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Good fly fishing near Helena, MT?

18K views 14 replies 14 participants last post by  Old406Kid 
#1 ·
Hi all,

I'm taking a trip to Helena, MT towards the end of June and wanted to pick your brains on any good rivers nearby. I dont have a ton of time for travelling (probably 1-2 hrs one way is the max). I've read some good things about the Smith River...anyone have any experience with this river?

Cheers!
 
#2 ·
I have not fished the Smith, but from Helena, you are about 30 miles from Wolf Creek and some great fishing on the Missouri River. A handful of miles further down the road is Craig, where you will find a couple of fly-shops and some basic supplies. This tail-water fishery begins below Holter Dam.

I fish this area annually in early to mid October, so I don't have any experience with the river in June. I know it fishes well mostly year round, and offers plentiful wading access.

The Missouri holds nice football shaped rainbows and browns too. This river is not a secret, so expect lots of fishermen, with crowds at times. The fishing pressure in the Fall is probably quite a bit less then in Summer.

For more information, contact the Trout Shop in Craig.
 
#5 ·
Vojak, If you are in Helena then the the place to go would be the Missouri, or it's tributaries. Wolf creek is a 30 minute drive from Helena. The end of June would be a great time of the year as you will have plenty of fishing options - Dry fly fishing Caddis in the evening, and PMDs should be hatching by then(don't forget the spinner fall in the afternoon!). If ya like to nymph try a wine colored SJW with a lightining bug as a dropper. As FF said in the above post,the river is no secret. If you have a boat or a pontoon this would be the best way to explore this fine river. If you don't have a boat or a pontoon there are a couple of places you can rent one from in Wolf Creek or Craig.

The smith river is a restricted river which requires a permit to float and fish. This is a minumium 4 day float. Once you launch it is 60 or so miles (can't remember the exact distance) to the takeout. You can apply for a pemit from the Montana Fish and Wildlife Dept. or you can do a serch as there are plenty of Outfitters who offer guided trips down the Smith.

Also to let you know helena is pretty close to a lot of other great fishing. Missoula is only a hour and a half away. Bozeman is about the same in the other direction.
 
#6 ·
Most years the Mo' would be the place to hit in late June, however it is currently running at 14,800cfs, compared to a mean flow of 6200cfs. That's high enough that local fly shops are discouraging wading. If it comes down around 10k or less things improve. For good, accessible wading, flows need to get down around 6k.

If you can float, it will fish well with nymphs and streamers above 10k, as the water clarity will not be an issue in late June.
 
#7 ·
There is a lot of good rivers and stream fishing available within an hour of Helena. I spent 4 years living in Boulder (30 miles south of Helena) and althought the Missouri is one of my favorite rivers for trout, in June the water can be high making it tough to fish without floating. The Smith is problamatic for access, unless you can float the canyon from near White Sulfer Springs downstream. The lower Smith is also problamatic for access because many of the ranchers have had problems with folks from Malstrom Airforce Base and yahoos from Great Falls littering and leaving fences open allowing cattle to get out.

At the risk of getting some of the locals miffed because some of these are sleepers the locals keep quite about due to there small size, I'll list quite a few other for you. Prickly Pear Creek (near the town of Wolf Creek north of Helena), Little Prickly Pear Creek (south of Helena near Montana City), Little Blackfoot River (west of Helena on Hwy 12 just over the pass), Boulder River (south of Helena near Boulder, MT), Jefferson River (south of Helena to Boulder, get off and go south to Cardwall, could be high in June), Clark Fork River at Garrison Junction (west of Helena were I-90 and Hwy 12 meet), Blackfoot River (northwest of Helena near Lincoln, MT), 16 Mile Creek (south east of Helena toward Bozeman), Lower Galatin River (south east of helena near Manhattan, MT), and Lower Madison are all within an hour's drive of Helena.

If you move out to 2 hours of Helena, Sun River above the town of Sun River (north of Helena), Dearborn River (north of Helena, but access is problamatic unless you can float it), the Yellowstone at Livingston, Upper Gallatin, Madison near Ennis, MT, Ruby near Sheridan, MT, Big Hole (near Divide and Melrose) Beaverhead (near Dillon), and upper Clark Fork (from Milltown all the way up to Warm Springs) are available.

Helena is a great place to use as a jumping off point for fishing in Montana.
 
#8 ·
Every time I've fished that area of Montana I've wished I had more time. Doesn't matter if I was staying for five days or nine. There are way too many places to fish in whatever amount of time I ever have.

A lot of good water has already been named. I'm thinking levels could be a little dicey this year so watch them closely and make decisions accordingly. Use lakes as a back-up plan.

Phil
 
#9 ·
I fished the Missouri tail waters out of Craig last week. The waters levels are very high and wading is limited. Drift boat rentals are available out of both of the Craig fly shops. Streamers and nymphs were working reasonably well.

This was my first time fishing there, and 2 days wasn't enough. When the flows are closer to normal it should be a lot of fun.
 
#10 ·
I might make the move to helena when i get a little older and can't chase college girls anymore......the reason.... It is the best centered location for the best fishing in montana. You have a ton of options. forget the smith. Access is VERY limited! and it is not that great any how. Float it if you can draw a permit, but good luck since the # of people applying has been climbing at a rediculous rate. Its a scenic "ya i've done that" kinda of deal.

All you have to do to find great fishing is find water. IT's that good. :beer2:

My vote would echo the wolfcreek and craig sugg.:thumb: Pink sow bugs/scuds

SJW and lightning bug and epoxyback PMD nymphs.
 
#14 ·
the Missouri below Holter dam, hands down. if you hire a guide you will be forced to bobber fish, however. really full bodied fish and a lot of fun. wading is difficult even with the water levels down so be careful.

best drift is from the dam put in to Craig. below Craig not so much fun but easy drifting water.
 
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