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There's good news for fish and fisherfolk on the Bitterroot and Clark Fork rivers, bad news for both on the Jefferson and Big Hole and a draw on Rock Creek, where fishing and every other form of water-based recreation are closed because of fire.

In something of a surprise, officials from the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks will reopen the Clark Fork and Bitterroot rivers to fishing in the afternoon and evening starting Saturday. Those rivers were shut down to fishing from 2 p.m. to midnight in mid-July after water temperatures soared during a run of 100-degree days. At the time, officials said it was likely the rivers would stay closed into September.

But given a spell of cooler nights and less-hot days, water temperatures in both rivers have dropped below 70 degrees for three straight days. That's the trigger point for reopening the waterways.

The Bitterroot has been closed downstream from Tucker Crossing near Victor, and the Clark Fork has been closed from Warm Springs to its confluence with the Flathead River near Plains. Both rivers will reopen as of Saturday.

A few other streams in western Montana remain closed, however. The entire main stem of the Blackfoot is closed under “hoot owl” regulations from 2 p.m. to midnight. Its tributaries - Morrell, Cottonwood, Copper, Gold and Belmont creeks and the Landers and North forks of the river - are closed all the time. Rattlesnake Creek is closed from Beeskove Creek to the Clark Fork confluence, and Fish Creek is closed downstream from the Forks campground to the Clark Fork confluence.

Rock Creek also is closed to fishing, but a new closure was added Wednesday. All recreation - including swimming and boating - is closed below Stony Creek and Windlass Bridge because helicopters are drawing water from the creek to fight fires burning along the creek.

That closure will remain in place until the creek is no longer needed for fire suppression.

As the Clark Fork and Bitterroot come open, the Big Hole and Jefferson are shutting down. FWP officials said flows in those rivers have become too low and are now threatening the rivers' populations of wild trout and grayling.

The Big Hole closure covers 102 miles of river from the mouth of the North Fork - about 15 miles north of Wisdom - to the mouth near Twin Bridges. The Big Hole was previously closed above the North Fork due to low flows.

The Jefferson is now closed for its entire 77 miles, from Twin Bridges to Three Forks.

“This closure is part of the cooperative effort between irrigators, anglers and outfitters to get our fisheries resources through these tough drought times, and we want to acknowledge and thank all of them for their efforts,” said Bruce Rich, FWP's regional fisheries manager for the area.

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