The Swan River is a freestone river in Montana, listed as Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey) by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.
1 USGS gauge on the water reports flow. 6 guides and 2 shops nearby are listed here.
Swan River is a freestone river in Montana.
Pick one of its USGS gauges and hear from us when the flow moves into or out of its usual range for the date, or crosses a flow you set. We check the public USGS reading every 2 hours and email only when it crosses, at most once every 6 hours. Flow alone is not a fishing forecast or a safety call.
Signed in: one step. Otherwise we email a confirmation link first. Every alert has one-click links to stop it.
Start from the agency's public access map. Nothing on this page grants or implies access: check the agency map, posted signs and landowner permission before you fish.
Nothing on this page grants or implies access.
Gauges, shops and guides within 40 miles
Map of Swan River: gauges, shops and guides
Map of Swan River with 1 USGS gauge, and shops and guides with an exact address within 40 miles.
Restrooms within 2 miles of Swan River in a straight line, nearest first, with what anglers found when they went. The map says a restroom is there, not whether it is clean or open today.
No restroom mapped within 2 mi yet — add one you know.
Campgrounds, fishing access sites and boat ramps often have one that isn't on the map yet.
Restroom locations and map details: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License, read Oct 24, 2026. Ratings, answers and photos are members' own; who shared them is never shown, and every photo is reviewed before it appears. Visits older than 18 months no longer count. Distances are straight-line miles, not driving. Nothing here grants access to private land. Community guidelines.
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Echo LakeEnnis Lake, Montana, in March, with the Madison Range beyond. Photo: Gloria Cabada-Leman, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr Not Echo Lake.
Montana · about 8 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Swan LakeHenrys Lake from Henrys Lake State Park, Idaho. Photo: James Postema, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Swan Lake.
Montana · about 8 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Flathead LakeLake Billy Chinook, Oregon. Photo: icetsarina, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Flathead Lake.
Montana · about 12 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Church SloughEagle Lake, Lassen County, California, with dry Horse Lake in the foreground (aerial). Photo: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Church Slough.
Montana · about 13 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Hungry Horse ReservoirCrowley Lake and the Long Valley Caldera from US 395. Photo: Clinton Steeds, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Hungry Horse Reservoir.
Montana · about 14 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Lake BlaineNavajo Lake from Navajo Lake State Park, New Mexico. Photo: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Lake Blaine.
Montana · about 17 mi
Seasons, limits, special regulations and closures for each reach are on the agency pages below. Read them before you go.
Each comes from the agency's own published list; where the list names a reach it is quoted. A designation applies to the listed reach, not necessarily the whole water. Listed in the finder under trout.
On the Montana's most-fished waters (FWP statewide angling pressure estimates, 2023 license year, top 250 by state rank) list (Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, read 2026-11-05). All waters with this designation
On the District Exceptions to Standard Regulations (trout / gear rules) list (Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, read 2026-11-05). All waters with this designation
Measured from the NHDPlus High Resolution (flowlines and waterbodies) (U.S. Geological Survey, read 2026-11-04) for this water’s own mapped feature. Rounded figures; they describe the channel, not today’s conditions.
Areas the Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), public access (U.S. Geological Survey, Gap Analysis Project, read 2026-11-05) lists as owned or held in easement and open to the public, crossed by the mapped channel. Boundaries are mapped, not surveyed. Nothing on this page grants or implies access: check the agency map, posted signs and landowner permission before you fish.
27.4 of 90 mi on public land
Nothing on this page grants or implies access.
Listings marked Unclaimed are built from open map records and the business's own website: confirm licensing, rates, dates and hours directly.
1 guide name it on their website
Bigfork, MT · 1 mi
Float trips · Drift boat · Flathead & Swan
Names this water
Columbia Falls, MT · 27 mi
Float trips · Drift boat · Missouri & Flathead
Nearby
Columbia Falls, MT · 28 mi
Float trips · Drift boat · Blackfoot & Clark Fork
Nearby
West Glacier, MT · 32 mi
Float trips · Raft trips · Flathead River
Nearby
Kalispell, MT · 19 mi
Fly shop · Guided trips · Casting lessons & classes
What 6 nearby guide websites mention: what guides advertise, not a survey or a promise of what you will catch.
Named on 6 nearby guide websites
5 hatches charted for the region, not measured on this water. From Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.
Mother's Day caddis (Grannom) (May) · Salmonfly (May to June) · Salmonfly (May to July) · Salmonfly (July) · Trico (August to September)
None of our destination hubs is within 40 miles in a straight line. The trip planner builds a trip around the water itself: the guides and shops listed within 40 miles of it, its gauges and its nearest towns and airports.
No hub within 40 miles
A wade-fishing checklist for big western trout rivers: a 9 ft 5–6 weight outfit, nymph, dry and streamer setups, waders, boots and a wading staff, with estimated prices by tier and where to buy.
9′ rod, 5–6 weight, floating line · Rainbow and brown trout, whitefish
Open the checklistSeams, shelves and soft water, shown on real rivers.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
Not sponsored All videos on reading water
Indicator rigs, depth and detecting the take.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
Not sponsored All videos on nymphing
Trip stories anglers chose to share publicly and tagged with Swan River.
No stories from here yet.
Not a statement of access, fish presence or conditions.
A water page organises discovery. It does not assert public access, legal access, current fish presence, guide availability or fishing conditions.
Flows, gauge statistics and flood stages come from USGS and the National Weather Service when the page is shown. Regulations, stocking, species and season statements link to the agency that publishes them; this page copies only the species names and the quoted sentences. Guide and shop listings come from the Legendary directories. Position: the USGS gauge Swan River near Bigfork, MT. Water type is our own classification.
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Echo LakeEnnis Lake, Montana, in March, with the Madison Range beyond. Photo: Gloria Cabada-Leman, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr Not Echo Lake.
Montana · about 8 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Swan LakeHenrys Lake from Henrys Lake State Park, Idaho. Photo: James Postema, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Swan Lake.
Montana · about 8 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Flathead LakeLake Billy Chinook, Oregon. Photo: icetsarina, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Flathead Lake.
Montana · about 12 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Church SloughEagle Lake, Lassen County, California, with dry Horse Lake in the foreground (aerial). Photo: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Church Slough.
Montana · about 13 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Hungry Horse ReservoirCrowley Lake and the Long Valley Caldera from US 395. Photo: Clinton Steeds, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Hungry Horse Reservoir.
Montana · about 14 mi
Among the state's most-fished waters (agency angler survey)Representative photo · not Lake BlaineNavajo Lake from Navajo Lake State Park, New Mexico. Photo: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Lake Blaine.
Montana · about 17 mi
Bigfork, Montana
Fishing lodge · 4.9 mi
Bigfork, Montana
River cabins · 5.0 mi
Bigfork, Montana
B&B · 5.1 mi
