Hoot-Owl Restrictions In Place on the Madison River

July 5, 2025 By: Phil Monahan

A Madison River brown trout. Photo: Phil Monahan

A couple weeks ago, we posted about “hoot owl” restrictions in western Yellowstone National Park, and now you can add stretches of the Madison River outside the park to the same list. Here’s the announcement from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks:

Hoot owl restrictions (fishing prohibited 2:00 p.m. to midnight) are in effect for the Madison River – from Hebgen Reservoir to upstream most Yellowstone National Park boundary starting June 19.

Water temperatures exceeded 73 degrees in this reach of the Madison River for three consecutive days starting on June 15.​ 

Hoot owl restrictions (fishing prohibited 2:00 p.m. to midnight) are in effect for the lower Madison River – from Warm Springs BLM day-use area to the confluence with the Jefferson River starting July 2.

Water temperatures exceeded 73 degrees in this reach of the Madison River for three consecutive days starting on June 28.​

Writing in Hatch Magazine, Chris Hunt puts these closures in context and offers some advice for what anglers can do.

Click here for the article in Hatch