Top 5 Reasons to Fish Montana in June!

June is a month that some people tend to overlook in Western Montana because of our spring run-off. Although the Yellowstone River is high and muddy for much of June, and our float options are more limited, there are many reasons that make June a fantastic time to fish in Yellowstone Country. June is a unique month because it could be 75, sunny, and GORGEOUS weather…. or, it could be snowing and blowing. No matter the weather in June, there is always a place to fish and gear to keep you warm. If you plan a fishing trip to Montana in June, you DEFINITELY will be in for an adventure and you can bring the whole family!

Walking on Mars along the banks of the firehole

Yellowstone National PArk is open to fish!

Yellowstone National PArk opens the Saturday of memorial day weekend, May 27 this year! Yellowstone is a magical place and the fishing opportunities change with the seasons. In June we are fishing rivers and lakes that are not fishing options during the peak of summer:

The Firehole River- Do you like casting small PMD dry-flies to actively rising fish with BUBBLING thermal features in the background? The firehole is heavily thermally influenced, so the water is warm when the weather is cold.
The Gibbon River- The Gibbon starts north of Madison Junction and flows south until its’ confluence with the Firehole creates the Madison River at Madison Junction. The Gibbon flows through meadows with with picky browns looking for well placed small dry flies or steep, choppy canyon sections with pocket water for days. Pick your poison.
Small creeks- As the water drops throughout June, our smaller creeks start to clear up first. Targeting Brookies, Browns, and rainbows in a creek the width of a subaru is pretty awesome.

2. The LAkes are on Fire!

For most of June, our free-stone rivers are high and muddy due to our Spring Run-off. This means that our Secluded Lakes are our best local option to fish from a boat. Also, the lake fishing in June is prime-time as the water temps are warming up and the fish are starting to really be on the feed after a cold winter. These lakes are located on private ranches and are spring-fed. Let us teach you how to fish a STILLWATER fishery using MULTIPLE methods. The lakes can have great Callibaetis hatches where you can sight fish. The lakes offer a great location to host a family trip with multiple boats and a BBQ lunch! The lakes only have a limited number of available spots per day, so advanced booking is necessary. Many folks in June like to do 2 days of fishing. one day walk-wading in Yellowstone, and one day on the lake for maxim diversity.

3. There are Way fewer people here!

This is probably the best reason to come in June. There are way fewer people here. July, August, and September are our prime time months…. and everyone knows it. If you want to drive through the PArk without having a ton of traffic jams, come in June. If you want to increase your chances of seeing awesome wildlife like bears and wolves…. Come in June. If you want to fish in total SOLITUDE and be warm in your waders… come in June! If you like wildflowers…Come in June! The weather in June is normally pretty nice, although it can also snow. Pack your tee shirt, fleece, sunglasses, raincoat, sun hat, warm hat, shorts, and warm socks when you come in June just so you are prepared for anything.

4. The Gardner River

Our 4th reason to come fishing in June is the Gardner River. This river looks a little different after the 2022 flooding, but the fish are still there! This is a medium sized river that flows from the Swan Lake Flats down next to Mammoth and eventually right into the Yellowstone upstream of the town of GARDINER. This is our biggest tributary of the Yellowstone that starts to clear up first at the end of June. This river is thermally influenced, so fish from the Yellowstone tend to make their way up the Gardner in the Spring. This river is fast and rocky. To fish it EFFECTIVELY you should move quickly and cast to anything that looks like it could hold a fish. As the water clears up, the Gardner River normally sees our Salmonfly hatch first. If you like climbing over boulders, pocket water, and moving fast up rivers…. The Gardner River can be a great adventure. Let our expert Yellowstone fishing guides show you a great time.

5. The end of June brings clearer water and some Hungry Browns!

Finally, the end of June normally brings the early days of our summer float season. When we actually start floating the Yellowstone is totally dependant on water conditions, but often it falls in the last week of June. At that time, the Yellowstone is running around 10,000 cfs and is DEFINITELY not clear. But, after 8 weeks of not eating, the fish are hungry and they only need about 18 inches of visibility to eat; Also, right after run-off is a time when we tend to see more big browns in the net! We generally target them by nymphing with big stoneflies or fishing streamers. During the end of June/early July the water drops and gets a little clearer and warmer every day. The increase in clarity and water TEMPERATURE helps the fish feed and want to eat. This is an exciting time of year to come because you don’t know exactly what mother nature will give us. But, anywhere from the end of June to the first week in July is when we have our famous Salmonfly hatch, so reserve your dates now! We also have some other float options this time of year like the Boulder River and many options in Yellowstone National PArk, so there is always a place to fish!