Best Fishing Spots in Montana

Montana divides at the Continental Divide, and the two halves fish nothing alike. West of it, mountain lakes sit high, with a state median near 2,000 metres and peaks in the mapped range above 3,300, so ice holds late and the open season on the highest water runs only from June into October. East of the divide the country flattens into prairie, where reservoirs on dammed rivers take over from natural lakes and the water warms far more through summer. Both halves get a hard winter with a full ice season on the lakes that freeze. Natural lakes outnumber reservoirs across the state, but that ratio flips sharply once you move east. Access in the mountains is limited by snow on the approach roads as much as by ice on the water. We list 1,890 waters in Montana, drawn from 51 counties. Most of them are natural lakes, with reservoirs making up much of the rest. Fort Peck Lake is the widest water we hold here, about 365 sq miles. The deepest we hold a survey figure for is Fort Peck Lake, at about 220 feet. Across the listed waters the coldest month averages 18°F and the warmest 56°F. The thaw generally comes near mid May. Records return rainbow trout, brook trout, cutthroat trout and brown trout more often than anything else....