NOT the Missouri River NPS / Jacob W. Frank

The calls have been non-stop the past few days with concerned guests calling to check on conditions in response to national news coverage of the devastating flooding on the Yellowstone River and elsewhere in the region.

Our hearts go out to our friends in Gardiner, Livingston, Red Lodge and elsewhere as they pick up the pieces following this historic flood event. Still on the rebound from suffering through the effects of the Covid economy the past two seasons, this is a tough pill to swallow. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected.

That being said, Montana is a BIG state and what’s happening 150 miles away is not happening here on the Missouri. Even so, conditions have evolved dramatically over the past few weeks and what looked like a season of low flows on the MO now looks to be the ideal conditions we hope for every season.

We’re seeing a big bump in flows right now, currently at 8380 CFS, a far cry from the static 3K flows predicted for the entire season just a month ago but nothing to be worried about. Bumps and drops definitely have an immediate effect on the fishing, don’t get me wrong, but we’re looking at the Big Picture here and we’re loving what we’re seeing.

A couple thousand CFS increase carries with it a lot of debris as the waters rise and carry away the accumulation of wood and other objects lining our low flow exposed river bed but once it’s carried said debris downstream things tend to settle and stabilize fairly quickly. We haven’t reached peak flows and I won’t venture a guess where that’s going to end up but we do have a high confidence that flows will recede to a steady 4-5K in the not too distant future, perfect conditions for our summer season.

The bottom line is that if you’re coming to fish the MO you can expect great conditions and great fishing. It may not be that 3K loved by so many of the wade angling crowd but the fact of the matter is 3K is simply not good for the MO.

There may be a few challenging days here and there with bumps and drops in the flows but overall the 2022 water outlook is shaping up to be so much better than we thought possible just a month ago.

We’re happy to take your calls of concern and we’re ready to talk some of you off of the ledge if necessary but rest assured, your 2022 Missouri River fly fishing pilgrimage is not in jeopardy.

PMD’s are here and will be the mainstay for the next several weeks. Caddis in play as well with Tricos just around the corner.

Higher flows are perfect for the nymphers with Sows and Scuds and Worms and Crays on the menu along with those Split Case PMD’s, Magic Flies, Psycho Mays, Frenchies, etc.

Streamer fishing is typically on the wane this time of year but with this unexpected increase in flows and the cool conditions which have kept our water relatively clean and weed free we would most certainly recommend chucking meat if that’s your thing.

We’ve had a few cancellations from the wade crowd, scared off by the flows so if a last minute trip to the MO is on the agenda give us a call, we may just have a room for you and we most certainly have rental boats available most days for the next couple of weeks.

We’re open 7 AM – 5 PM daily with everything you need for your day on the MO. High water nymphs, the best dry fly selection in the canyon, streamers a plenty, Simms waders and boots, Flyagra, Sun Protection, Oros indicators, shuttles, Adipose Drift Boat rentals and so much more.