Remember… no matter what anyone tells you… we can only tell you what the fishing was like yesterday; not what it's going to be tomorrow!

Western Montana Fishing Report:
Oct. 4 thru Oct. 18, 2004

Final Report:

Well, this is it folks. The final report for 2004. All in all, it's been a great year. Plenty of fish for almost everyone, some wonderful weather, and, most of all, some enduring memories to sustain us as we move through this thing called life.

The last couple of weeks have been really spotty fishing. Most days... with the exception of one or two really outstanding days on the fickle Clark Fork... have been spent trying to pick off one or two fish sipping as we slowly work our way downstream. Mahogany's and BWO's have been far and away our best flies, though there really haven't been a whole lot of bugs hatching. Trico's also produced well for us through the last couple weeks, with just enough of them falling to entice that wary trout into sipping. The fall colors, and unseasonably warm weather really just kind of added to the overall experience.

We're sad to see the season wind down... yet at the same time anxious to get some projects done that have just sat on the back burners for about 6 months. Thanks to everyone who stopped by this year, and we look forward to rekindling old friendships next season. From all of us here at Backdoor Outfitters, 'have a great winter, and we'll see you next spring'.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
Sept. 27 thru Oct. 4, 2004

Well, the season is slowly winding down for us here at Backdoor Outfitters... though the weather shows no real signs of heading toward winter. We are experiencing unseasonably warm weather, which began last week and is expected to last at least thru this weekend. To say it's, the weather, has had no impact on the fishing is a might of a stretch. Things have definitely slowed down from when, only a short time ago, you could park the boat on a riffle and catch 10 to 20 fish without moving an inch. Still, though it's a different type of fishing, I'd have to say it's every bit as enjoyable.

Pretty much what we're doing now is wandering slowly down the river, searching with our mahogany and bwo patterns, searching for one or two working fish. It's more like hunting fish than the frantic pace of casting to hoards of rising fish frantic to take in their winter supply of nutrient... but every bit as enjoyable. It seems that despite the warm weather, both the fish and the staff at Backdoor Outfitters are beginning to hear the call of winter and we're both slowing down a bit, savoring the moment and the beauty of merely being alive in this great place.

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Western Montana fishing report:
Sept. 20 thru 27, 2004

Sorry about the delay in getting this out. No real excuse... except I spaced it. Anyway, here goes.

Last week saw anywhere from good to crummy fishing. A week of almost nothing but bright skies really slowed down the hatches. The first day the weather changed seemed to have been the toughest. But, it seemed each day under the new sky fishing got a little easier.

The major players are still bwo's and mahogany's on the Root and Fork. On the Foot, bwo's and October caddis seem to be the most prevalent insects.

Another change in weather, predicted for sometime around the middle to end of this week, might either improve, or slow down hatches. My guess is it will stimulate them again, and with luck, it will also stimulate those pods of fish.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
Sept. 13 thru Sept. 20, 2004

BWO's, Mahogany's, fall drakes, and October Caddis. Spread them over the water and what do you have? A table set for the most discriminating of trout's pallets. Now, add that to the beginning of fall colors, more than a little crispness in the air, and a backdrop of the Rocky Mountains, and you'll begin to understand why I love fall fishing.

About the only down side to last week was the rain that fell almost constantly. Not that we minded the rain. Rather, it was a pleasant relief. But, at times it came so heavy that it actually spiked the rivers most the week. It was a rather new experience... rowing in about a thousand cfs of water in September rather than 1 or 200.

The outlook for this week is a warming trend. We're suppose to have temps in the upper 70's to low 80's, with a decrease in showers. What that will do to the fishing I'm not really sure. But, if it continues to fish as well as it did a few days last week, it will make me happy.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
Sept. 6 thru 13, 2004

Well, it's definitely looking better. Had a couple stellar days last week. We threw everything from size 6 Chernobyl hoppers to a size 24 BWO, and the fish got on them. Some cooler weather and overcast days seem to have the mayflies in full hatch mode, and we're going to try and take advantage of it. About all I can say is 'Lighten up those tippets, get a drag free drift, and lay off the reel'. It looks like it should be a good week of fishing here in Western Montana.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
August 30 thru Sept. 6, 2004

Just another week of fishing out here in Montana. We had some good to great days... and then just some of those old fishing days. Catches ranged from days of 40 fish brought to hand, to days when it was a struggle to get 10 to the boat. There were some great fish hooked, a few landed, and a host of smaller fish that made up the menu this week.

Hatches were light this week despite the seemingly favorable weather conditions. There were a few fall drakes, trico's, mahogany's, and BWO's in the air, as well as caddis and PMD's. But, all in all, there was not an abundance of anything. Temperatures dropped to a comfortable 60's and 70's, with cloud cover most days.

This week's weather forecast is for warming temps... up in the 70's to 80's. As far as an outlook, what we're hoping for is more of the mahogany's and fall drakes... as they're due to make a meaningful appearance. With luck we should start seeing a few more of these bugs, which should take out some of the peaks and valleys with regards to the fishing.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
Aug. 16 thru Aug. 30, 2004

Sorry about not sending out any sort of report last week. Pat and I went on vacation... and about the only thing I can say is 'we needed it!' We had a lot of fun and actually managed to catch a few fish under less than ideal conditions. We went up to B.C., and the entire time we were there, the rivers were blown out. But, we're back now, and returning to something akin to normalcy.

This week saw cool weather, cloudy skies, and a rising river most the week. About Friday it started to drop and fishing really started to pick up. Hoppers are still working well and we're beginning to see more and more BWO's, mahogany duns, and fall drakes. We're also noticing a good hatch of both ants and termites... at least I think they're termites (kind of a yellow opaque body with dark thorax and wing). The weather forcast says improving temps. early in the week, then cooling again toward the weekend with a high probability of more rain late in the week. That should spur those mayflies later in the week.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
August 9 thru August 16, 2004

Last week was a pretty slow week here on the Root and Fork. And, the Blackfoot has a 12 o'clock request to stop fishing... though it says nothing about tubing or kayaking... on account of low water and some sort of potential stress factor with the fish because of the low water. I'm not too sure about too much, but I do wonder. 'If anglers are stressing fish in low water, aren't the kayaker's (who paddle over and over the fish) and the tubers (who also paddle across the fish and think nothing about leaving their empty bottles and cans on the rocks and water of the Blackfoot) also stressing the fish? And, how much is barbless, and at least consciously contentious action, stressful to the fish?' Well, enough on that.

The weather turned hot again, and a smattering of bugs made fishing on top and, in general, tough most days. Hoppers are still turning some bigger fish, and mayfly imitations will turn the occasional fish all day (with a short window to feeding fish). But, overall, not a lot of bugs to be seen, or very good dry fly fishing. If you spend much time nymphing, you'll be catching a slug of whitefish and 'toothless fish', but also the occasional trout.

Not really sure what this week will bring, but hopefully, a few more trico's and a little cooler weather.

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Western Montana Fishing Report
August 2 thru August 8, 2004:

'Dog days', that's pretty much the term used for the fishing conditions right now. Not that it's really bad fishing... I managed to turn about 1/2 dozen good fish yesterday morning... but when compared to the 40 to 60 fish we were experiencing a few weeks ago, it's definitely a little different.

Right now, it's more a few fish pulled off the riffles with a big old hopper, or other attractor pattern, than constant action on each run and foam line. Oh, we're still moving fish along the foam, but it's the exception rather than the rule. Basically, we're throwing hoppers and mayfly imitations and just holding tight till the trico's start coming off in enough numbers to get some fish feeding regularly during the day. Still, all in all, it's like I'm so fond of saying... "it definitely beats sitting around watching re-runs of all my children."

 

Western Montana Fishing Report:
July 19 thru 26, 2004

What's that old adage? 'Be careful what you wish for, it might come true." Well, we darned near hit that one this week. Fishing really took a dive last week. Oh, we still had plenty of opportunities on the smaller fish, but those big guys were playing a lot tougher to find. I think the drop was directly proportional to the decrease in stonefly activity. Though there were still a few of them flittering about, definitely nothing like it has been the last couple weeks. About the only real good news is that as slow as mid-day was this week, the evening hours were phenomenal. A caddis tied on the end of your line was an almost guaranteed fish... and a big one.

What I'm looking for this week is probably more of the same. Purple haze or pmd's early, hoppers during the day, and caddis late. We'll probably be a little slow until the trico's start dropping, but it's definately still worth going out for. Last week we still managed to catch a dozen or more in the 18 to 20 inch class, and, if you add that to a hundred or two in the 12 to 18 inch class, it wasn't a terrible week.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
July 11 thru July 18, 2004

Still good, perhaps not quite as good this week as it was last... but definately good. Still abundant hatches coming off, especially evening and midday, but the bright sun had some effect last week. Catches dropped from 40 to 60/day to closer to 20 to 30/day. Of course, this is to hand, so one must consider the angler might have had some effect on actual numbers. Many strikes provided not much more than an oooh or an aaah from the fisherman. Which is not a bad thing, merely a function of experience. The beauty of watching these wonderful creatures come up from the bottom to engorge themselve on your fly sometimes has that effect on fishermen. What can I say, 'it's a beautiful thing'.

Anyway, hoppers are starting to fill in nicely when the hatch is slow, providing both good action and some fantastic strikes. We hope for another week of fishing anywhere near what it was last week, and, if we get it, we'll be happy.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
July 5 thru July 12, 2004

Hot, hot, hot. I think that about covers it. This week showed us some hot weather, hot hatches, and some hot fishing. Temps stayed in the mid to upper 80's most the week; PMD's, caddis, and a multitude of stoneflies were seen; and fishing continued to produce days of 40 to 60 fish to hand. I guess that really about covers it. As for the outlook, who knows? About all we can do is hope it stays anywhere close to as hot as it was last week.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
June 28 thru July 4, 2004

Another great week of fishing here in the Bitterroot Valley. Good weather and lots of bugs kept the fish looking up most the week. About the only down side to the week was a slide on the Blackfoot, which muddied up both the Blackfoot and Clark Fork rivers. The discoloration made fishing either of these systems difficult at best.

With plenty of PMD's, caddis, golden stones, and green drakes still flittering across the water, we're hoping for another week like the last. Cooler weather temperatures predicted for later in the week might slow things down a bit... then again additional cloud cover just might get those mayflies really emerging.

Oh well, I've got to get back on the water. Till next week

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
June 14 thru 21, 2004

Just a short one... between trips... this week. Major report is the conclussion of any significant salmon fly hatch. However, PMD, Green Drake, and Golden Stones are filling in nicely. All in all, a good week of fishing. Bitterroot still produces our best catches, with the Blackfoot and Clark Fork bringing up the rear. Bright skies and warm weather this week should continue the river trend.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
June 7 thru June 14, 2004

A great week for fishing. Though the salmon flies were not exactly filling the skies, they were clinging to the branches and occasionally dropping onto the water. Definitely enough salmon flies to make a well placed cast prompt a strike... from some nice fish... most the week. Add a sprinkle of green drakes, pmd, and golden stone to the mix, and you'll understand why all our rivers fished well this week. Water color continues to be good, and flows are manageable on all our streams.

Stream flows:
Bitterroot (near Darby): 1,800
Clark Fork (below Missoula): 11,300
Blackfoot (near Bonner): 3,160

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
May 31 - June 7, 2004

A pretty good week for fishing here in Western Montana. Salmon flies were probably the most popular fly thrown this week, but there were also a few green drake, pmd and yellow sallies that hit the water in an attempt to illicit a strike from a lunker trout. And yes, the trout are really beginning to take on that inflated look they always seem to experience during the salmon fly hatch. Most the fish we're taking are as big around as they are long. Oh, what a wonderful time the salmon fly hatch.

Anyway... enough rambling. Water levels are decent on most the rivers. The Blackfoot's still a little off colored once it hits the South Fork, but it clears enough to fish almost immediately. The upper Clark is definitely clear enough, but an algae bloom is making it tough to fish. If you do decide to fish the Clark, about the only thing I've found that works is to cast your fly in front of a bloom and let it fish. That way, you're not spending too much time cleaning off lettuce! The Root is high, but definitely clear enough for fishing. All in all, I'd have to say they're all fishable!

Water levels:
Bitterroot (near Darby): 2500cfs
Blackfoot (near Bonner): 4,160cfs
Clark Fork (below Missoula): 15,600

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
May 24 thru May 31, 2004

Well, for those of you wondering if you'd been missing out on the salmon fly hatch... rest easy. Salmon flies were kind of put on hold last week with our cool, almost cold, weather. Though Doug up at the 'Merc' on Rock Creek say's they're out on the lower end, I saw little indication of them on the Clark Fork, Tuesday, when I got a chance to wet a line. A few spent shucks in the lower limbs of a few bushes was about as much indication as I found.

Ok, now for the good news. If the weather forecasters are correct, salmon flies should make a good appearance this week. They're calling for temps up to the low 80's this week... which should get those bright orange B52's fluttering through the canopy and crash landing into the rivers. An occurance that any self respecting trout finds impossible to turn away from. Water levels should also be extremely fishable, setting the stage for some good fishing this coming week.

Steam flows:
Bitterroot (above Darby): 2,040
Blackfoot (around Bonner): 3,570
Clark Fork (below Missoula): 12,200

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
May 17 thru May 24, 2004

A great week for precipitation here in Western Montana. We have already received 2.9 inchs of rain this month... more than twice the normal precipitation for the month of May. The good news about this is, it will help saturate our ground table, produce some much needed moisture to crops and vegetation in the area, and help flush the rivers. Of course, it will also increase grass and underbrush growth, and thus, the kindling for summer fires... if it gets hot and dry. What does this mean? Not much... except it was a great week for precipitation here in Western Montana.

As for fishing. Yes, salmon flies are appearing all over the area, and much of our water is clear enough to fish. Good enough that... if I can get the rest of my chores done today... I'm going out myself tomorrow and wet a line. I'll let you know how I did, if I finish my chores.

Water levels:
Bitterroot (near Darby): 2250
Blackfoot (near Bonner): 3610
Clark Fork (below Missoula): 11,300

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
May 10 thru 17, 2004

What was the 'Three Dog Night' line? "Man, this is the craziest party that has ever been." Well, I guess if we changed that to 'this is the craziest spring I have ever seen', we'd pretty much sum up our situation out west.

Lot's of rain this week managed to actually drop the rivers. Don't ask me to explain that one to you, but that's what happened. We had up to an inch of rain in less that 24 hrs. one day this week, and what did it do? It actually dropped our rivers by 300 cfs the following day. Make sense? Nope, but that's what happened.

Anyway, overall, things look pretty good here as far as river conditions are concerned. The Root is running a little high, but visibility continues to be from good to excellent. Fishing is about the same... good to excellent. Though there has not been any sightings of the salmon fly yet, there is ample action if you hit some of the back eddies and side channels with attractor patterns. As for the Clark Fork and Blackfoot, there is a little more color in both these systems... Blackfoot being the most offcolored... but I continue to hear reports that both these systems are also fishing, though not quite as good as the Root. If things stay stable, look for salmon flies any time, and excellent fishing.

Flow reports:
Bitterroot: 1360 cfs (near Darby)
Blackfoot: 2580 cfs (near Bonner)
Clark Fork: 6930 cfs (below Missoula)

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
May 3 thru 10, 2004

Really, I must be honest, I didn't get out fishing last week. Spent the week working at the school, and getting some things done around here. What I can tell you however, is the following:

The Bitterroot is up, though color seems pretty good. Though I haven't seen any hatches, I have noticed lots of swallow swarms along the creek. This is a pretty good indication we are experiencing some hatches... even though I haven't actually seen them.

The Clark Fork looks pretty dark... at least downstream of Missoula. How it is upstream, I'm not really sure, but I've been told it looks fishable above Bonner. Most the muck seems to be coming down the Blackfoot... once again not from personal observations, rather what I've been told. If I was going out this next week, I'd look at some of the headwaters, and maybe downstream on the Root.

Also, just for your info., I did walk the pond the other day and noticed about 40 nice bass cruising the shoreline on the road side of the pond. Just a guess, but I'd think someone with a frog popper might have themselves a pretty good day on largemouth bass. Our creek is up, but definately fishable.

Steamflows:
Bitterroot (above Darby) 2,150
Blackfoot (around Bonner) 4,300
Clark Fork (below Missoula) 12,100

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
April 26 thru May 3, 2004

Flows, flows, flows... that seems to be the name of the game this time of year. And, yes, we're finally starting to see the rivers beginning to rise pretty good. Though the fishing was still decent early and mid-week, it definitely began to taper off by the end of the week. Skwala, March Brown and Gray Drakes were the predominate bugs we used... however caddis and some Bitterroot stones also managed to make their presence known as well.

We're looking for more hot weather this week, which probably will get all our rivers rocking and rolling for a few weeks. I'll know by next week whether this is just another temporary spike, or if we're officially in 'runoff'.

Stream Flows:

Bitterroot (near Darby)- 1,760
Blackfoot (near Bonner)- 3060
Clark Fork (below Missoula)- 8,230

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
April 19 - 26, 2004

A great week for fishing here in Western Montana. Everything fished well almost the entire week. Cooler weather in the early and mid-week dropped our rivers like a rock, and visibility... along with fishability shot up through the roof.

I managed to get out one day on my own this week, and managed to land several fish in the 18 to 20+ inch class. Most these fish were taken on March Brown imitations. However, as the week went on, we found skwala's once again the best fly pattern. Of course, that could have something to do with the fact skwala's were floating down the river in numbers I've seldom seen. All in all, a great week of fishing.

As for this week, we'll see. I think we'll have plenty of bug life, the water conditions should turn out to be the most telling condition this week. As we move into May, expect to see those rivers rise. Still, it's been such a crazy spring for weather, who knows? It might just cool down again... following a couple days in the 80 range... and we'll be able to milk a week or so more from the rivers. We'll see.

Stream flows at present:
Bitterroot (near Darby)- 1110
Clark Fork (below Missoula)- 5820
Blackfoot (near Bonner)- 2690

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
Mar. 31 thre April 11, 2004

Well, since our last week's report got lost somewhere in the great complexity of the internet, we'll try to get you an overview of two weeks at once.

About all we need to say about the first week of April is that it was pretty darned good fishing all week. However, this last week, we experienced some definite ups and downs in stream flows... which had a direct effect on the fishing. Early in the week we saw that same unseasonably warm weather, coupled with some good to heavy showers, spike our rivers. During the middle of the week, fishing was somewhere between slow and non-existant But, by the end of the week, cooler temps during the day's and real cold evening temps (20's) brought the stream's right back into shape.

Though our skwala and smaller stone fly hatches seem to be on the downward turn, there are still enough of them floating down the currents to illict some good fishing on skwala patterns. We're also starting to see more and more mayflies on the water, which should bode for some excellent mid-day and late fishing below the riffles. We got into a bwo hatch the other day that lasted well over an hour, and believe you me, the fish were more than willing to gulp up a size 18 or 20 that went over them in a dead drift condition.

We're hoping the weather man is right this week and our temps continue to be more seasonable... which should keep our rivers in good to excellent condition. If the rivers don't spike again, we look for good fishing all week.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
March 22 thru March 29, 2004

Other than some above average temps, it was a fairly typical week here in Western Montana. Early in the week we saw the rivers spike up a bit, but by weeks end they'd returned to almost historic flows.

Good to great hatches of Skwala, Nemora, Capnia, BWO's, and March Browns kept the fish looking up most the week. Though water color was a little off early, it really didn't seem to slow the fish to much. However, in those conditions, if the fisherman's fly was not within an inch or two of where it should be, more often than not it turned out to be a non-productive cast. Cool... to cold... nights kept runoff down, but also produced some of our best fishing in that hour or two just before dark.

This weeks outlook is for extremely... record setting... temps early in the week, cooling down mid-week, and then warming a bit for the weekend. Barring any huge spikes in flow conditions, we look forward to another good to excellent week of dry fly action.

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Western Montana Fishing Report
Mar. 15 thru 22, 2004

Another week of above normal temperatures produced another great week of fishing. Highs in the mid to upper 60's promoted all sorts of bug activity. Nemora, capnia, and skwala stoneflies were plentiful, while BWO's and a few early March Browns were sporadic... but enough to wet the appetite of feeding trout.

With this week again predicted to be above normal in temps, expect more good to excellent top water activity.

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Western Montana Fishing Report:
Mar. 1 thru Mar. 14, 2004

Since this is the first report of the year, I decided to combine the last couple weeks into one report. What I'll tell you is really quite simple. If you're looking to cash in on some skwala action, it's already beginning. If you're watching the weather forecasts, look for a couple days in the 50 degree plus range, and, when they appear, get your gear packed for Western Montana. In all likelihood, you'll get in on some dynamite top water action.

An overview of the first weeks of March goes something like this:

Week one saw good to excellent fishing for those who traversed the 'dark side'. Nymphs... pheasant tails, prince, copper john's, etc... and streamers worked well on most our waters, for both quantity and quality. I know of at least one 26" rainbow that was landed during the first week of March, and, one of our guides was severely chastised for landing a 16" cutthroat (it brought the average down in the boat). However, there was little to no top water action during the first week of March.

By the second week, those size 10 and 12 skwala's started floating down the currents. Not many yet, but just enough to start getting the fish to look up. Though it seems most the fish looking up were still the cut's, we did manage to hook and land a fair number of rainbows, and the occassional brown. With the great weather we've been having, I do not expect things to do anything except get better when it comes to top water fishing.

 

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See 2003 reports HERE

See 2002 Reports Here

See 2001 reports HERE