Not the most impressive headline I know. Many people have already been floating and if one lives where the weather is a little nicer in the winter there really isn’t a first float of the year. Winter in Montana gives us time that we generally can’t put the boat in to float the Madison River.… Continue reading First float of 2017
It’s now past the middle of February and it’s really starting to feel a little more like spring around the Madison Valley. Days are getting noticeably longer and the daytime temperatures are creeping up into the 40s and even 50 on occasion. If past years are any kind of indicator, Old Man winter is gone… Continue reading Feeling a bit more like spring…
Hebgen Dam 663 cfs Old Kirby Place 1050 cfs Varney Bridge 1700 cfs Lower Madison 2550 cfs (this gauge hasn’t had fresh reading in two days) Both he Upper and Lower Madison rivers have seen drastically improving conditions over the past several days. Turbidity is decreasing along with the flow decrease. We have three plus… Continue reading Are you ready?
Hebgen Dam 705cfs Old Kirby Place 1430cfs Varney Bridge 2820cfs Lower Madison 2990cfs Technically the official start of summer is something like June 20th but the last five or six days have felt like summer with temperatures getting into the mid 80’s. We had a rainy May and the Madison Valley is as green as… Continue reading Summer is Almost Here
Hebgen Dam 910 cfs
Old Kirby Place 1180 cfs
Varney Bridge 1480 cfs
Ennis Dam 218 cfs
Lower Madison 1389 cfs
I’ve noticed some changes out there the past several days on the Madison River. Some good, that’s to say that the changes might benefit the angler. Some not so good, depending on how we look at it. These things are bound to happen when we spend so much time in a place bound to seasons. We anglers are just passengers along for the ride. Knowing this generally makes it easier to take the days that I can’t quite get my finger on the pulse. I can usually find some excuse for this occurrence and that makes it all the easier to accept that some days are just learning days.
All this doesn’t really mean that we had a bad day. This doesn’t really mean that the fishing was bad or that we didn’t catch some great fish. It just simply means that things are changing and that it is different today than it was yesterday. Might even change back.
The Madison Valley has seen all kinds of weather over the past seven days. 74 degrees sunny and warm or 42 degrees, snow and rain from a northern cold from, even a few day in between those two extremes. The Madison Valley is in its spring cycle and it will not be uncommon to see this back and forth over the coming months.
The Madison River will begin to react to this tussle over temperatures accordingly and will generally rise and fall with the fluctuations. The Madison saw its first small push of spring melt over the past several days (remember 74 degrees). This was promptly halted by cold northern air and rain and snow, It is still very much winter in the high country as far as temperatures are concerned. The flows stabilized and even feel a bit with the cold. This is likely to change with the next push of warmer weather and the Madison will likely rise again. So the cycle will go until most of the snow is out of the mountains.
With all this change comes bugs. As a fly fisherman I love bugs. The logic goes something like this. Trout eat bugs, therefore I love bugs. We are starting to see BWO’s or Baetis. The hatches of this beloved little mayfly happen all spring and are important as droppers fishing nymphs thru spring. The real fun show happens on the not so pretty days, the rainy days, the snow lightly falling straight down days, sometimes referred to as the nasty days. That’s code for the chance at great spring dry fly fishing. Towards the end of the April and the first of May we will start to see the first Caddis on the Madison as well. The Mothers Day Caddis also known as Brachycentrus occidentals will start to fill the air on the warmer days. Something I love about this time year is that we get to fish Caddis on the nice days and BWO’s on the “nasty days”. If we are lucky we will see March Browns in the mix as well. What a glorious time to be in Southwest Montana.
Hebgen Dam 900 cfs Old Kirby Place 994 cfs Varney Bridge 1110 cfs Ennis Dam 207 cfs Lower Madison 1340 cfs It’s been a beautiful couple weeks around the Madison Valley lately. The weather around Ennis has been about as Montana as it gets with everything from cold north winds and precipitation to summer like… Continue reading Looking Forward to Looking for Bugs
Hebgen Dam 900cfs Old Kirby Place 970cfs Varney Bridge 1060cfs Lower Madison 1270cfs For the first time in many, many moons I got skunked fly fishing today. Now I’m not the greatest angler in the world but I rarely get blanked on my home waters around Ennis, Montana. This was no half hour and didn’t… Continue reading Skunked. Not on the Madison…
Madison River Report for March 13, 2016 River Flows: Hebgen Dam 900cfs Old Kirby Place 970cfs Varney Bridge 1110cfs Ennis Dam 116 Lower Madison 1410cs I want to give a quick shout out to Matt Carey over at Trouts N’ At Outfitters for giving much of the front of the boat the other day… Continue reading Spring has Sprung and Winter is Back…briefly
Madison Flows: Hebgen Dam 910csf Old Kirby Place 970cfs Varney Bridge 1080cfs Ennis Dam 118cfs Lower Madison 1390cfs I got to do something I have not been able to do in the 16 years that I have lived in Ennis Montana. That was to float and fish, with the emphasis on fish, from Lyons… Continue reading First Time in 16 Years
River Flows : Hebgen Dam 870 cfs Old Kirby Place 970 cfs Varney Bridge 1030 cfs Lower Madison 1290 cfs With spring still technically a little less than a month away on March 20th it feels as if it’s already here. Some of the birds we don’t see until spring are starting to show up.… Continue reading Signs of Spring, Playing Around in the Channels and the Ice
It’s early February and although it is still winter in Southwestern Montana today felt just a little more like spring than usual. The last week here in Ennis, Montana has been about normal for winter temperatures. So when we get a day around the 40 degree mark there’s one thing that comes to mind for… Continue reading A Bridge, Midge and a Fish
The winter fishing on the Madison River has been fairly consistent as of late. With the colder days we are seeing some slush ice in the river but mostly it has remained clear. With the right gear and the right attitude a few hours of fishing this time of year can make for a great… Continue reading Winter Fishing