Core river · Late spring through fall
Yellowstone River
Gardiner through Livingston to Columbus. Long freestone runs, spring Baetis and caddis, summer hoppers, and streamers through fall. It runs right through town.
Swan's Fly Fishing · Livingston, Montana
Guided fly fishing near Livingston & Bozeman, Montana
Year-round, owner-operated trips on the Yellowstone River, the Paradise Valley spring creeks, the Madison, and the freestones and private lakes in between. Twenty-five minutes east of Bozeman.
Livingston, MT
25 min from Bozeman
Year-round
Montana Outfitter #26324
Full dayFlies, tackle, rods if needed, drinks & riverside lunch$700
Half dayMorning or afternoon · snacks included$600
Spring creek walk/wadeDePuy's & Armstrong's · rod fees additional$700
Yellowstone National ParkWhen available · park permit additional$750
Per boat, 1–2 anglers per guide. Gratuity and Montana fishing licenses not included. Full rates & policies
How we fish
Not a single-river program
Swan's Fly Fishing is based in Livingston, where the Yellowstone River leaves Paradise Valley and turns east. From here it is a short drive to the spring creeks, an hour to the Madison, and a reasonable morning to the Boulder, Stillwater, Shields, and Bighorn. That range is the point.
Days are matched to the water fishing best for the season, the conditions, and the people in the boat. Bozeman visitors, Livingston locals, and destination anglers all start the same way: a conversation about dates, goals, and the kind of day that makes sense.
Most trips are limited to two anglers per guide. Early contact gives the best chance of lining up the right guide, water, and timing for your group.
Start here
Choose the kind of day you want
Most groups fit one of three paths. The closest match is enough to start the conversation.
Full & half days
Guided fly fishing
Wade and float trips on the Yellowstone, the spring creeks, the Madison, private lakes, and other regional water. One rate covers the best option for your date.
Guided days overview
Non-anglers welcome
Scenic wooden boat tours
Private wooden dory floats through Paradise Valley with Montana Classic Boat Tours. The natural add-on for mixed groups where not everyone wants a full fishing day.
View wooden boat tours
Beginners & families
Instruction
Casting and fishing instruction on real water for beginners, families, and anglers who want cleaner mechanics. Taught by an FFI Certified Casting Instructor.
Instruction optionsWhere we fish
The waters around Livingston, Bozeman & Paradise Valley
No need to pick a river in advance. Dates and goals get matched to the right water based on flows, clarity, weather, and what the group wants from the day.
Technical · Year-round
DePuy's & Armstrong's Spring Creeks
World-famous Paradise Valley spring creeks just south of Livingston. Clear water, steady flows, and sight fishing to rising trout twelve months a year.
Freestone pocket water · Seasonal windows
Stillwater, Boulder & Shields
Fast, fun small-river fishing within easy range of Livingston. Each fishes best in a specific window, and the feel is nothing like a big-river float.
Calm water · Families & new anglers
Private lakes & stillwaters
Quiet private water near Livingston for a relaxed half day of casting practice and presentation. A good complement to river days on a multi-day trip.
Shoulder seasons · October through April
Fall, winter & spring
Fewer anglers, flexible timing, and some of the most consistent sight fishing of the year on the spring creeks and the Lower Madison.
This season
Fall and winter are when the spring creeks shine
Once the summer crowds leave, DePuy's and Armstrong's settle into clear, steady water with midges and Baetis on the surface most afternoons. The Lower Madison fishes through winter too. Shorter days, no wind to speak of in the mornings, and often the whole creek to yourselves.
Late winter & spring special
A reduced seasonal rate on spring creek and Lower Madison days. Booked with extra flexibility: if conditions turn, the day moves with no change fee.
See the special
Yellowstone rowing classes
Private one- or two-person rowing instruction on the Yellowstone in drift boats, rafts, or wooden dories. Best window is March through June, so book early.
View rowing classes
DePuy's Spring Creek · Paradise Valley
Better mechanics, better days
Learn
Instruction built around real Montana water
Repeatable skills and better decisions on the river, for Livingston locals and Bozeman visitors alike.
Casting & fishing instruction
Casting fundamentals, line control, reading water, fly selection, and on-river decision making. For beginners, families, and anglers who want cleaner mechanics on the Yellowstone and the spring creeks.
Instruction optionsMontana Trout Camp
Multi-day, small-group instruction focused on rigging, presentation, reading water, and technical trout fishing across changing conditions on Southwest Montana rivers.
Montana Trout Camp
Matt Swan · Owner & head guide
Who you'll fish with
Owner-operated, with a small bench of guides we trust
Matt Swan's guiding foundation was built on the Colorado River at Lees Ferry, then split between Northern California trout and steelhead with The Fly Shop in Redding and summers in Montana. He has been based full time in Livingston for years, with a calm teaching style that works for beginners, mixed groups, and anglers who want clear takeaways.
Montana Licensed Outfitter #26324
FFI Certified Casting Instructor
Trout Unlimited Business Member
Guiding for the Future graduate
Guides: Matt Swan · Sam Spector · Chris Gerono · Bill Schoonover · Matt Kelly · Dewey Seibert. Every guide fishes the same conditions well; the differences are in style, pacing, and the kind of day each is especially good at.
As seen on KTVQ · Channel 7 Montana
"Unique wooden boat tour paddles through Paradise"
Channel 7's Out and About crew spent a day on the Yellowstone in the wooden boats. If you want a quick look at the river, the boats, and the pace of a day with us, this is the place to start.
Guest reviews
What anglers say
Matt guided us for several days recently while on a trip to Montana. I am relatively new to fly fishing and he was very patient with me, helped a ton on my casting and kept us smiling the entire time. We will be back.
Morgan H.
Best winter fishing experience we have ever had. Quiet water, clear sight shots and Matt put us on fish all day.
Doug · Returning winter angler
More reviews on Google: search "Swan's Fly Fishing Livingston MT"
From the journal
Planning and instruction reading
Spring creeks · Winter
Winter on the Paradise Valley spring creeks
Why winter sight fishing on DePuy's and Armstrong's is worth the trip, how days are picked, and what to expect from a cold-weather creek day.
Read the postFly fishing education
Why spring creeks make more complete anglers
Clear water, steady flows, and trout that don't forgive sloppy drifts. An essay on how spring creek days sharpen skills that carry to every trout river.
Read the postFishing report · Late winter
The winter-to-spring window on the Yellowstone, spring creeks & Madison
A late-winter report from the Yellowstone floats, the Paradise Valley creeks, and the Madison near Bozeman, and why this window is often better than people expect.
Read the post
Ready when you are
Tell us your dates. We'll pick the water.
Full day $700, half day $600, per boat for one or two anglers. Flies, tackle, and rods included. Trips run year-round out of Livingston, 25 minutes from Bozeman.
Swan's Fly Fishing · Livingston, Montana · Montana Licensed Outfitter #26324
FROM AROUND SOUTHWEST MONTANA
Stories From the Water AROUND LiVIngston and Bozeman
