Montana TU has weighed in on FWP’s proposed changes in the boating regulations for the Clark Fork, Blackfoot and Bitterroot Rivers. We linked to an article in the Missoulian when the issue surfaced last week; the issue’s drawing a bit more attention this week.

Here’s Montana TU’s spin on the issue -

In recent years the use of jet powered watercraft and personal watercraft has expanded significantly on Missoula-area rivers, significantly increasing safety risks and creating conflicts with other users and landowners. After prodding by TU, riverside landowners and others, Montana FWP has proposed changes to boating regulations on the Blackfoot, Clark Fork and Bitterroot Rivers near Missoula.

You can contribute to safer, quieter rivers by:

• Attending FWP’s public meeting June 16 in Missoula at FWP Region 2 Headquarters (3201 Spurgin Road) at  6 p.m.
• Writing FWP and telling the agency to adopt improved regulations for motorized use on Missoula-area Rivers.

Comments are due by 5 p.m. June 27, 2011.

Comments can be submitted

• Online via the comment form at the link above
• Via e-mail to: shrose@mt.gov
• Via Mail to:
  • Sharon Rose
  • Attn: Boating Regulation Changes
  • 3201 Spurgin Road
  • Missoula, MT 59804-3101
• or Via Fax: 406-542-5529

In your own words:

Thank FWP for considering reducing motorized use on these rivers.  Remind the agency that as recreational river use increases, SAFETY will be a larger challenge, and the time to protect river users is now. Large, high-powered watercraft moving up and downstream when a majority of use is float traffic moving downstream is a recipe for disaster.  Applaud the agency’s proposal to make the Clark Fork above Kelly Island non-motorized year-round.  Tell the agency not to include personal watercraft (“jet skis”) in any category of small-horsepowered craft.

Tell the agency to adopt these specific regulations:

Bitterroot River

The Bitterroot River is not an appropriate water body for large motorized craft like jet boats and jet skis. Tell FWP to change its proposed regulations to make the full reach of the Bitterroot off limits year-round to engines that exceed 15 hp. FWP is recommending that jet boats and other high-powered craft be allowed on the Bitterroot between Florence and Buckhouse Bridge between May 1 and June 15. Tell the agency to instead make the river non-motorized for its full reach, except allow traditional small motorized craft of 15 horsepower or less, such as those used for duck hunting, between Oct. 1 and Jan. 15.

Clark Fork River

FWP is proposing a confusing, difficult to enforce patchwork of closures restrictions and unrestricted motorized use from the mouth of the Blackfoot to Alberton Gorge. FWP is proposing to sanction the use of jet skis and large motorboats in the small reach just upstream and downstream of Petty Creek fishing access site, thereby creating a loud motorized zone that will conflict with floaters and landowners. Tell FWP to improve public safety by simplifying the rules by closing the Clark Fork to motors from the mouth of the Blackfoot (motors are already prohibited in the upper river above Milltown), through Kelly Island down to St. John’s Fishing Access Site, EXCEPT allow small motorized craft of 15 horsepower or less from Kelly Island to St John’s FAS year-round. This exception accommodates traditional use for waterfowl hunters and some anglers.

Blackfoot River

The current rules allowing motorized use on Milltown Reservoir are out of date. Support FWP’s recommendation to make the old Milltown Reservoir river reach through Missoula and down to Kelly Island off-limits to all motors year-round.

Our spin – from our overtly and admittedly biased fly fishing perspective, it’s particularly important to make the Bitterroot and Blackfoot off-limits to larger motorized rigs year round, as well as the Clark Fork above Kelly. The Clark Fork’s proposed reg changes will be more controversial, though we agree that big motors and jet skis don’t belong from the mouth of the Blackfoot down to St. John’s FAS.

Take note – Montana’s FWP has a useful page up here, with links to the Rule Proposal Notice, the related Environmental Assessment, and a Public Comment Survey (multi-page) that you can use to submit your two cents electronically.

Tags: Access

Personally, I can’t wait until this damned heat moves off and we start getting some real fall weather.  Could be I’m just old and cranky, or it could be that fall is my absolute favorite time of year in Montana.  The Blackfoot, while it is fishing well right now, will be fishing great when the cool weather gets here.  

Tricos and caddis are the main hatches right now.  October caddis, no less.  I love those things.  Find them in the afternoons and evenings and be ready for some pretty damn good fishing.  The tricos you will be able to find earlier in the day.  Earlier this week, when I was on the Blackfoot, there were lots and lots of them out on the water.

During cloudy days, not that it looks like we are going to have any for a while, nymphing and streamer fishing is going to get great.  Caddis pupae and stonefly nymphs have been a big hit.  Deep olive streamers through some of the deep holes will bring in some big fish.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

Flows on the Blackfoot have been dropping on a rapid basis.  Looking at the flow chart this morning, it is an impressive downward trend.  The lower water might make floating a little tricky, especially up high, but it is good news for us wade fishermen.

I have been hearing some reports of October Caddis on the river already.  If this does indeed turn out to be true, then we should celebrate!  I know I’ll be going out to the Blackfoot this evening to see for myself.  Look for them in the late afternoons and evenings.  

Spruce Moths are still out in the mornings, and I have seen some at night too.  Hoppers are naturally doing quite well.  One interesting tidbit of information though; put some action in your dries.  The fish on this river are targeting moving dries.  You can twitch, strip, drag, wiggle or whatever you have to do to get some movement.  While this doesn’t work everywhere, it is working here and now.

Nymphing is good, but I don’t know why you would want to with the ability to fish dries all day.  Stonefly nymphs and worms are the ticket if you want to go that way.  Streamers have been producing well on the cloudy days.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

Despite some weather earlier this week, the Blackfoot is back to decent shape.  Flows dropped a few days ago, and are now down to just above 800 cfs.  The damn tubers still hold the lower river, but their numbers should start to drop once school starts.

Fish are taking dry flies, but not with the reckless abandon they had earlier in the year.  Hoppers are a good choice from noon on till night.  Look for mayflies in the mornings and evenings.  A purple haze is a hot fly right now, so better stock up on some.  Caddis are coming off in the evenings, and that is when your chances for catching a big fish on a dry fly are the best.

If it is big fish you are after, go subsurface.  Nymphing tactics have been pulling some larger fish out all day.  Think stonefly nymphs, san juan worms, princes, pheasant tails, hare’s ears, caddis emergers and soft hackles.  I know it is hard to fish anything but dries in August, but when you landing pigs and everyone else nothing but dinks you’ll get over it.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

Once again, the skies in the area are going to darken and pour rain.  Personally, I am thrilled, as the rain means the only folks on the river are going to be fishermen.  We might even get a shot at the lower stretches, as the drunken horde waits for the sun.  The rain, scheduled to last through the weekend anyway, is likely going to raise flows and pump a little mud into the water.  We can deal with it.

The clouds are really going to bring the mayflies to life.  There are quite a few on the water right now, and it is only going to improve for a few days.  Caddis might be hampered somewhat by the turn of the weather, but keep an eye out for them.

Of course, hoppers and beetles are prevalent.  Hang a small nymph off the back to increase your odds; never a bad idea.  Princes are a personal favorite of mine.  Nymphing in general is a good way to fish the river at this point.  Weight them down and fish deep.  Streamer fishing is going to get better on the cloudy days as well.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

I just got off a morning on the upper Blackfoot and am sitting on the shady and sort of cool porch of one of my favorite friends over here on the Blackfoot.   Great day but I left my camera in a friend’s car who is now halfway back to Hamilton by now.  Damn it.

You can see the big storms south and east, and sure enough the radar shot just now (about 4 pm) shows some big storms rolling around out of southwest Montana and headed out across the plains.   Bet Steve’s gettin’ rained on right now on the Missouri.  I know the picture isn’t a very good one – if you can’t see it well on your monitor, Missoula is pretty much right in the middle of the frame.

We mainly fished PMDs early and then switched over to hoppers, beetles and ants towards midday.  We had planned to be off the water by 3 to avoid the storms; this wasn’t a record setting day but we had steady action all day including some very nice fish on hoppers after noon.  Not bad at all, and better than I’ve heard it’s been during the hot, dry, sun-filled days of the past few weeks.

Tomorrow looks more stormy than today – I’d be planning a morning trip if I were you…..

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The Blackfoot bumped up in the past few days with the rain we received.  Flows briefly popped up above 1,200 cfs and water temps cooled off, just what the river needed.  The water is coming back down now, as you can see from the chart.

Fishing is starting to get a little tougher over here.  With water temps warming up and a lot of folks on the water, the fish are starting to get a little skittish.  On bright days, the bigger fish are going to be down deep in the faster water.  

Dry fly fishing is still very good with caddis and mayflies.  Keep an eye out for some good hatches.  Also, terrestrials are really beginning to make an appearance.  Beetles, ants and hoppers are a must have at this point.  Larger attractors are also working well.  When action up top slows down, drift a double nymph rig through some of the deeper water.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The Blackfoot has hit its summer stride.  Hoppers are here, the lower river is full of drunken tubers, and there are caddis and mayflies in abundant quantities.  Flows have been slowly dropping down, as of this morning they were just over 1,000 cfs.

The lower flows mean a couple of good things.  The fish are now spreading out all over the river, not just sitting clustered by the banks.  Wading is also easier, something the young bucks don’t complain about a whole lot, but it makes a difference to old knees.

Terrestrials and attractors fished through any fishy looking run are working well.  I have caught some big fish in the past few days on a size 8 Dave’s Hopper.  The Blackfoot is an interesting river; some days this time of year it fishes great, and other days you couldn’t catch a fish to save your life.  Just be persistent and willing to experiment with different patterns.

Seems like everyday at around 2 or 3 in the afternoon is when the dry fly action really starts to pick up.  Caddis, mayflies, golden stones and yellow sallies are all coming out.  Take your pick and have at it.

Stay away from the lower river, the tuber hatch is out in force.  

Tags: River - Blackfoot

Summer seems to have settled over western Montana.  These are the days to leave the screen door open and all the fans on in the house.  The hot weather is somewhat negatively effecting fishing, but not too badly.  In fact, the Blackfoot is fishing quite well.

There are good hatches of PMDs, caddis and yellow sallies right now.  Pretty much the summer pattern.  The PMDs are the heaviest right now, the same as a lot of rivers.  Look for good caddis in the evenings.  Terrestrials are beginning to really show up, so be sure to have a good number of hoppers and beetles in the box.

Nymphing has been good, especially with princes and pheasant tails.  The streamer bite is decent as well.  

The Blackfoot gets better and better the higher up you go.  To find the best fishing, be ready to drive a bit and walk some.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The Blackfoot is in great shape.  Flows are coming down, the water is clearing up and there are lots of insects in the river.  This is one of my personal favorite times to fish the Blackfoot.

PMDs, green drakes, golden stones, caddis and Salmonflies are all coming off as of this time.  Barring a short break in the middle of the day (a perfect time for lunch) fish are actively searching for topwater bugs all day.  I hit the caddis hatch a few evenings ago and had one of my better days this year.  Big fish are looking for and taking Salmonfly dries, so don’t hit the river without them.

Streamer fishing is also producing some nice fish.  But with all this dry fly action, who really wants to throw a streamer?

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The wait for Salmonflies on the Blackfoot is over.  The big bugs are all over the water.  Despite the recent rains over here, flows are remaining to drop and the water is clear.

The dry fly fishing is very good.  Lots and lots of caddis are around.  So are PMDs, golden stones and some green drakes.  Seems like there are continuous hatches all day with only short breaks in between.  The fish are really looking for Salmonflies and are attacking these big bugs with enthusiasm.

Nymphing with stonefly nymphs, princes, pheasant tails, worms, caddis and mayfly pupae is also great.  Personally, I have trouble tying on anything but a dry when the fish are rising, but you can do very well with a nymph rig fished tight to the banks.

With most of the area rivers rising and dirty with the rain, expect to see quite a few folks on the Blackfoot for a few days.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

Due to some rain in the past few days, flows on the Blackfoot are up a little bit today.  As you can see from the chart, the river has come down a long way this last week.  Visibility on the river is decent, almost a foot, but that will decrease today and tomorrow as the rain pushes some mud into the water.

Salmonflies are close on the Blackfoot.  There are lots of nymphs in the water and even a few dries flying around.  Should be about another week before things really start to pop over here.  Right now, drift some big stonefly nymphs for large fish. 

Streamers are also doing well.  Big and black seem to be the main criteria.  A buddy of mine had good success with a black wooly bugger cast tight to the bank and quickly stripped away.  It is worth a shot!

As for surface action at the moment, look for caddis and green drakes in the afternoons.  We are all waiting for the Salmonflies to come out for dry fly fishing to get really good.  Shouldn’t be too much longer.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The Blackfoot has dropped quite a bit in the past week, over 4,000 cfs in fact.  Even though flows are much lower, the fishing still isn’t great.  Water clarity is improving, but visibility is less than six inches.

We are much closer to good fishing on the river than last week.  Shouldn’t be too long before a large double nymph rig will produce some fish.  Stoneflies, pheasant tails, san juan worms, and princes will work well.  Also, keep an eye out for Salmonflies, as the big bugs are not that far away!

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The Blackfoot is still way up and very muddy.  Don’t even think about trying to fish it for at least another few weeks.  Instead, head for the tailwaters or a local lake or pond.  It is kind of nice to mix your fishing up a bit every now and then.

Tags: River - Blackfoot

The Blackfoot is completely blown out.  I drove down the other day with the intent to get a few pictures, but the view made me so sad I couldn’t bring myself to snap a shot.  Flows are on their way back up this week with some warmer weather and possibly rain on its way.

It will be a while before you should even think about fishing the Blackfoot.

Tags: River - Blackfoot