MADISON RIVER FLOWS 

West Yellowstone – 389 CFS 

Below Hebgen - 389 CFS

Kirby - 762 CFS

Varney - 1410 CFS

Flows are an interesting topic right now, to say the least, as they have dropped over the past week.  In a "normal" year, we would see flows increasing right now on the Madison.  However, late May and June have been dry as dirt.  While snowpack this Winter was pretty darn good, what everyone is forgetting is how dry and warm last Fall was here in Montana. All of the snow was essentially sucked up by Mother Earth and then our spring rains have been non existent.  There has been a challenge to fill Hebgen Lake this spring as inflows have been lower than expected.  What does this mean?  Well, the Madison is already in great shape and fishing really well.  What will it look like in two weeks?  Hard to say, we will cross that bridge when we get there.  Expect hatches to be earlier than normal.  The lower Madison below Beartrap Canyon is already getting warm and we expect there to be a call for pulse flows here soon - when that happens, the flows below Hebgen will increase. 

BETWEEN THE LAKES

Its low down here, and looks worse than it is.  Cabin and Beaver Creeks are running mostly clear, with any luck a rain shower or two will dirty up the river from time to time.  Our fly selection remains relatively unchanged from last week’s report – heavy tandem nymph rigs featuring a rubberlegs stonefly and smaller mayfly nymphs hung off the back will be your most productive bets. Recent killer combos have been the 101 Stone from Cat3 or Heames’ Jig Rubberlegs in #8 or #10 paired with a #14/16 Redneck or Olive hot-spot perdigon hung below. If bobber-dogging is not your thing, small-but-heavy streamers such as the Sparkle Minnow, BFE or Bouface Leech can be a game changer twitched and jigged through the buckets and pockets below the dam.  The dry-dropper rig is as effective option these days as anything. Hang any of these nymphs 2 feet below a chubby and you’ll have less tangles and maybe even a big, early dry fly eater on the end of your line! Lastly, please wade with caution in this section for another week or so as there could still be Rainbows spawning. Keep your eyes peeled for active redds and give wide berth to any rainbows still doing their special dance!

WADE SECTION

The Wade Section continues to fish well and there are even a few fish looking up. Getting around the river is pretty easy right now, but watch out for that thigh deep water, its super pushy and those rocks are greasy. Fish are moving into the their summer haunts, fast shallow riffles, soft pillows in front of boulders and edges close to the bank all have fish lurking around. As with the rest of the river, clarity remains pretty dang good and is only a small fraction of the discoloration we’d typically have at this point in the season. Cover water quickly, slow down when you find a fish and observe the type of water said fish came out of.  Then find more of it!  A skilled nymph fisherman will pick up more fish with a stonefly and a midge, caddis larve or small mayfly nymph - but is it really about quantity?  As with BTL, try dry-dropping something big and ugly and you might be in for a few fish looking up for an early salmonfly. 

FLOAT SECTION

The river is clear, low, and fishable from Lyons Bridge all the way through to Ennis and fly selections and tactics remain largely unchanged. Some of the small tribs might have added a little color to their respective banks, but visibility remains good.  The big chocolate bomber caddis is bouncing around the river and there are a few fish looking up for those in afternoon.  Dragging a bugger/zonker with a beadhead below has been producing some great fishing. Olive, black, and yellow streamers are making some fish chase and grab.   The dry/dropper fishing has been solid as well. Think sparsely dressed, fast-sinking droppers with a big tungsten bead. We’ve got a number of gnarly, 3.8mm bead perdigons in the store that’ll do the trick — namely the Tungsten Jig Splitcase PMD in #14, and Roza’s Pink Hare’s Ear Jig in #14 or #12. Olive Hotspots and Redneck’s will also work if you (or the fish) favor a slimmer, easier-casting profile as well.