[REVISION HISTORY]

US western river trout protection amid heat, fire

Updated 4 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

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2026-08-01 22:49 UTC → 2026-08-01 23:32 UTC · added ~~removed~~

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks extended its daily “hoot‑owl” fishing restrictions on July 29 2026 for the Big Hole, Blackfoot, Clark Fork and Bitterroot systems after water temperatures repeatedly hit 73 °F, and kept full‑day closures within 100 yards of the mouths of Fish Creek, Rattlesnake Creek and the St. Regis River to protect bull trout. Yellowstone National Park now closes all rivers to fishing between sunrise and 2 p.m., a rule that will stay in place until water temperatures and stream flows improve. The park’s afternoon bans echo similar measures in Montana, where 24 rivers covering about 1,200 miles are subject to the “hoot‑owl” closures. Colorado Parks and Wildlife has instituted voluntary closures on more than 400 miles of river and warned that mandatory bans could be triggered if water temperatures rise above 71 °F, streamflows fall below 50 % of average, or dissolved‑oxygen levels drop under 6 ppm. Recent readings on the Colorado, Rio Grande and Arkansas rivers have already exceeded 70 °F, a threshold that markedly increases mortality for catch‑and‑release trout. Arizona Game and Fish officials are urging anglers to seek cooler, higher‑elevation waters as valley streams become too warm for safe fishing. By the end of July, heat‑driven restrictions spread across the U.S. West. Colorado imposed afternoon bans on 19 rivers (≈635 miles), describing the situation as unprecedented. Officials link the pattern to a warming climate, an unusually dry winter and widespread drought, making such protective bans increasingly routine throughout the region. By July 31, record heat pushed water temperatures to lethal levels for trout, prompting wildlife agencies to broaden hour‑based bans. Montana expanded its afternoon “hoot‑owl” closures to more than 1,200 miles of streams, while Colorado’s restrictions now cover 19 rivers. Yellowstone widened its sunrise‑to‑2 p.m. ban to all park waterways.

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