HELENA — Hoot-owl restrictions will take effect Saturday, Aug. 2, on the entire mainstem of the Blackfoot River — from the headwaters at the confluence of Anaconda Creek and Beartrap Creek to the confluence with the Clark Fork River.
Hoot-owl restrictions prohibit fishing from 2 p.m. to midnight each day. The restrictions will stay in effect until conditions improve.
Click here to view other restrictions across Montana
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks notes the restrictions are designed to protect fish that become more susceptible to disease and mortality when water temperatures warm.
Additional information from FWP:
Restricting angling to only cool morning hours can help reduce catch-and-release mortality.
Catch-and-release anglers can reduce stress on fish by getting them to the net or in hand quickly, keeping them in the water and reviving them prior to releasing them back into the river.
Along with monitoring stream temperatures, FWP also monitors stream flows and in some streams holds instream flow water rights. FWP’s water program can issue a call on junior water users, when appropriate, to contribute to stream flows through the late summer and early fall. For more information on FWP water rights, click here.
If high temperatures and extremely low flows persist, anglers may want to consider fishing areas with less stressful temperatures and conditions, such as larger lakes or reservoirs or higher elevation waterbodies.
