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One of Montana’s jewels, the Clark Fork River in Western Montana, has many faces as it cuts east to west. The Clark Fork River 6 miles east of Missoula is a smaller river easily wadable, but with limited access points. At 6 miles out, it joins the Blackfoot River and becomes much larger and a float fishers paradise. The Clark Fork winds it’s way through Missoula, where many fly fishers, make the “Urban Float” fishing through the middle of town casting to mainly rainbows with a few cutthroats and an occasional brown trout coming to their offering. Dry flies and streamers work exceptionally well throughout the year. Mayflies and caddis dominate the hatches with some stoneflies in the spring. You will absolutely LOVE floating this magnificent river casting streamers into long riffle areas and tight to deep banks, bringing large rainbows up to snatch your baitfish offering exploding into the air or making long streaking runs. Muddler Minnows, various Woolly Bugger styles all work well on the Clark Fork River. For the dry fly fisher, the Clark Fork River allows the fly fisher to match the hatch casting to trout sipping mayflies and caddis or casting attractor patterns in riffles, runs and inches off deep water banks. Our Bugmeister occupies the top spot in fish producing flies in both casting to rising fish and blind casting in searching the water on the Clark Fork. Grasshopper time during the hot summer and early fall months produce many fish during hatchless days. The deep water of the lower Clark Fork River and the various spring seeps, keeps the water cool and the fish active. Bugmeisters rule the day during “hopper” time on the Clark Fork. Casting Bugmeisters and Hopper patterns tight to banks and back eddies, bring explosive strikes and high rising rainbows. The Dog Days of August can bring explosive action on the Clark Fork River. When the cooler weather of Fall arrives, Blue Wing Olives, caddis and the greatly anticipated Fall Drake start showing up, bringing trout of all sizes feeding gently on the surface on #22 Tricos to #10 Fall Drakes. Beautiful Fall days, cool crisp air, honking geese, snow lightly capping the high peaks and large rising trout on the Clark Fork River. The Clark Fork River…make it your next fly fishing vacation with John Perry’s Montana Fly Fishing and stay at our beautiful Clark Fork River Lodge. |
68 Rock Creek Road
Clinton, Montana 59825
Phone: (406) 825-2997
Toll Free: (800) 580-9703
Email: John Perry Outdoors
Hook, LLC
Missoula, Montana