Upper And Middle Reaches Of The Big Hole River Open To Angling

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The middle and upper reaches of the Big Hole River, 47 miles in length, closed to angling since this summer, were reopened today by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks’ Director Pat Graham, acting with authority delegated to him by the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission. The reopening of the middle and upper reaches of the river is effective immediately. The 73.7 mile lower reach of the Big Hole River reopened to fishing Sept. 27. "I want to express my appreciation to irrigators and anglers for the sacrifices they made during the drought," Pat Graham said. "The closing of this river protected the Arctic grayling there and the gains made in the last couple of years toward recovery of this important species." The Big Hole River holds the last remaining native population of river-dwelling Arctic grayling in the lower 48 states. Introductions of grayling into some Missouri River tributaries have recently been made to expand its present range. The reopening of the river to fishing came today as a result of water-flow increases. The gauge at Wisdom, on the upper reach, shows flows have been above 40 cfs since Oct. 2, meeting the criteria for opening the river to angling that is specified in the Big Hole River Drought Management Plan. Flows on the middle reach have also increased substantially and irrigation and stock-water diversions have decreased. The Big Hole Drought Management Plan was developed by the Big Hole Watershed Committee, a group of volunteers representing agriculture, municipalities, business, conservationists, anglers and federal, state and local agencies. The upper reach of the Big Hole River, a 19-mile stretch, was closed June 29 and the middle reach, a 28-mile stretch, was closed July 25. The closures were the result of extremely low summer flows that put severe stress on the river’s Arctic grayling.