Madison River
Dam: 697 cfs
Kirby: 914 cfs
Varney: 1,200 cfs
The Upper Madison is still fishing extremely well, and the increased flows have finally given some much needed breathing room to anglers and fish alike. Salmonflies and Golden Stones are still thick above the West Fork, but we are starting to see fewer big bugs of the pteronarcys persuasion below Lyon’s Bridge. However, there are still plenty of goldens and yellow sallies to be found all the way down to Ruby Creek so don’t give up on them quite yet. We are still seeing TONS of caddis hatching in the mornings and evenings, as well as PMDs and Epeorus (even a handful of drakes too if you watch closely), so the dry fly fishing has been solid from 6:30 a.m. until later in the afternoons. If you stay up high in the wade section, you will still have fish looking up most of the day for big bugs, but it’s been getting a little tougher up top once the clock strikes 3:00 p.m. in the float section these days. That being said, drop a little caddis pupa or diving adult off favorite golden and you should be back in the game.
