Ruby River 

The Ruby River originates at the convergence of its East, West, and Middle Forks and runs in a northwesterly direction for 97 miles. In its upper section, the river flows through Beaverhead - Deerlodge National Forest between the Gravelly and Snowcrest mountain ranges. Fourteen miles downstream it veers gradually west to run alongside the Ruby Range and into Ruby River Reservoir, which was built in 1939 to store irrigation water. The upper basin’s grasslands, historically a summer range for American bison, bighorn sheep, pronghorns, and grizzly, are prone to erosion and mass wasting, leading to turbid water flows in the river. Below Ruby Reservoir the stream meanders past Alder and just west of Nevada and Virginia cities, three of Montana’s historic gold mining towns. The Ruby completes its last 45 miles below the Ruby River Dam in a wide, open agricultural valley and joins the Beaverhead River near Twin Bridges, Montana. Gravel roads which parallel the upper river allow excellent access. Hunting, camping, timber harvesting, and mining join fishing, and cattle and sheep grazing as traditional uses supported by the Ruby River.

Total Length:  97 miles
FWP Region:  Region 3
Fishing District:  Central Fishing District

¹  Estimated yearly fishing use in angler days (one angler fishing one body of water in one day for any amount of time).

²  The number of times that a section of water was reported as having been fished (used to estimate the number of "Days Fished").

³  How this section of water ranked among all surveyed sections in the state or region, based on "Days Fished" in a survey year.

Please send us your comments or questions about the Montana Fishing Guide.