Though river conditions have been back and forth over the past few weeks, it seems as if everything is starting to settle down and come in to prime shape. Fished the Upper Madison today - though wind hampered our efforts one fish did fall victim to an adult salmonfly.. the rest were caught on caddis pupa and a #6 Mega Prince. The salmonflies are just getting started and should be in full swing in the next few days. The Lower Madison has also been good with crayfish, caddis and PMDs being the main attractions... those looking for dry fly fishing might consider the Lower in the last few hours of the day as the caddis have been thick.
The Missouri continues to be red hot - this spring was one of the best I've seen up there in some time which could be the result of the big flush the river received last year.
The Yellowstone is currently flowing around 13000 cfs ...once it gets to 12,000 we should be in good shape to hit some of the floats in the Paradise Valley. Hope to be back on there by July 4.

Back in town after a week on the Missouri below the Holter Dam. Fishing has been nothing short of spectacular up there and througout the week flows dropped substantially - the river is pristine condition and pressure was light. Though most of our success came from nymphing with a variety of caddis pupa imitations such as the Iris Caddis, Soft Hackle Hare's Ear and Tan Sparkle Emerger, we did find occasional fish feeding on the surface. One of the highlights of the trip was a 24" brown caught on a #18 caddis pupa on 5X. Seems like there are probably a bunch of those fish in that river though that's the biggest one I've managed to run across yet.

Flows have dropped on the rivers around Bozeman as well - the Madison is looking good and one has to wonder how long it will be before we're back on the Yellowstone and Gallatin. Another great option is Depuy's Spring Creek - spent a day out there last week and experienced solid numbers of fish and a steady PMD hatch which proved to be an excellent combination.

Though we were expecting a runoff like that of '08 it appears as if things are going to clear up a bit faster this year - we'll just have to wait and see in the weeks ahead.

Just this morning my 2.5 year old son Jack caught 3 suckers in a local pond - nightcrawlers were the hot ticket.

Though runoff is now in full swing, we're still managing to find enough fishable water to keep us busy. Flows on the lower Madison have been up and down but as of Sunday, they have remained stable and the river is quite fishable with a manageable flow and good clarity. Though action was spotty today, yesterday went well with Soft Hackle Hare's Ears, SJ Worms and a variety of sculpin and crayfish patterns producing the most consistent results. Spent some time on Nelson's Spring creek a few days back - an midday PMD hatch was the driving force there and in spite of the bright sun, we managed to fool a number of nice fish on PMD Sparkle Duns or a Quigley's Cripple with an RS2 as a dropper. As we speak, the creek is full of fish. Later this week we'll be off the Missouri for a few days - as long as flows remain consistent, fishing should be good.

Spring is here

After a long dose of snow, rain and all the lasting effects of winter, spring has finally arrived and with the warm weather of the past few days the rivers are on the rise. The Yellowstone is now officially blown out and will likely stay unfishable until early to mid July. As we speak, the Madison is still in good shape and fishing well though that may be short lived unless cooler weather arrives to slow the snow melt. If in fact the Madison turns muddy as well, we'll be looking to spring creeks, the Missouri and some lakes and ponds in the weeks ahead - all great options in theiur own right.
The Mother's Day caddis hatch was phenomenal this year providing some of the best surface activity I've found with the hatch in the past few seasons. Fished a local but private spring creek today that feeds the East Gallatin. Wondering if some fish had moved into the creek to escape the runoff conditions in the larger river, we figured a black bugger thrown right into the confluence of the two might be a good idea. A few minutes later, 25.5" brown lay in the bottom of the net - the biggest I've managed to find in Montana thus far. Now we're looking for the 26 incher!

Caddis!

As of this past weekend, the caddis have started on the Yellowstone - it's no longer a rumor. And while weather conditions continue to be spotty, the benefit of the cooler weather has been a fishable river. Conditions are optimal right now and the typical day has been nymphing in the mornings with Girdle Bugs and Sparkle Pupa and dry fly fishing in the afternoons with March Browns and/or caddis. Without any question, the #14 Royal Trude has been our best bet with a CDC Caddis Emerger or Iris Caddis in tow. As of now, it seems that most caddis activity is occuring below and around Livingston. Reports have been good from the Madison and we should see some caddis over there soon as well.

It's been a classic spring thus far....snow and wind one minute, vibrant sunshine the next. Took off the river on Weds and the truck thermometer read 77 degrees - the same ramp on the Madison just 24 hours later and the thermometer read 27. The fishing in the past few days has mirrored these rapidly changing conditions. Slow mornings have been followed by amazing afternoons and vice versa. As the Yellowstone blew out in the last warm spell, we have been fishing the Madison above Ennis and generally speaking the fishing has been terrific. Though scattered baetis are around, the best fishing has been with nymphs such as the Olive/Brown McKee's Rubberlegs #8, Sawyer PT #18, SJ Worm #12 and Black Zebra Midge #18. Without question, overcast skies have been the ticket. With the Yellowstone dropping and clearing fast, we're hoping to get back on it tomorrow.

After a brief dose of runoff, the Yellowstone was again fishable today - just a week ago it was dumping snow, today temps neared 70 by the end of the day. Still good baetis and midge activity and I did see a few caddis in the air. Though I can't hazard a guess of when the caddis will really start it's good to see a few around - a sure sign of spring. If the river holds out, we'll try it again tomorrow, if not, we'll simply head to the Madison... which isn't a bad alternative.