Montana Fish Report

Water temperature has cooled a bit and is in the mid to upper 70s.  Trout bite is fair. Trolling anglers are catching a few limits in 70-90 feet of water in the main lake. The best thing you can do right now is "match the hatch" by using shad-patterned baits. Excel, Needlefish, and Slim fin spoons are producing many limits. Also, plug baits like Rapalas, Speed traps, and Rattle Traps are working too. Kokanee bite is Fair. There are still some fish being caught. We have had reports of some larger fish holding tight to the bottom.  Try to fish as close to the bottom as you can without losing gear.  A great setup is a double Sockeye Slammer rig. The two baits swinging back and fourth behind a large sling blade will coax those finicky fish into biting. Most of the fish are schooling in 40-60 feet of water and traveling upriver. Be sure to add plenty of Pro Cure Scent to your dodger and your bait. Garlic, anise, carp spit, and kokanee special have all been producing.  Don't forget to bring corn soaked in these same scents.

Bass bite is fair.  The fish are a little harder to find, but they are still biting.  The water has been dropping each week for the last four months. This means the fish are being pushed out of their shallow water haunts. Spotted bass are suspended near balls of bait. Try using a countdown Rapala to target their depth. A Drop shot rig with a 4-6" shad pattern worm is working well. Also, 1/2oz. and 3/4oz. spoons fished vertically can produce a lot of fish. Don't forget to always have a top water bait tied on. When bass start blowing shad out of the water, it's hard to beat a popper or a spook.

Catfish bite is  Good.  Use live minnows, frozen shad, mackerel, or anchovies for best success.  Move/drag your bait slowly across the bottom to cover more water and target fish that are aggressively feeding. Use heavy weights to stir up the bottom and cause more commotion. This will attract fish from far away. Larger cats will also feed on natural bait like crawlers, so to target large cats try using a big ball of crawlers- many anglers use a weightless set-up.  Generally cats will feed in shallow flats or areas with large chunk rock near deep water. 

Crappie bite is fair. Night fishing has been good for some anglers. They are using submersible lights in the backs of coves. The fish are in 15'-30 feet of water near standing timber and brush. Live minnows are producing most of the fish with a few being caught on mini jigs and night crawlers.  Glory Hole Sports  (209) 736-4333, (209) 586-2383