Montana Fish Report

Trout fishing is picking up for the fall bite as water temps have dropped into the 50s. Fall stocking occurred in the last week, with approximately 2,000 tiger trout and 5,000 rainbows stocked. Anglers should try PowerBait, spinners, nightcrawlers, and wetflies behind a bubble. Trout in the 16-to-22-inch range have been seen shoaling in the north end of the south lake.  The vegetation that has hampered access all summer is still up in the water column throughout most of the lake, so watercraft access will be difficult in most of the south lake.  Fall trout stocking will commence in the upcoming weeks.

In recent weeks, largemouth bass activity has dropped off significantly with cooler water temperatures.  Anglers should still be able to catch a few bass using a variety of spinning baits and jerk baits.  Soft plastics with a weedless rig will help anglers reach bass that are sitting lower in the water. Anglers looking to pursue northern pike should use flashy lures, RatL traps, and patterns that resemble trout, bass, and bluegill. The pike fishing this summer has produced mixed results, with pike ranging from 15-to-26 inches being caught.  There is a limited bluegill fishery at Comins Lake and anglers are encouraged to release bluegill to better establish their population.

A total of 10,335 rainbow trout were stocked this spring averaging 9.6 inches.  A total of 8,532 brown trout, averaging 9.9 inches were stocked this spring as well.