Fred Robinson Bridge -- Historical Postcard Photo
The Missouri River is the longest river in the United States. It rises in the bitterroot range of the Rocky Mountains in Southwestern Montana and at the confluence of the Madison, Jefferson, and Gallatin Rivers in Three Forks, Montana it officially becomes the "Mighty Mo". The river then flows 2,341 miles before entering the Mississippi River north of St. Louis, Missouri. Catfish lurk within its bank in Montana from Morony Dam (18 miles east of Great Falls) all the way to Fort Peck Reservoir. Catfish can also be caught below Fort Peck Dam to the North Dakota border.
Trophy catfishing is particulary strong from the mouth of the Judith River eastward all the way to Fort Peck Reservoir, but large Catfish have also been known to inhabit these waters westward to the mouth of the Marias River. The most popular public access east of Morony Dam is the James Kipp Recreation Area located near the historic Fred Robinson Bridge. Catfishing picks up in mid-April as the weather begins to warm and catfish look to migrate upstream from Fort Peck Reservoir looking to spawn. Catfish in the teens are very common in this stretch with 20+ pounders possible, if not probable, on any given trip. Three popular camping and/or public fishing access sites are available at James Kipp (Fred Robinson), Slippery Ann, and Rock Creek heading eastward towards the Reservoir. Both James Kipp and Rock Creek feature fully functioning concrete boat ramps.
Below Fort Peck Dam, the cold water release generated from the Fort Peck powerhouses create an area that is more condusive to Trout than it is to Channel Catfish, but it doesn't entirely deter the Cats either. It is common to be able to catch a limit of eater-size Channel Cats in an afternoon on the "Dredge Cuts" near the town of Fort Peck with some of those fish being in the 6 lb. range. There is also very limited years where water is released from the Reservoir down the Fort Peck spillway and those unique instances can create trophy catfishing from the "pool" to the mouth of the spillway channel where it enters back into the main river. The Milk River, Poplar River, and Redwater River all feed the Missouri downstream of Fort Peck Dam. Do not discount any of these waters when fishing the lower Missouri. The Milk and Poplar have their own dedicated pages on this site, but the Redwater has also been known to harbor big whisker fish. The last mile of the Redwater from the concrete slab crossing to its mouth is a place to tangle with Cats that might push into the teens. As for the main channel; Cats bigger than 10 pounds begin to appear once again as you near the eastern Montana town of Culbertson. The Culbertson bridge fishing access site is maintainted by Fish, Wildlife, and Parks and has a concrete boat ramp available for public use. Great catfishing is available heading eastward to the Montana-North Dakota border. The "confluence" of the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers is located just five miles east of the state line.
Above Information from Montana Cats Staff.
