East Gallatin River

East Gallatin River
East Gallatin River near Belgrade, Montana
Country	Gallatin County, Montana, United States
Basin
Main source	45°39′51″N 110°57′10″W / 45.66417°N 110.95278°W
River mouth	Nixon Gap 4,157 feet (1,267 m)[1] 45°53′30″N 111°20′01″W / 45.89167°N 111.33361°WCoordinates: 45°53′30″N 111°20′01″W / 45.89167°N 111.33361°W[1]
River system	Missouri River
Basin size	148 square miles (380 km^2)[2] (Gallatin Range, Bridger Range)
Physical characteristics
Length	42 miles (68 km)

The East Gallatin River flows 42 miles (68 km) in a northwesterly direction through the Gallatin valley, Gallatin County, Montana. Rising from the confluence of Rocky Creek and several other small streams, the East Gallatin begins about one mile (1.6 km) east of downtown Bozeman, Montana. The river joins the main stem of the Gallatin River 2.3 miles (3.7 km) north of Manhattan, Montana. Throughout its course, the river traverses mostly valley floor ranch and farm land with typical summer flows of approximately 50 cu ft/s (1.4 m³/s)^[3]

Angling the East Gallatin

The East Gallatin river is a popular trout fishing stream and holds good populations of rainbow and brown trout as well as mountain whitefish. Access is limited to country road crossings and two public assess sites maintained by the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks department.^[4] Numerous spring creeks, most notably Ben Hart and Thompson, feed the East Gallatin throughout its course and provide excellent trout fishing as well.

• 
  East Gallatin River near Bozeman, Montana in Winter
• 
  Typical East Gallatin River rainbow trout (Released)
• 
  Typical East Gallatin River brown trout (Released)
• 
  Ben Hart Spring Creek on the MZ Ranch near Belgrade, MT
• 
  Thompson Spring Creek on the MZ Ranch near Belgrade, MT
• 
  Kayak fishing on the East Gallatin
• 
  East Gallatin River near Swamp Road, September 2008
• 
  President Barack Obama and local fishing guide Dan Vermillion fish the East Gallatin River August 14, 2009

See also

• List of rivers of Montana
• Montana Stream Access Law
• Fly fishing

References

• Holt, John (1996). Montana Fly-Fishing Guide-East. Guilford, CT: The Lyons Press. ISBN 1-58574-529-4.

Notes

1. "East Gallatin River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
2. "USGS Streamgage statistics-East Gallatin River". USGS. Retrieved 2012-06-18.
3. USGS Montana Streamflow Data
4. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks—E. Gallatin River