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Clark Canyon Reservoir Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

A Bureau of Reclamation reservoir about 11 miles south of Dillon that Montana FWP stocks with rainbow trout every summer, at the head of the Beaverhead River.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
111 cfs
Air / High
43 / 47 F
Wind
W 12 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 06016000, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Clark Canyon Reservoir fishes cold and honest: earn your bites in the deep stuff. The release below the dam is running 111 cfs, on the rise. Today brings cloud cover, wind W around 12 mph, rising pressure near 1009 hPa and a high of 47. Water sits around 47 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 10:09 AM-12:09 PM and 10:39 PM-12:39 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutExcellent

In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Brown troutExcellent

Below 50Β°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

Tomorrow: Similar at 46 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Montana requires a fishing licence from age 12, from $31.00 for residents. What a Montana licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing rainbow trout here? Check the size and bag limits with FWP before you keep anything. The season dates for Montana, read off the agency, are on the Montana seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Beaverhead River at Barretts (below dam).

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 06016000.

7690104111 cfs09/2310/0610/1510/23

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp43 F
High / Low47 / 32 F
WindW 12-16 mph
Pressure1009.3 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 100%
Sunrise / Sunset07:57 / 18:32
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~47 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Clark Canyon Reservoir this week

Today is the pick of the week on Clark Canyon Reservoir, at 3 out of 5.

Best day this week: today, Oct 23 β€” fair at 3/5, rising pressure behind a front, typically the slowest.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
10:09 AM-12:09 PM and 10:39 PM-12:39 AM
Minor period
4:34 AM-5:34 AM
Sun
07:57 to 18:32
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Rain, 15 mph
Rain chance
100%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Clark Canyon Reservoir: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Spring along Great Lakes shorelines; low light and overcast days in rivers; fall spawning runs

A European trout first stocked in the US in 1883 and now fished in rivers and lakes nationwide; it tolerates warmer water than other trout, and mature stream fish feed mostly at night. Below 50Β°F, fish slowly through the deeper pools; in early spring on the Great Lakes, Michigan DNR notes browns are often caught inshore before other species start biting.

When to come: the Clark Canyon Reservoir calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Rainbow trout
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 47 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Clark Canyon Reservoir today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 64 F, wind to 21 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 64 F, wind to 20 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 63 F, wind to 9 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Montana requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Montana fishing license required. Clark Canyon Reservoir is in FWP's Central Fishing District: see the current Montana Fishing Regulations for limits on the reservoir and for the Beaverhead River below the dam. FWP lists a fish consumption advisory for this water.

Access

Reclamation campgrounds, four boat launch ramps and a low-water ramp around the reservoir, about 11 miles south of Dillon via I-15 (Reclamation).

About this water

A Bureau of Reclamation reservoir of 4,935 surface acres (Reclamation) on the Beaverhead River, Beaverhead County, Montana.

Fishing Clark Canyon Reservoir: the full guide

The reservoir

Clark Canyon Reservoir sits on the Beaverhead River south of Dillon, behind a dam administered by the Bureau of Reclamation. Reclamation gives it 4,935 surface acres and 17 miles of shoreline, while Montana FWP's FishMT database lists 4,815 acres at an elevation of about 5,546 feet. Reclamation describes the fishing as good for rainbow and brown trout.

What FWP stocks

FWP's stocking record shows rainbow trout planted every summer from at least 2019 through 2026, mostly Eagle Lake strain fingerlings with some Arlee and Gerrard fish, from the Bluewater Springs, Big Springs and Giant Springs hatcheries. The latest plant listed is about 154,000 Eagle Lake rainbows on July 30, 2026. Brown trout do not appear in the stocking record. FWP estimated roughly 14,000 to 33,000 angler days a year between 2017 and 2021.

Facilities and history

Reclamation lists nine campgrounds with 96 sites, four boat launch ramps plus a low-water ramp, a marina concession, a swimming beach and a picnic area with shelters, and charges no entrance, camping, launch or parking fees. Camp Fortunate, where the Lewis and Clark Expedition met the Lemhi Shoshone and Sacagawea was reunited with her people, has an interpretive site at the reservoir.

Below the dam

The river leaving the dam is the Beaverhead. The flow gauge on this page is USGS 06016000, Beaverhead River at Barretts, which sits downstream of the dam and reflects releases; FishMT lists no gauging station on the reservoir itself. FWP has a fish consumption advisory for Clark Canyon, so read its guidelines before keeping fish to eat.

Common questions

What fish live in Clark Canyon Reservoir?

Reclamation names rainbow and brown trout. Rainbows are the stocked fish: FWP's record lists summer plants of Eagle Lake, Arlee and Gerrard strains.

Are there fees at the reservoir?

Reclamation lists no entrance, campground, picnic, boat-launch or parking fees.

Where is the flow gauge?

On the Beaverhead River at Barretts (USGS 06016000), below the dam. FWP's FishMT lists no gauge on the reservoir.

Is fishing good at Clark Canyon Reservoir right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Beaverhead River27 miBig Hole River44 miMadison River61 miEnnis Lake65 miHenrys Lake76 miHebgen Lake79 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 06016000 β€” Beaverhead River at Barretts (below dam)
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 18:15 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 45.0000, -112.8700 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.