Year: 2019

Madison River Fishing Report for November 29th, 2019

Dam: 910 cfs

Kirby: 1,040 cfs

The Upper Madison has been fishing well this November, and after a nice couple of weeks with relatively warm temperatures it appears that Winter has finally settled in.  It’s about that time anyway, and we were fortunate enough to have some 50 degree days in November after one of the coldest Octobers anyone has seen around here in a very long time.  That said, the upper portion of the river will be your best bet from here on out and it’s going to be a little icy down by Ennis for a bit unless we get on another warming trend.

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Madison River Fishing Report for October 27th, 2019

Dam: 974 cfs

Kirby: 1,100 cfs

Varney: 1,170 cfs

The Upper Madison has been fishing well over the last several weeks, and it looks like we have another cold front moving in for the week ahead.  We are looking at below zero to single digits lows this week and highs not projected to hit above freezing until this coming Thursday so there’s not a huge need to be out on the water until the mercury starts rising in the late morning hours.  Subsurface fishing remains solid despite the cold conditions, and we are still finding good fish rising up to midges and BWO’s on the calmer days.

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Madison River Fishing Report for October 9th, 2019

Dam: 996 cfs

Kirby: 1,140 cfs

Varney: 1,210 cfs

The Upper Madison has been fishing well over the last several weeks, and we have had our fair share of weather changes as well.  From 65 degrees and sunny to thirty degrees and snowing sideways, all bets are off once you enter the Fall season in the northern rockies so be sure to dress accordingly.  Even as I write this, there is close to a foot of snow piling up around the shop with bright sun and a high near fifty expected by the weekend.

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Madison River Fishing Report for September 11th, 2019

Dam: 1,090 cfs

Kirby: 1,110 cfs

Varney: 1,230 cfs

After a warm and sun filled August that brought with it some of the most incredible hopper fishing the Madison has seen in decades, the weather finally took a turn a few days ago to remind us that Fall is just around the corner.  The mountains received their first dose of snow since the summer solstice yesterday morning, and the landscape has started to absorb the scents and colors synonymous with Autumn in the Greater Yellowstone Region.  It truly is our favorite time of year, and we know that rings true for many of you out there as well.

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Madison River Fishing Report for September 3rd, 2019

Dam: 1,110 cfs

Kirby: 1,110 cfs

Varney: 1,170 cfs

The Upper Madison has been spectacular over the last several weeks, and we can’t say enough about the quality of the dry fly fishing this year.  Most of us doubted that we could have another hopper season that could compare with what we saw in 2018, but I think its safe to say that this August was even better.  We should continue to have good terrestrial fishing for a couple more weeks as long as the temperatures hold, and it looks like we are in store for a little cooling trend in the next few days.  Otherwise flows are still above average for this time of year, and the entire river is fishing well, so definitely get out this way if the opportunity presents itself.

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Madison River Fishing Report for August 23rd, 2019

Dam: 1,210 cfs

Kirby: 1.230 cfs

Varney: 1,340 cfs

The dry fly fishing on the Upper Madison continues to impress, and we have another incredible August on our hands.  Crowds have been relatively sparse on the weekdays and the forecast is calling for bright skies and temperatures in the mid to high seventies for the week ahead…pretty much perfect weather for what is on everybody’s mind around here: Hopper fishing.

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Madison River Fishing Report for August 14th, 2019

Dam: 1,220 cfs

Kirby: 1,240 cfs

Varney: 1,380 cfs

If you asked anyone who has been on the Upper Madison over the last week to describe fishing in a word that word would indubitably be: Hoppers.  After an incredible hopper season in 2018 we are right back into it all over again and the dry fly fishing has been nothing short of spectacular over the last week. Flows are still well above average for the middle of August in the upper wade stretch as well as the lower river and water temperatures have rarely peaked above 67 degrees…it’s amazing what a little cold water does for a fishery.  The forecast for this coming week is calling for highs in the upper 70’s to mid 80’s, so now is a great time to get a taste of some of the best dry fly fishing of the year.

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Madison River Fishing Report for August 6th, 2019

Dam: 1,340 cfs

Kirby: 1,450 cfs

Varney: 1,550 cfs

The Madison has been fishing well again this week, and as you might have guessed from the picture above we have officially entered terrestrial season on the river.  It’s been pretty warm out there over the last several weeks, but the good news is that the forecast is calling for highs in the 70’s starting on Friday, with a hefty dose of afternoon thunderstorms to help keep the water temps down.

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Madison River Fishing Report for July 28th, 2019

Dam: 1,230 cfs

Kirby: 1,400 cfs

Varney: 1,650 cfs

Steady as she goes.  The Upper Madison is still fishing very well these days with both nymphs and dries, and we are starting to get some better streamer fishing early in the morning.  Flows are holding steady at prime levels heading into August with 1,400 cfs above the West Fork and 1,650 cfs at Varney so there is plenty of water throughout the entire river.  With afternoon temperatures starting to climb into the mid to high 80’s things have been slowing down a little bit during the late afternoon hours, but the good news is that the forecast is calling for a chance of thunderstorms almost every day this coming week.

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Madison River Fishing Report for July 20th, 2019

Dam: 1,150 cfs

Kirby: 1,360 cfs

Varney: 1,720 cfs

The Upper Madison continues to fish very well throughout its entirety and we are seeing a lot of bent rods out there lately.  It looks like we are in store for a bit of a heat wave early on next week before we start to see to highs return back into the high 70’s to low 80’s– Hopefully we will get some more of those amazing (and slightly terrifying) afternoon thunderstorms to keep cooling things down.

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