Enjoy the exceptional hunting, fishing and flying that Southwest Montana has to offer.

A tradition of hunting on Southwest Montana’s public lands began more than a century ago. That tradition continues to thrive today. Many of Montana’s residents are avid hunters and even those hunters who live in towns are within a short distance to public lands.

Flyfishing has an avid following here in Montana. One of the biggest reasons for its popularity is from the excellent portrayal of Big Sky country in the film A River Runs Through It. The movie stars Brad Pitt and is based on a true story about two brothers that grow up in Missoula Montana. It really captures the look and feel of Montana and is probably a big reason for the “West Coast” retiree invasion in the past 20 years.

People from across the country travel to Southwest Montana each fall to experience the thrill of hunting elk and other big game species including: mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, moose, pronghorn, bighorn sheep and mountain goat as well as game birds such as spotted, blue and ruffled grouse and wild turkey.

Bow hunting in the Lee Metcalf wilderness is an experience you won’t soon forget. It’s one of the wildest hunting areas left in North America. Close to Yellowstone National Park, wildlife is everywhere. Big game such as elk, moose, deer, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, grizzlies, black bears, wolves, pine martins and wolverines are some of the animals you may encounter while exploring this exceptional wilderness.

Fishermen visit Montana for the pristine waters, beauty, and the chance to catch BIG fish! Montana is home to 22 species of game fish, many of which are trout: including: cut throat, rainbow, brook and bull trout. There are many lodges and professionally guided hunting and fly fishing trips to choose from.

When is the best time to come fishing in Montana? It depends on the type of fishing you want to do but a good answer is “when you can.” Winter is of course not the ideal come. The summer and fall months usually provide the most consistent fishing. Beginning in late May and early June there hatches of considerable size on most rivers. Because of these hatches and the abundance of food they provide, the fish are more active for a longer period of the day. Catches of substantial size will run through October.

During summer it is more common to see other anglers. More and more clients are coming in the spring (March, April, and May) and late fall (October and November) to experience the solitude so often associated with fly fishing. It can be a trade-off though, as the daily feeding duration of fish is not as long as in summer, but many times the feeding tends to be more intense during that time.

If you love the adventure and freedom of backcountry flying then this is the place for you. Along the Montana Idaho border you will find exceptional bush flying. Back country flying is a lot of different things. It It’s usually done in the mountains or in remote locations where the runways are often dirt or grass without runway lighting, or weather updates. You are often left entirely to your own devices in the back country unless you travel with other airplanes.

Southwest Montana is for the true outdoorsman. Come experience the beauty.

Author Bio: Come visit a lodge located in Darby Montana. To see pictures and information go to Montana Lodge. Westfork Lodge Montana has Montana lodging, a backcountry airstrip, hunting, fishing, rafting and more.

Category: Travel
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