giant springs state park and fish hatchery

I must add this before I begin my review. My husband and I went fishing in October, we did not catch anything but it was just the fact we were in such a beautiful setting having fun is what mattered. About 30 minutes into our expedition lo and behold a Ranger comes up to us,he was very friendly and asked to see our fishing licenses. I was amused to say the least I have been fishing from Great Falls to Bob Hall Pier in Texas and several places in between, I had never been asked for my fishing license in all the years I have been fishing. I gladly handed it to the Ranger we had a good laugh that this was the first tiime ever I had been asked for the license. Moral to the story if you fish at Giant Springs have your license!This is my absoulte favorite place in Great Falls, I love sitting on the benches and watching the springs bubble up through the water and run over the rocks of the shortest river, Roe river, and run to the great Missouri River. It is so peaceful and calming just to sit and hear the water running over the rocks and watching the bubbles. The water is so clear you can see the fish and vegetation growing in it, really beautiful!!!!! Make sure you read the signs, this little spring and river are fascinating. The fish hatchery is right there on location (the kids love feeding the fish) The trail that goes along the river is very nice, all ages will enjoy this place and the park area has a small playground for the kids, also a picnic area. There are park benches along the trail for resting. If you have physical limitations this park trail is very doable I have bad knees and find it not challenging at all. If you do have a physical challenge or in a wheelchair the trip back to the parking lot is a little up hill so just be aware of that. When you exit the parking lot and make a left keep driving down the road you will run into Rainbow Dam and as the name states you can see a rainbow at the bottom of the dam where the spray of the water is the strongest. There is a bottom parking lot and an upper parking lot, If you drive to the beginning of the upper parking lot you can see the rainbow better. This is a must drive after you explore the park.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write a great review! We are glad you enjoy each and every one of your visits and continue to do so!

Much thanks for the great review! We're glad you enjoyed your visit here.

Thanks for the great review! We're glad you greatly enjoyed your visit here at Giant Springs. If you have time during your pass through Giant Springs next time we suggest stopping by the Ranger Station. We'd love to chat or even provide a guided tour of your choice.

So glad you enjoy your visits! Feel free to stop by the Ranger Station if the kids would like to do some hand's on activities and hopefully you'll be able to make it to some of our kids programming starting in March.

So glad to hear that you've been enjoying your visits to our park and we hope you continue to return! Feel free to stop by the Ranger Station to chat with a Ranger, we're always happy to chat with you about the park.

We're glad you enjoyed yourself here at Giant Springs and what a lucky find with the red fox sighting! If you're looking for more cool wildlife sightings-right now is a great time to hear Great Horned Owl calls in the evenings and if you are close to the nest box you may even spot one or both of them! Thanks for the great review and we hope you keep returning.

What a great place for a family walk along the Missouri. fun place to fish, visit a fish hatchery, picnic, listen to an occasional concert and view one of the worlds shortest rivers.

Beautiful park area - shortest river in the world was great - it was very cold but the surrounding scenery was beautiful.

Beautiful park area, worlds shortest river, beautiful clear cold spring waters! Fish hatchery, fishing, and much other wild birds!

Nice place to visit and walk around.. The Fish hatchery inside with some loacl species snap shots loooks great.. Saw some special birds like Pelicans and others.. Very close from Great falls not to be missed .. Nice Spring!!! A small fee for Non-Montana residents but worth..

Glad you enjoyed your visit and thanks for the great tip to future visitors! I'd also add on that in addition to visiting other nearby state parks, you might also consider getting out onto our North Shore Trail system-the vistas of Mighty Mo- the hills and prairies-the bald eagle sightings all add to the experience. Stop by the Ranger station or visit a kiosk for a map or with questions.

Recommend walking the trail, smell the flora/fauna, listen to the wind rustle the leaves, watch the river flow, see the fish, bird nests, birds..ah, nature at its finest.

The concierge at our hotel recommended this to us. It was such a fun spot....beautiful park, wonderful walking and picnic area. Great Falls should be very proud of what they have done to promote the beauty of their city. Ryan's Dam, the River's Edge Trail, the fish hatchery are all amazing.

Walk, bike, meditate, breath, enjoy. Love this place, and have been going every trip back for years, and when I lived here. This river area is wonderful, and I have so many great memories from here. The change of seasons is wonderful too.