Montana River Recreation Survey
Ever want to weigh in on the current Montana river recreation use? Today is the day man.
Take this Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks survey about how you feel about the last 3 years on any river or water recreation region along with use patterns.
If you want a voice, you can, you can have a voice. Click on the River Recreation Survey here
About the council
The River Recreation Advisory Council’s purpose is to develop a set of recommendations for managing river recreation in Montana and administering the use of water-related activities. The focus area extends to department lands and water bodies that are restricted under the authority of FWP. This includes recreation use on and along the water way, including fishing access sites.
Montana boasts an abundance of publicly accessible rivers that support a wide array of recreational activities, including fishing, hunting, swimming, floating and both motorized and non-motorized boating. The popularity of these activities has led to challenges such as user conflicts and congestion at access points. Moreover, there are differing opinions on how best to manage and allocate opportunities for river recreation.
The council will meet in-person for a 3-day workshop from October 16-18. Additional virtual meetings in October may occur if necessary. A virtual meeting in early November also is planned to present the council’s final recommendations. Members also are encouraged to attend virtual public scoping workshops scheduled during September 3 – September 9.
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6 Comments.
Thanks for the heads up. My comment to the council.
“On the Missouri river in particular I’m worried the fishing pressure is starting to become too high for the long-term survival of the fishery. I’m not sure how best to handle it. But at certain times of the year, it’s possible to go out and catch 10, 20, maybe 30+ fish a day if you know what you’re doing or have a good guide. Day after day, year-round that has to take a toll on the fish. The trout are particularly vulnerable during winter when they are concentrated in deep pools that are widely known and accessible. There needs to be a way to rest the water and the fish. Maybe close the river for the month of January to fishing. Or make Sunday during the busy season non-angling recreation only. Similar things are done with multi-use trails to separate hikers and ORVs. Regardless, I’d like to see a pro-active approach taken to maintain the quality of the Missouri River fishery.”
Thanks for the comment to the Council Bill! All comments are important. Love your comment on long term effects of fishing pressure. Questions that I have in my head below. More to come. But a couple I have been thinking about…
Do we need to, as anglers, limit the number of fish caught per day? Per week? Per year?
7K Rainbows per mile in the Mo right now. Historic HIGH. 40% more Brown Trout per/mile in 2024. Not historic highs, but almost. Brown Trout Numbers one 1K per/mile. Most Rainbows per mile, ever. Truth. Historic averages for the past 60 years approx 3K Rainbow/mile, 750 Brown Trout/mile.
Should we limit number of hook-ups per day?
Should we as anglers close the river for a period every year? During the spawn? All winter? In light of the historic high numbers? Number of trout go up, and down. Historically based on water flows in the spring. High water years produce more trout babies. Lower water yers just the opposite, going in at average trout population numbers. That is the factor that fish and trout scientists here on the MO point to annually as population numbers are calculated in spring and fall.
Show me science that fishing pressure harms trout numbers.
I can show science that low water/low oxygen, river structure/bank conditions, fertilizers in the ecosystem harm fish reproduction numbers.
Catch and Release techniques and how to improve them? Education of all anglers, fly or otherwise.
Limit total number of user days? Currently on the Mo 79% non commercial, 21% commercial use. Non angling use far outweighs angler use. Truth. From Montana FWP, creel surveys, etc. Real numbers. Does non-angling pressure hurt fish populations? Just plain river use, does it curtail trout happiness?
Barbless hooks all the time? Does that help trout populations?
Do commercial users treat the trout any differently than public fishing release styles/techniques? Does the boot and release technique employed by some hurt trout?
Can we educate all anglers to help this cause?
187K user days in 2002 on the Mo. 189K user days in 2015. Big dip between those two dates drooping to 70K user days in the drought period 2001-2007. Facts from Montana FWP. Currently? Survey accessed below shows 205K.
Summer pressure almost equal non resident to resident anglers. Overall 12 month totals show 2 or 3 to 1 resident over non resident on our resource.
We see/feel fishing pressure in the mid summer May-late July. Just like a popular restaurant sees pressure 6-8pm. If you don’t like pressure, dine/fish during the slower people/pressure periods. Black and white on this one.
Montana FWP Angling Pressure Surveys here https://fwp.mt.gov/fish/pressure-surveys
2021 Survey here https://fwp.mt.gov/binaries/content/assets/fwp/fish/angling-pressure-surveys/2021/angler-pressure-survey-summary-2021.pdf
Mark, I think the comment about limiting hookups per day is valid. We have a generation of fisherman that think it is okay to catch and release 20-30 fish per day. There is mortality with C&R, according to some studies it can reach 20+ % when a fish has been caught 3-4 times (which is happening in the Missouri). Also there are studies showing that the stress of being caught can cause stunting in fish. Might be why I believe the population is the okay, but there definitely are less big fish over 20 inches that I saw as a teenager fishing the river in the 70’s? Definitely less native whitefish also, I remember fishing pods of whitefish numbering 50 fish 55 years ago. Just don’t see that now. In AK guides are required to report certain fish species caught each day online. Think of the info that could be gathered in a few years if the pro’s (guides) had to report online catch numbers and species. Information that could be used by your industry to dis-spell miss information or implement new strategies. It also might go a long way for public relations for the outfitters. All for a few minutes of time reporting on an app! I believe barblesss hooks are not necessary yet in the Missouri, as there are non fly fisherman who would appose it. Barbed hooks are more effective for walleye and pike which need caught in the system. Online apps could also possibly reduce crowding if launches by all boats and crafts had to report on an app. That info could be instantly available to users and might help in dispersing crowds. I might decide to launch at pelican point if I could see that 20 rafters had just launched at mid-canyon??? Anyway just a few ideas to ponder.
Thanks Bryan. Truly appreciate the discourse. All food for thought, and hopefully some for implementation.
Good questions and valid points Mark. I won’t claim to have the answers, only more questions.
Even in a stable river system populations fluctuate and cycle. We are blessed with high numbers currently. My question is how do we keep it?
Without getting into all the uncertainties we face with weather, water, angling and non-angling pressure, etc., I’ll just share an observation from 20+ years in natural resource management (not fisheries). We tend to be reactive in our management, not proactive. I’ve been spending a lot of time and energy trying to change that, trying to focus on protecting the good, and not spending resources on fixing what we’ve lost. Preventative care vs. Restoration. But this is a major course correction. People dislike change and are risk averse.
The car analogy would be that we tend to drive with the engine light on and only go to the shop when the car breaks down. The Mo’s obviously not broke down, we have record numbers and the fishing is good. The engine light isn’t on either. But IMHO it is on other MT rivers, the Big Hole, Gallatin, and Jefferson come to mind but there may be others some would add to the list.
So what preventative care do we need to keep the engine light off and the car running smoothly? I think that is the question we should be asking ourselves and the resource managers. And the easy ones, say barbless hooks, we should adopt now proactively while we can. Just my $.02.
Love it all. Thank you for the comment. Good comments!