Montana's rivers are under stress this summer — and the native trout that call them home are feeling it. As of Monday, 19 bodies of water across the state are currently under hoot owl fishing restrictions.
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Hoot owl restrictions prohibit fishing from 2 p.m. to midnight daily — limiting angling to the coolest hours of the day.
"Which basically means you can fish between the hours of midnight and 2 p.m., which is when the water is the coolest," said Dave Hagengruber, communication and education manager for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks region 4.
The restrictions are triggered when water temperatures reach dangerous levels for Montana's native trout species. According to FWP, the threshold is 73 degrees Fahrenheit for three consecutive days in a non-native trout fishery. As of Monday, two consecutive days at that threshold had already been recorded. The trigger is even lower for more vulnerable species — 66 degrees for cutthroat trout and 60 degrees for bull trout.
The stakes are significant.
"If it gets too warm, they won't survive at all," Hagengruber said.
Local conditions near Craig appear to be holding within a safe range. Fred Telleen, sales manager at the Trout Shop in Craig and an avid fisherman, says the data from his stretch of river is encouraging.
"It's mostly been hanging 64, 65, which is well within the safe range for catch and release trout fishing without doing damage to the fishery," Telleen said.
Even if restrictions were to tighten further, Telleen says the impact on local fishing would be manageable.
"If we were to go that way, it wouldn't really affect us. Other than that, we would just be, you know, getting done earlier in the day, starting early, getting done earlier," he said.
The 2026 season is tracking similarly to 2024 — one of the most restrictive seasons on record — with below-normal snowpack and hotter-than-normal temperatures driving stress on the fishery. Last year, 16 bodies of water were under restriction during the same period.
FWP says conditions can change quickly. Anglers are encouraged to check current restrictions before heading out at fwp.mt.gov/news/current-closures-restrictions/waterbody-closures.
