Fishing Season: Year round; some tributaries closed December 1-third week of May. Check regulations before fishing.

Clark Fork River - MT

Fishing Outlook & Conditions

Water Temp:

36

Blackfoot River Outfitters's Tip of the Week

While temps in our area are warming up, water temperatures have stayed relatively cold (sub 40F). This is often due to melting snow and shelf ice lowering the water temperatures. Be sure to bring a thermometer with you while fishing so you can monitor water temps. This will help determine the best approach for fishing.

Directions open in app

Map of Clark Fork River

Water Flow Data

Orvis-Endorsed guides nearby

Blue Damsel Lodge
Linehan Outfitting Company
Blackfoot River Outfitters
Bitterroot Fly Company

5-Day Outlook as of 3/11/26

It's looking like a classic pre-spring week around Missoula, with highs pushing from the low 40s into the low 50s by the weekend. We'll see some lingering rain and snow showers early on, but expect plenty of sunshine to break through by Thursday and Friday. Flows remain at low, clear winter levels, and the welcome bump in temps means you won't have to battle frozen guides during the afternoon hours.

Techniques & Tips as of 3/11/26

While you may see a few fish rising to midges, subsurface fishing is going to be the most reliable way to get into fish. Focus on the many deep, slow areas of the Clark Fork. Swinging a streamer will keep the bobber haters busy. Streamers: Kreelex, Chicago Overcoat, Wooly Bugger, Sparkle Minnow, Micro Dungeon, Sculpzilla Nymphs: San Juan Worm, Trinas Squirm, TJ Hooker, Sili Leg Stone, Prince Nymph, Duracell, Jig PT, Spanish Bullett, Zebra Midge Dries: Midges

Local Species Available Year round; some tributaries closed December 1-third week of May. Check regulations before fishing.

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    Rainbows

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    cutthroats

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    cutbows

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    browns and white fish

Blackfoot River Outfitters's Recommended Fly Patterns

"Must-have" fly fishing patterns in descending order of importance:

Name: Colors: Size(s):
Midge N/A #18-22
Birchell's Hatching Midge N/A #18-22
Vernille San Juan Worm N/A #8-12
Bead Head Caddis Pupa N/A #12-14
TJ Hooker N/A #8-12
Rubberlegs N/A #8-12
Tunghead Pheasant Tail N/A #12-14
TH 20 Incher N/A #8-12
Spanish Bullet N/A #12-14
Duracell N/A #12-14

Midge

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Item #0836

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Blackfoot River Outfitters's Recommended Gear

Description: About Clark Fork River

This major fork of the Columbia River, named after Captain William Clark of the Corps of Discovery, is the mother of all our local rivers. In proving her maternal resolve, the Clark Fork today flows clean and vibrant despite the decades of mining abuses imposed upon her by a less than conservation-minded state. Often described locally as two distinct rivers, the Clark Fork provides decidedly different characteristics on its upper and lower reaches. In the snaking meanders upstream of Missoula, butter-bellied browns explode on baitfish darting from deadfall snags and hoppers haplessly bumping along grassy undercuts. Following her confluence of the Blackfoot and Bitterroot, the Clark Fork through and below town widens and slows. (A dam was recently removed from this location and the river should continue to get better for years to come!) This is the ultimate for anglers hunting line-ripping rainbows and cutthroats on light tippets. Here, the biggest fish sip little duns and chase swimming nymphs around over knee-deep gravel bars. No matter your passion – #20 trico spinners delicately placed in rise ring lanes, dangling a needle-thin phez tail under a big bushy hoppers, or chuck'n and duck'n streamers – the Clark Fork offers a season and section for you.

Nearest Airport:

Missoula

Hatches:

Midges and winter stones.

Best Time to Fish:

The warmest hours of the day

Best Stretch:

The entire river is in play. Be wary of Beavertail-Kelly and the Alberton Gorge if floating.

Best Access:

Multiple access points all along the river