Welcome to our Helena, MT Fishing Home Page
Helena is the capital of Montana and the county seat for Lewis and Clark County. This city is very unique in that it has a nice blend of the past and the present. You will be able to find plenty of hotels and other accommodations in Helena. This city is surrounded by pristine forests and there are plenty of places to experience the great outdoors. Boating and fishing are popular on Holter Lake, Hauser Lake, Canyon Ferry Lake and Spring Meadow Lake. There are also numerous trout streams in the area.
Primary Species of Fish
Cutthroat Trout, Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Walleye & Perch
There are so many species of fish here in the area rivers and lakes. The primary species of fish are cutthroat trout, rainbow trout and brown trout, but you will also find perch and walleye here too to go along with some other species of fish.
Area Waters
Missouri River
This is the river people go to if they are looking for a big fish. The Missouri River has so many fish swimming in it that you can catch good numbers of them with the average size a lot bigger than most of the other rivers and some big fish are considered common here. Rainbow trout and brown trout are both here.
Land of the Giants
The Land of Giants section of the Missouri River is a section that runs below the Hauser Dam and then into the Holter Reservoir. It is one of the most popular fisheries in Montana. Access can be a challenge. You can get here by foot or by jetboat with a US Coast Guard licensed captain. Hiring a guide really is the way to go here. The fishing is excellent for rainbow trout and brown trout and there are some really big fish here. These fish are mostly reservoir fish that feed like crazy and get very big. When these fish are in the river, you can get some very exciting river fishing action for fish that really have been bulking up in the lake. It’s the best of both worlds for anglers that prefer to catch trout in the river, but also want to catch big trout too.
Canyon Ferry Lake
Canyon Ferry Lake is a good lake to fish with lots of options. Most people come here to fish for walleye, trout and perch, however, other fish to catch are northern pike and smallmouth bass. It’s known for producing some very big walleye as well.
Holter Reservoir
Holter Reservoir is known as a good lake for trout, walleye and perch. For some guides, you may spend some time on the lake fishing for rainbow trout, brown trout or walleye. Landlocked Kokanee Salmon are here too. For many anglers here, the rivers are where they will spend most of their time, but the lake fishing is good too.
Clark Fork River
This is another river that guides fish in the area. This river fishes kind of like 2 different rivers. The upper stretch of this river is known for its excellent brown trout fishery. Rainbow and cutthroats can be caught here too. The lower Clark Fork River is known for its good rainbow trout and cutthrout trout fisheries. You will most likely run into some cutbows and an occasional brown trout too. Whether you choose to fish the upper reaches or the lower section, they both offer some very good fishing opportunities.
Blackfoot River
The Blackfoot River is very scenic with its large rock formations, swift rapids and canyons. There are guides that fish this river and the fishing can be very good and the overall trip should be a nice adventure. You will find westslope cutthroat trout, bull trout, rainbow trout and cutbows are here too.
Bitterroot River
This river is another good river with good numbers of fish and some big fish too. Anglers target rainbow trout, brown trout, cutthroat trout and you may also catch an occasional brook trout. The upper part of the Bitterroot River is known for its cutthroat trout fishery while the lower section is known more for its rainbow trout and usually bigger fish too.