SOT Hosted Spring Creek Trip Information
Here’s everything you need to know as you prepare for our Hosted Spring Creek Trip to Montana in May, 2025.
The Fishing
We have arranged to fish DePuy Spring Creek and Armstrong Spring Creek, along with Nelson’s Spring Creek, in Montana’s Paradise Valley, just south of Livingston, Montana.
The creeks are exceptional private fisheries. That said, they’re also challenging. If you see rising fish — which we expect you will — you’ll need to make a good cast with the right fly, and you’ll need a solid drift. Poor casting or poor drifts with the wrong fly will invariably lead to less-than-optimum results.
While we anticipate strong hatches and plenty of rising trout, you’ll also have the opportunity to fish below the surface. There are times when fishing nymphs, soft hackles or streamers can make your spring creek angling easier and more productive.
Here are links to a few articles which might help you prepare for the trip:
Dates & Times
Anglers should plan to arrive in Montana on Sunday afternoon, May 4th and depart after breakfast on Friday morning, May 9th.
lOdging
Everyone will stay in single rooms at Chico Hot Springs Resort in Pray, Montana. The physical address is 163 Chico Road, Pray, Montana, 59065. (Chico Hot Springs is approximately 40 miles from the northern boundary of Yellowstone National Park.)
Travel
We recommend that attendees fly into Bozeman, MT (BZN), then rent a car for the approximately one hour drive to Chico Hot Springs Resort. (Click HERE for a map.) Your other option is to fly into Billings, MT (BIL), which is a two hour and 15 minute drive.
Check-In
We will e-mail you specific ‘check-in’ information prior to your arrival in Montana.
Montana Fishing license
We ask that you purchase a valid Montana fishing license before your arrive at Chico Hot Springs. Please make sure that your license covers Monday, May 5th through Thursday, May 8th.
Clothing
It’s impossible to predict the exact weather or temperatures in Montana in early May. We recommend that you pack for a wide variety of conditions, with the most likely conditions being cool mornings, somewhat warmer afternoons, and cooler evenings. That means everything from medium-weight shirts and pants to rain gear and heavy jackets. We recommend that you consider clothing from reputable manufacturers like Orvis and Patagonia. Oh, and warm, high quality wool socks are a must for under your waders. (We do not recommend wet wading, as the spring creek water will be very cold.)
If you have specific questions, or if you’d like our personal recommendations on appropriate clothing items, please drop us a note. Keep in mind that spring creek trout can be spooky, and that drab, neutral colors will help you blend in to the background and avoid frightening your quarry. (We suggest that you avoid wearing black or white, or bright colors such as red, yellow and orange while you’re fishing.)
On the chance it might prove helpful, here is a basic clothing list.
Shorts or a bathing suit for soaking in the hot spring at Chico Hot Springs Resort.
Three medium-weight shirts and three medium-weight pairs of pants. (Synthetic rather than cotton.)
Underwear for your stay.
Three pairs of heavyweight wool socks.
Three pairs of lightweight wool or synthetic socks.
Lightweight synthetic long johns.
Heavyweight synthetic long johns.
Three comfortable synthetic fishing shirts or fishing hoodies.
Two pairs of synthetic fishing pants.
A pair of heavy fleece pants to wear under your waders.
One medium-weight fleece jacket or pull-over.
One heavy-weight fleece or puffy jacket.
A high quality rain jacket. (Make sure you bring a rain jacket that’s designed to be worn over waders.)
A fishing hat.
A warm hat.
Gloves.
Warm, comfortable, water-resistant shoes or boots.
Fishing Gear
Ideally, you should arrive with:
A 9’, 5 weight medium or medium-fast action fly rod (4 piece) with a matching reel and weight forward or double taper floating fly line. We also recommend that you bring a 9’ 4 weight medium or medium-fast action rod with a matching reel and line.
Three 7.5’ 3X leaders
Three 9’ 4X leaders
Three 9’ 5X leaders
One spool of tippet material in the following sizes: 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X, 6X, 7X
Nippers
Forceps
Zinger
Magnifiers or reading glasses (if necessary)
A fly fishing vest or sling pack
Waders
Wading boots
Polarized sunglasses
Fly Box
Floatant
Dessicant
Fly drying tube or patch
Wading staff (if necessary)
Net (optional)
Ketchum release tool (optional)
Gear bag or pack
Flies (We’ll share a short list of appropriate flies below.)
There has been an awful lot written about fly rods, reels and lines over the years. Because fly rod preferences are so personal, it’s not always easy to suggest a particular rod or even a particular manufacturer to our students. In general, we ask that you bring a medium to medium-fast action 9’ 4-weight fly rod and a medium to medium-fast 9’ 5-weight fly rod, with a reel that balances the rod and a weight forward or double taper floating line. We do not recommend fast action rods on the spring creeks.
Reputable rod manufacturers include Orvis, Winston, Montana Brothers, Sage, Redington, G.Loomis, Scott, Hardy, St. Croix, McFarland and T&T. Reputable reel manufactures include Nautilus, Abel, Ross, Orvis, Bauer, Hardy, Galvan and Hatch. Reputable line manufacturers include Scientific Anglers, RIO, Cortland, Airflo and Orvis. Reputable leader and tippet manufacturers include TroutHunter, RIO, Orvis, Scientific Anglers and Umpqua.
If you’d like to discuss your tackle choices in detail, please drop us a note and we’ll schedule a phone call.
* Two specific rods that we recommend for this trip are the Montana Brothers 904M and 904L. You can see write-ups here and here.
Flies
The guides will have effective spring creek flies for you to use. You’re also welcome to ask the instructors for a fly that they think might work in a particular situation. And if you already have a selection of spring creek flies, you should bring them with you.
In addition, Jacquie Nelson, of Nelson’s Spring Creek, has put together date and location-specific fly boxes for us in the past. If you’d like to contact Jacquie, you can try her at: nelsonsspringcreek@gmail.com
The most important early May hatches on the creeks are Blue Winged Olives (BWOs) and midges. We may also see a few early caddis.
We anticipate that some of the following choices would be helpful. Please keep in mind that there are a variety of effective mayfly patterns, including emergers, cripples, duns and spinners. Some of our favorites are the Last Chance Cripple (Harrop) and the Sparkle Dun (Mathews & Juracek).
BWOs, sizes 14 - 20
Midge dries & emergers, sizes 16 - 22
Griffiths Gnat, sizes 14 - 20
CDC Caddis, sizes 14 - 18
X-Caddis, sizes 14 - 18
Rusty Spinners, sizes 16 - 20
Adams, sizes 14 - 18
Parachute Adams, sizes 12 - 18
Royal Wulff, sizes 14 - 18
Woolly Buggers, sizes 6 - 12
Leeches, sizes 6 - 12
Pheasant Tail nymphs, sizes 14 - 20
Hare’s Ear nymphs, sizes 14 - 20
Zebra midge, sizes 16 - 20
Scuds (tan, gray or olive), sizes 14 - 18
Soft Hackles, sizes 10 - 18
If you only bring a handful of flies, please consider the following: Last Chance Cripple BWO in size 18 & 20; Sparkle Dun BWO in size 18 & 20; Harrop Hanging Midge in size 18 & 20; Pheasant Tail nymph in size 16, 18 & 20; Zebra Midge in size 16, 18 & 20.
What Else To Bring
Waterproof camera or smart phone
Water bottle (please make sure you bring a large water bottle that also fits into your sling pack or fishing vest)
Thermos or insulated water bottle
Toiletry kit - toothbrush & toothpaste, shampoo, etc.
Sunscreen
Insect repellant
Personal medical supplies, prescriptions, N-95 or KN-95 masks, hand sanitizer, etc. (If you think you might need specific eye drops, lip balm, pain relievers, antacids, vitamins, etc., please bring them with you.)
A small flashlight or headlamp
Ear plugs or noise-cancelling headphones (If you’re a light sleeper, it’s better to have them and not need them than to need them and not have them.)
Reading glasses (if necessary)
Snacks - If you have favorite snacks that you absolutely can’t do without, please bring a supply with you.
A buff or neck gaiter to protect your neck and face from the sun.
Daily Schedule
You should anticipate full days on the hosted trip, with breakfast starting at 7:30 a.m. Lunch will be at mid-day on the creeks, and dinner will typically be an hour or so after we return in the evenings.
We’ll plan to depart for the creeks around 8:45 a.m. each day. Students are welcome to drive themselves — it’s about a 20 minute drive from Chico Hot Springs Resort to Armstrong’s or Depuy’s — or ride with one of the instructors, or with other students.
You’ll be free to enjoy the hot springs after dinner if you so choose.
Packing A Day Bag
Every angler should bring a waterproof or water-resistant bag or pack on the trip. When you head for the creek, we’d suggest having the following with you in that bag.
An extra set of dry clothes, including socks & underwear
A rain jacket
A warm jacket
A warm hat
Gloves
Sunscreen
Bug repellent (you probably won’t need it, but it’s still better to have it along)
Any personal medications you might need (Advil/Tylenol, eye drops, cough drops, etc.)
Toilet paper
Hand sanitizer or sanitizing wipes
A cleaning cloth for eye glasses and sun glasses
Any personal snacks you decide to bring
Food & Drink
We anticipate taking most of our meals as a group. Chico Hot Springs Resort serves a nice breakfast buffet and we hope everyone will join us right at 7:30 am when the dining room first opens in the morning.
We’ll have lunch on-stream every day.
Dinner will either be in the “historic Chico Dining room” or in a private dining room called “the Stone House,” with everyone ordering off the menu. According to the resort:
The historic Dining Room specializes in modern American cuisine. Executive Chef Dave Wells is a James Beard Award semi-finalist for “Best Chef in the Northwest”. We offer fresh, exceptional food, with much of the produce coming from our own garden. We love working with Montana farms and ranches to provide the best ingredients. Our steaks are generous, our seafood is flown in fresh and all of our delectable desserts, such as the Flaming Orange, are all baked in house.
(We had breakfast in the historic Dining Room in both 2023 & 2024, and we ate dinner together in a private room called the “Stone House.” We anticipate the same in 2025, but Chico Hot Springs resort recently changed ownership and there’s always the possibility that things will be a little different this time around.)
We’ll have snacks and drinks available throughout the day. If you have a particular snack that you simply can’t do without, please bring a personal supply with you.
We will provide beer and wine with dinner. You are responsible for purchasing any other alcoholic drinks you order for yourself or others.
Connectivity
Mobile phone service and internet access can be spotty in the Paradise Valley. Please keep that in mind as you plan for the trip.
Tipping
There’s no need to tip the School of Trout instructors. We do ask that you leave a generous gratuity for the guides who help us on the spring creeks, as well as the Chico Hot Springs staff who serve your meals and work overtime to make sure you have a pleasant stay in Montana.
Weather
Montana’s spring weather is impossible to predict. We could see warm and sunny, or cold and stormy, or almost anything in between. The average high temps for the beginning of May are 61 degrees, and the average lows are 34 degrees, but there are never any guarantees when it comes to Montana’s weather. Be sure to pack for a wide variety of conditions, and to have appropriate clothing regardless of the weather.
Physical Activity
We’ll be walking and wading, but we don’t anticipate anything too strenuous. (Please keep in mind that this is a walk & wade trip. The creeks are too small to float, and we will not be fishing from drift boats or rafts.)
hyDRATION
It’s important to stay hydrated when you’re on the water. With that in mind, please bring a stainless steel or plastic water bottle that fits in your fly fishing vest or sling pack, and make sure you fill it and have it with you when you leave Chico Hot Springs each morning. It’s also a good idea to bring an insulated bottle or thermos with you if you enjoy having coffee, tea or hot chocolate during the day. Finally, we’ll have an assortment of drinks with us in our vehicles. If you want something specific, please ask one of the instructors or one of the guides and we’ll do our best to help.
Early arrivals & late departures
We anticipate that some of our anglers will arrive early and/or depart late. If you’re looking for a guide in the Livingston, Montana area either before the trip starts or after we wrap up, please reach out to Brant Oswald at (406) 223-2047. If you’d like to explore local lodging (other than Chico Hot Springs), you might try Nelson’s Spring Creek, which has nice rooms right on their ranch and easy access to their beautiful spring creek. In addition, School of Trout alumnus Carla Lemon has 6 brand new rental cabins just down the road from Chico Hot Springs. Carla’s rental website for the cabins isn’t live yet, but if you want to arrive early or stay on after we wrap up, you’re welcome to contact her at (916) 531-5361. She’d love to have SOT alumni stay at her new cabins.
Trip Insurance
We are not insurance experts, and we do not recommend any specific plan or service, but trip insurance could potentially help you in the event of a problem or last-minute cancellation. From our perspective, trip insurance makes a ton of sense and we strongly suggest that you purchase it. (You can learn more here and here.)
Relevant Personal Information
Please let us know if you have any physical conditions or special dietary requirements that we should be aware of before the trip starts.
Covid-19
Covid-19 remains part of the national landscape. We recommend that everyone be up-to-date on their vaccinations, and that anyone traveling by airplane wears a N-95 or KN-95 mask on their flights to Montana.
Media & Photographers
There’s a chance that we will be taking photos or shooting video on occasion. If you’d prefer not to be photographed, that’s no problem at all. Just let us know ahead of time.
Pre-Trip practice
Please practice your casting before you depart for Montana! You’ll catch more fish, and have more fun, if you’re already casting well when you arrive. If you’d like to avail yourselves of the John Juracek casting videos on the School of Trout website, click here and enter the password: SOT23
Deposit
A 50% deposit is required to secure your spot at our 2025 hosted Spring Creek trip to Montana. If you plan to join us, please make your check for $3475.00 out to the “School of Trout, LLC” and mail it at your earliest convenience to School of Trout, 178 Wolf Creek Ranch Road, Bigfork, MT 59911.
Cancellation Policy
We require half of the cost of the trip as a deposit when an angler is accepted. Until that deposit is received, your attendance is neither confirmed nor guaranteed. The remainder is due on or before March 15th. All payments, including deposits, are nonrefundable unless the School of Trout is able to secure a replacement to fill your spot. If a replacement is found, SOT will offer a full refund, less a 10% cancellation fee. While we will work to find a replacement in the event of a cancellation, we can not guarantee that we will be able to do so. As a result, we recommend that everyone who joins the School of Trout for a trip purchases trip insurance that covers their costs in the event of a cancellation or another problem.
