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Gallatin River

The Gallatin River is formed in Yellowstone Park and has ten highway accessible miles while in the park's boundary. This water is classic trout stream water, a beautiful meandering meadow stream complete with undercut banks, nice pocket water, and gravel bars to make some considerable trout habitat. It is a great river to spend a day on while getting used to fishing in the area, as there are plenty of trout on which to warm up and brush up on some of the skills it will take to fish some of the other waters. It is not too wide which makes it an excellent wading river and access is 100% for the park stretch. Below the park and also the Taylor's Fork, the river is a little bigger and more susceptible to muddying up after summer storms. If planning a trip down lower, make sure to check out the water and weather conditions before committing to buying the Montana fishing license over the park license. It changes a bit down here as it winds through Gallatin Canyon and past Big Sky ski resort, and just keeps getting bigger as it continues its journey towards Bozeman. Access is still good throughout this stretch, but there are some sections that are pretty well closed off to walking in from the highway. Stick to the public accesses and stay within the high water mark and you're in good shape to fish wherever you want.