Montana adds 82 acres of public river access with Siskin Island donation

An island complex on the Upper Yellowstone River in Paradise Valley will be permanently open to public access following a June 12 Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks commission meeting. Commissioners unanimously accepted the 82-acre Siskin Island donation from nonprofit Trust for Public Land.

“Any form of public land is valuable. Even if it’s not used at all, it’s still public land safe from being developed and someone wrapping it in barbed wire,” said Paradise Valley resident and 5-year Yellowstone River fishing guide Noah Robinson.

The parcel will be managed by the state as a FWP Fishing Access Site. The primarily day-use site will be open to angling, restricted hunting and wildlife spotting opportunities. Limited boat-in campsites will also be available.

Primary access to the Siskin FAS will be via boat from any upstream put-ins, including Mallard’s Rest FAS and the Emigrant FAS. During low water, wade-in access is available from Pine Creek FAS.

Between tourist traffic en route to Yellowstone National Park and easy accessibility from Livingston and Bozeman, Robinson said the Paradise Valley stretch of the Yellowstone is heavily trafficked, especially on weekends.

“More public lands help disperse traffic, whether it’s guided trips or people going down the river with their buddies,” Robinson said. “The more spread out people are, the more they can enjoy themselves.”

The Siskin FAS, named the native pine siskin, also provides valuable habitat and forage for a plethora of wildlife, including white-tailed deer, beaver, otters, elk and mule deer. Featuring a rocky shoreline, marshlands and open meadows, the island complex hosts willow and cottonwood stands, according to the FWP decision notice.

“This unique river property provides excellent habitat for game and nongame species, excellent spawning grounds for trout and permanent access for the public to enjoy,” said Jeff Lukas, the policy and advocacy manager at Montana Trout Unlimited.

The side-channel nature of the corridors surrounding the Siskin Island landmasses creates colder pockets of water, providing necessary habitat for the spawning of native trout.

A 15-day public comment period following the release of FWP’s draft Environmental Assessment on March 13 garnered 25 responses. Most comments expressed support for the acquisition, with some voicing concerns about the potential impact that dispersed camping and hunting would have on the surrounding area and three opposing the proposed action.

In response to these comments, FWP modified the proposed management approach in an April FWP decision notice.

Hunting will be restricted to the western reaches of the complex. Camping will be restricted to two boat-in, reservation-only sites and a stay limit of one night in a 30-day period will be imposed.

FWP wardens and Parks and Outdoor Recreation staff will patrol the site and enforce restrictions. Maintenance schedules and practices will be adjusted as public use patterns are established, according to the decision notice.

“We fully support the department’s recommendations for how to manage the site properly,” said Scott Vollmer, president-elect of the Montana Outfitters and Guides Association during the meeting.

In November 2025, the owners of Siskin Island donated the land to TPL to uphold their vision of putting the parcel into “long-term public ownership and management for all of Montana to enjoy.”

Once the land was in TPL ownership, project manager Lucas Cain said the organization set out to find the best-fit public agency to transfer it to.

“FWP is a well-respected, reputable entity, and it made sense for them to manage this riverine island complex adjacent to other recreational opportunities they already manage,” Cain said.

FWP manages over 10 river access points in Paradise Valley.

“As Montanans, we all love being out and recreating, and getting the ability to utilize these river corridors,” Cain said. “The more opportunities that we can work with state agencies and create public-private relationships for increased recreational use, the better off we’ll all be.”