I’m reaching out to inform you of the 2022 Yellowstone River flood event. First off we are safe, our guides are safe and our immediate personal properties are unaffected by this historic flooding event. This situation is still developing and unfortunately we aren’t getting any information faster than the general public.
6/18 UPDATE:
- Run-off has peaked for the season – it is unlikely any further flooding will result and normal summer flows are expected.
- A fishing task force has been set up to discuss the situation with Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks and other governing bodies. These meeting will take place next week.
- Most Yellowstone River access sites appear to have survived! Several of our guides have investigated the boat ramps and most appear to be in good shape, which is great news. We will keep you posted as we do more scouting and have official meetings.
- Spring Creeks were not fully breached and are fishable! Most of the water coming into the creeks were from a small tributary (Trail Creek), but no significant structural damage was done to the waterway.
Details of Event:
On June 13, 2022 the Yellowstone River experienced a historic flood event several orders of magnitude above the largest observed event in 1918. This was due to heavy rains on the snowpack which exacerbated the snow melt. The Yellowstone River and most tributaries (Soda Butte, Lamar, Slough, Gardiner, Boulder & Stillwater) flooded many homes and washed out a couple bridges. Officials are currently investigating how this has impacted our fishing infrastructure, but as we learn more we’ll keep you informed.
Can I still come Fishing?
YES, we believe that a majority of the waters we guide will be fishable this summer. However, we cannot tell you exactly which rivers or sections may remain affected or exactly when they will open. Once officials get a handle on things we’ll let you know. The Missouri River, Spring Creeks, Madison River and Private Lakes are significantly NOT IMPACTED at this time.
The Montana governors office and Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks is working as quickly as possible to open the impacted rivers to recreation. As of today (6/18) the Yellowstone River and Yellowstone National Park waters are NOT FISHABLE and we expect that to be the case until at least July 1st. We’ll update you as we learn more. Yellowstone Park’s NE waters of Slough Creek, Soda Butte, and Lamar River will not be accessible this season.
Reservations and Cancellations/Rescheduling:
If your fishing reservation involves one of the impacted rivers AND your reservation is occurring before July 4 please contact us VIA EMAIL and we will contact you as soon as possible.
IF your reservation is occurring after July 4 please give us a couple days to respond as we are dealing with the immediate reservations first.
How Can you Help:
We’ve received so many calls/emails/texts of support. We thank you for your thoughtfulness and support. All of our guides are local, professionals and have been several impacted by this event. We’d ask that you consider donating to our MFG GoFundMe page These funds will be distributed directly to the guides most impacted by cancelations. We appreciate your consideration in this matter and you can read more details on the link above.
Thank you,
