I need some advice. Ive planned a trip to Missoula mid August. I couldnt go earlier and cant go later or risk missing the arrival of my first-born. I had planned to fish the Bitterroot, Rock Creek, and Blackfoot. I will also be wading. Given the current water temps and having to get off the water around noon leaves me with a lot of free time. According to the USGS the majority of the state’s coldwater aint so cold right now. I need a Plan B if things dont cool off…keeping in mind that Ill be flying into Missoula and renting a car. Ive fished the Madison/Gallatin area before and thought Id try something different. Ill even pack a float tube if needed.
How long would it need to cool off before things improved? Days or weeks?
There are options for the afternoons. Go fish some mountain lakes or small streams. Most all of them have fish. It’s hard to say if it’s going to continue to be hot, but I’d wager that the Clark Fork will remain closed after 12:00 till September and that the Blackfoot might also see such regulation.
It needs to cool off for days, and it’s supposed to next week. Rain would be great for things. Grey cloudy days would be great for the major rivers. I have been ending all trips by noon for the last week. I have seen several dead fish on the Blackfoot and Bitterroot river, most likely they were caught and played too long/improperly released. Sadly they were all large fish so maybe their captors took too many photos of them?
No global warming my @#W! Come out here and catch some trout before they go extinct!