Tailwater · Limestone · Montana

Bighorn River

Bighorn River terrain map
Prime · Brown Trout
Sparkle Dun · 14-18
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
River high but settled. Coloured water — fish bigger and deeper, confident takes down the seams.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • Level18.13 m
  • Water temp10.3°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
SD
Sparkle Dun14-18
High-confidence seasonal pick
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
18.13 m
Water temp10.3°C
ClarityClear
Weather22°C
WindSW 9 km/h
Pressure1010 hPa
Rain · recent0.9 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

Live readings — water temperature is an estimate where the gauge does not record it.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Ideal
10°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Excellent — conditions well-balanced, with water temperature particularly in your favour.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 3 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 with Pro.

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Evidence
ModelledModerate confidence

Modelled from regional ecology — no survey or occurrence data for this water yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Western Blue-Winged OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Pale Morning DunHatch
2
3
3
2
TricoHatch
2
3
2
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Open all year (tailwater)
  • Fishability is set by the Yellowtail Dam release, not the weather.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 2
Stillwater River
119 km
38
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Cutthroat trout
Boulder River
179 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Brook trout
The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 90%
How the 87 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time80 × 13%10.4
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity66 × 12%7.9
Conditions total= 87
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout1 January → 31 December
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts