Public fishing advocates have claimed that newly arrived landowners were closing access to the river at county bridges and denying fishing except to paying customers despite Montana stream access laws that guarantee public access along navigable waters up to the natural high-water mark. Rosenthal says that state estimates of a decline in fishing pressure on the river from around 10,000 angler days to between 3,000 and 4,000 are over-stated. The Ruby access-expansion program comes following a strong recommendation laid out earlier this year in the Lower Ruby Access Plan developed by the citizens Ruby River Task Force. The plan called for lease of four Ruby river public access points from local ranchers and purchase of another. The public access areas became official on August 15.
Indications are that it already has, according to local reports.
Regional Fisheries Manager Larry Peterman said the increased restrictions were in response to new public fishing access to the river created by five new fishing access areas now under lease or purchase by the state. We were concerned that increased fishing harvest might result. He said trout populations on the Ruby are down and research is ongoing to determine the causes, including a two-year research study being conducted by a graduate student to determine if whirling disease has been a cause of the decline. May. The trout season, which had been open all year, was changed to the standard Montana stream season, from the third Saturday in May to Nov. 30. Peterman says the emergency restrictions could continue next year or could be changed to a slot limit after a review of this year's results.