow and scenic. They offer great fishing too.
We do most of our fishing from the boats, but we’ll occasionally have you hop out to wade prime areas. This is most common in spring and fall.
Our favorite stretch with experienced clients is the upper Yellowstone Near Gardiner. In fact, Walter has run Yankee Jim Canyon (a section of the Upper Yellowstone) more than any other guide—ever! This whitewater stretch near Gardiner is the Yellowstone’s most productive stretch, but it requires a skilled guide and clients up for whitewater adventure.
…But who wants to live on bread and butter?
The Yellowstone’s our home water, but when conditions dictate, to shed crowds, or just for a change of pace, we run trips on plenty of other nearby rivers.
The Madison River and Missouri Rivers are prime bets during the spring melt when the Yellowstone is muddy. They’re also very beginner-friendly.
To beat the summer crowds, we love the Boulder and Stillwater Rivers. These are smaller, rougher rivers that require our whitewater rafts—and they flat out produce fish. These rivers are ideal for anglers who want to do a bit of wading along with fishing from the boat, since their fast flows mean the few slow pools are jammed with fish.
Small whitewater rivers full of aggressive trout that love dry flies get a thumbs up.
2025 Float Trip Rates and Options
Guided drift fishing trips are available from early March through early November. We can arrange floats for anglers of all skill levels, fitness levels, and preferred techniques. Certain rivers and certain stretches of river are better at different times of year than others, and for different clients.
Because we have both drift boats and rafts, we can float a wider range of rivers than most guides, and also access specific sections of rivers others cannot. While no quality river in Montana is devoid of other guides during the peak season, we often run water where we go hours rather than minutes without competition. Unpressured fish are aggressive fish.
Quality “boat ramp” on the Yellowstone River. You can see why we only launch rafts here…
We offer full-day and half-day river floats during the core season. In spring and fall and during periods of extreme heat we also offer “3/4-day” trips. The maximum number of clients per guide is two on all float trips. Additional clients required additional guides.
- Full-Day Float Trips: $650 for one client, $685 for two from May 23 through September, $625 or $650 during the April–May and October shoulder seasons. Available April 1 through October. Available on all float rivers.
- Shoulder Season 3/4-Day Float Trips: $585 for one or two clients. Available April 1 through May 22 and during October.
- Half-Day Float Trips: $550 for one or two clients peak season, $525 shoulder season, $400 in March and early November (ice and weather permitting). Available early March through November 14. Yellowstone and Lower Madison Rivers only.
- Standard terms apply.
- Missouri River trips require booking 2+ consecutive days. Our guides stay in Wolf Creek, Montana. We can arrange lodging for you.
This is one of the larger rainbow-cutthroat hybrid (“cuttbow”) trout you’ll ever see, and this one ate a dry fly!
Montana Float Fishing Trips by Season
We run floats whenever it’s warm enough. Each season has its top fisheries and its pluses and minuses. The following chart and discussion might help you decide when to come if you haven’t already.
In general, we are more likely to fish from the boats all or almost all the time from July through early September. Earlier in spring or later in fall, especially in March or April and October, we’ll often get out to wade-fish some prime areas, and when it is particularly wet/cold, we may use the boat primarily as transportation rather than a fishing platform.
Early Spring Float Trips
Mid-March through early May is a sleeper season for Montana float fishing trips. Big fish are on the prowl after a long, cold winter, and there are seldom large numbers of other guided float fishing trips out on the water. It can be awfully cold, though, and the fishing isn’t as consistent as it is during summer and early fall.
Yellowstone River fishing trips are our top bet at this time of year, but we also float the Lower Madison River and occasionally the Boulder and Stillwater Rivers, when they’re high enough. This is prime time to “run and gun,” using the boat as much as transportation as anything, so we can hop out to wade-fish the big runs that are loaded with rainbow trout at this time of year.
Late Spring Float Trips
Early May through sometime in the latter half of June or the first week of July is runoff season. The spring melt brings high, muddy water that makes most local rivers impossible to fish. But not all local rivers. The Lower Madison River sees its best fishing of the year at this time. The Missouri River is very crowded but also very good. This makes for a good excuse for us to take a multi-day road trip from Livingston.
As soon as the melt begins dropping for good, which in drought years can happen as early as June 10–15, but usually occurs between June 20 and July 1, we’re back to the Boulder and Yellowstone, with the Upper Madison also an option. On the Lower Madison and the Boulder we’ll often hop out to wade-fish prime spots, but on the Missouri we strictly fish from the boats.
The Boulder river comes into shape fast during “runoff breaks.” The river was well into the bushes here.
Early Summer Float Trips
The month following the end of the runoff (usually all of July) offers comfortable weather, the largest number of Montana float rivers in good shape, eager trout, and excellent hatches that produce good dry fly fishing (though early fall has even better hatches).
Unfortunately, early summer also offers high crowds of other anglers. That’s understandable given that early summer offers our most consistent float fishing of the year, as well as some good shots at big brown trout on the Yellowstone.
Our top destinations for Montana float fishing trips at this time are the Yellowstone and the Boulder, but we also fish the Stillwater and Upper Madison. Early starts are usually necessary this time of year to beat the crowds. Starting early also helps beat the heat during hot spells. Occasionally we have to meet as early as 5:30AM, though 7:00 is a lot more common. We do almost all of our fishing from the boat in early summer. The rivers are up right to the edge of the bushes and the fish are there too, so it’s much easier to approach the fish from the boat.
Early summer offers good chances at big brown trout on the Yellowstone.
Late Summer Float Trips
In August and early September, float rivers run low and clear and aquatic insects are at their low ebb. This means the trout love to eat grasshoppers and ants. Fishing is slower-paced than it is earlier in the summer, but the fish can be a bit spookier.
While we don’t catch as many big fish overall in late summer as we do in early summer, we catch more of them on dry flies. For many anglers, there’s nothing better than seeing a big trout come up and smack a grasshopper, and this is prime time for hopper fishing. It’s also prime time in Yankee Jim Canyon, when the deep, turbulent water keeps the fish aggressive.
Our favorite float rivers at this time are the Yellowstone and the Stillwater. We do almost all of our fishing from the boat at this time.
Late summer is prime time in Yankee Jim Canyon, even with teenagers.
Early Autumn Float Trips
September through early October is transition time. On warm, sunny days the fish often still prefer grasshoppers. When it’s cold and wet the fall aquatic insect hatches are heavy and the riffles and pools fill with rising trout.
Crowds decline as the weather cools, and we can often meet a bit later in the morning. Often the best fishing is from 1:00PM until 5:00PM. Yellowstone River fishing trips are best in early autumn, but the Stillwater River and Madison River are also good options.
Early autumn is a great time for beginner anglers, since the abundant native whitefish are getting ready to spawn and aggressive. It’s also a great time for expert dry fly fanatics. Let’s put it this way: Walter is a dry fly nut, and early autumn is his favorite time to guide float trips.
Whether we fish mostly from the moving boat or jump out to wade a few times depends on conditions: if the water is low and the fish are rising to massive BWO hatches, it makes sense to wade. If they’re still eating hoppers and the rivers are still high, it makes more sense to do all fishing from the boat.
Late Autumn Float Trips
Die-hard anglers love mid-October through mid-November float trips. While dry fly fishing is still good for a few hours in early afternoon, our focus shifts to pursuing large trout with nymphs and streamers. The fishing can be tough, with both the weather and the fish refusing to cooperate, but the rewards are worth it. We usually catch the biggest brown trout of the year in late fall.
Yellowstone River fishing trips are the top bet in late autumn, but we also fish the Madison and even some “shoot for the moon” sections of the Missouri and Jefferson Rivers, where clients might see a brown trout of a lifetime or might see nothing at all. A lot of our fishing during the late season is on foot. The fish are slowing down and packing into winter holes, so it makes sense for us to go slower, too, and to spend a lot of time hitting a few good spots.
