Montana Angler has access to a large private ranch in the Gallatin Valley with approximately 2 miles of the East Gallatin. The fishery has a high trout count and often fishes like a spring creek with good hatches. Trout can be spooky and this is a great place to learn some more subtle techniques with the help of our guides.
The East is a small meadow river that flows through the pastoral heart of the Gallatin Valley. It has a completely different "personality" than its larger neighbor the Gallatin River. Although it is a small river, it holds some very large trout. The river makes one serpentine turn after another producing countless undercut banks and good holding water for trout. The river also has numerous small spring creeks that feed it, making for an incredibly fertile fishery with outstanding hatches.
The East Gallatin is open year round and offers outstanding nymph fishing early in the season before runoff. As the river clears by mid-June, hatches of Caddis and Pale Morning Duns offer good dry fly fishing and the nymph bite remains excellent.
Later in the summer the water levels drop and the trout become very spooky. Late summer fishing is very challenging, much like spring creek fishing. There are incredible trico hatches on the East, allowing for a skilled dry fly fisherman to have terrific match the hatch fishing to rising trout. The cloudy days of fall bring good Blue Winged Olive hatches and the Browns start to feed aggressively as they gear up for the spawning season.