Montana Freestone
Clark Fork River Fishing Report, Flows and Hatches
Large-water freestone running through Missoula, holding wild brown and rainbow trout. The Mother's Day caddis is a regional highlight.
Freestone
Montana
3,080 ft
Gauge 12353000
Right now
Live conditions
The hatch chart
Clark Fork River hatch chart
The emergences that come off the Clark Fork by month, straight from the Rivus hatch model.
| Hatch | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Midge Midge, #20-24 | ||||||||||||
Skwala Stonefly, #12-14 | ||||||||||||
March Brown Mayfly, #12-14 | ||||||||||||
Grey Drake Mayfly, #10-14 | ||||||||||||
Caddisfly Caddis, #14-18 | ||||||||||||
Blue Winged Olive Mayfly, #16-20 | ||||||||||||
Grannom / Mother's Day Caddis Caddis, #14-16 | ||||||||||||
Salmonfly Stonefly, #4-6 | ||||||||||||
Golden Stonefly Stonefly, #6-10 | ||||||||||||
Green Drake Mayfly, #10-12 | ||||||||||||
Pale Morning Dun Mayfly, #14-18 | ||||||||||||
Little Yellow Sally Stonefly, #12-14 | ||||||||||||
Grasshopper / Terrestrial Hopper, #10-16 | ||||||||||||
Trico Mayfly, #18-22 | ||||||||||||
Mahogany Dun Mayfly, #14-16 |
How it fishes
A Montana freestone
A freestone river runs free off snowmelt and rain, so it swings hard with the seasons. It blows out and browns up in spring runoff, then drops and warms into summer. The hatches track the water temperature more than the calendar, so you time your trip to the flow and the thermometer.
Flow and gauge
Reading the flows
The Clark Fork is metered at USGS gauge 12353000. Watch the trend as much as the number: a river that is dropping and clearing fishes very differently from one that is coming up.
Access and regulations
Before you fish
Access and the right to fish are the angler’s responsibility, every time. Public access, private water, and seasonal closures vary along the river, so confirm where you can legally stand and wade before you go. We do not point you to a specific spot.
Read the current rules, license requirements, and any special-regulation water before you go. Regulations change season to season, so check them fresh.
Flow and water temperature from USGS, weather from NWS and NOAA, refreshed hourly. Real-time USGS readings are provisional and subject to revision. The hatch chart and river read are Rivus model output.