Canyon Ferry Reservoir is a 35,000-acre Bureau of Reclamation body of water east of Helena, Mt. It’s full of fish: walleye, northern pike, carp, bluegill, bass, perch and trout…rainbow trout…large, exotic looking rainbow trout.

Every summer, Mt. FWP stocks Canyon Ferry with trout, lots and lots of them…300,000 Arlee and Eagle Lake strains of 7-8 inch rainbow are dumped into the reservoir. Sometimes more. The Arlee strains come from eggs raised at the Jocko River Hatchery and are shipped to hatcheries all around the state. The Eagle Lake strains come from hatcheries such as Creston, Lewistown and Holter. The Arlee fish are the pinkish, silvery colored fish, while the Eagle Lake trout are a darker, deeper red. In recent years, FWP has used the boat launches at Goose Bay and Hellgate campgrounds for stocking sites, as they provide a deeper water habitat for the juvenile trout to evade predators such as pelicans and gulls. Of course, marauding bands of hungry walleye and pike are licking their chops at the prospect of feasting on the hapless stockers. But enough rainbows make it through the years to grow big…fish of 18-23 inches and larger cruise the reservoir. And every April, about ten days after ice-out, the spawning run begins. Well, not really. These fish can’t reproduce. There is no sufficient spawning habitat in Canyon Ferry…no fine gravel, no oxygenated flow, no conducive water temps…so these fish just spin around and around, looking for places to spawn, finding none. Females grow fat with eggs, males turn ripe with milt, much foreplay and excitation takes place…redds are formed, but no babies are born. This is where the flyfisher comes in. Large, fat, colorful rainbows are seen cruising the 76 miles of the Canyon Ferry shoreline. Sight casting to 20 inch rainbows with small leeches, sparkle nymphs and (the horror!) egg patterns….great sport! But non-fly anglers, fear not! These big bruisers can also be caught on crawlers, roe, Power Bait, cheese, lures and jigs. Last year I stood next to a couple who were bank fishing with large, white, square marshmallows. They were crushing it!

Mt FWP stocks these fish in Canyon Ferry for the public to enjoy…and to take home if they like. These fish are paid for by our Montana Conservation/Fishing License fees. They are not wild trout. They grow big and they die. They can’t reproduce. And they taste pretty good smoked…especially when using apple wood from my back yard.

Is it easy? Nope. Secret flies are involved. Hours can be spent staring at bobbers. The skunk is lurking. But if you get it right it’s big time fun. Turn ’em back or smoke ’em up. The rainbow run at Canyon Ferry is on!

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