Madison River Fishing Report
The Tackle Shop Fly Shop and Fishing Guides in Ennis, Montana
Labor Day Weekend Madison River Fishing Report
Cool Water and Happy Fish The river temps have cooled off and the Madison River Fish are Happy. All the wet weather we have been having this year has keep the flows up and the water temps cool. The fish like cold water, who knew? We are set up for a huge fall of fishing. If you can get here this fall it might just be one for the ages. Hopper Anyone The Terrestrial bite on the Madison River has kicked into gear. What we have been waiting for has happened. The thing about this year is...
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August Dog Days Madison River Fishing Report
River Conditions The Madison River is holding in there really well. All that snow and cold from last winter is really paying off this August. Currently the flow is 1090 CFS at Kirby and 1250 CFS at Varney Bridge. Really great flows for mid August. In fact temps are only getting to 64 degrees mid day. The fish like water especially cold water and the Madison River has lots of that. Floaters are happy with flows 350 cfs above last year this time. You can float anywhere you want to go. ...
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End of July Fishing Report for the Madison River
Madison River Condition The Madison River is holding strong with good flows. The current flow at Kirby is 1360 CFS and at Varney is 1540 CFS. The real information is the water temps. We are seeing temps reach around 64 degrees mid afternoon. While most of the rest of the fly fishing world in Montana is going to Hoot owl restrictions the Madison at least the upper is good for now. All of our guide trips are starting early and getting off the river about 2-3 so we rest the fish when the...
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Mid July Madison River Fishing Report
Dry Fly If you are a dry fly fisherman on the Madison River now is the time to get after it. Golden stone, PMD, caddis of every shape and color are all out there for the fish. The problem is finding which one they will key on today. One day they like the caddis, the next the parachute may fly and the third the yellow sallie. It depends on the day so be ready with all three. The best bet for the dry fly guy is to throw a sallie with a caddis or a may fly trailer. It covers most o...
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Salmon Flies Still Around but Small Ball Gets the Fish
Salmon Flies Yes they are still around and what a good hatch it has been. Lots of good fish coming to the net in the last two weeks to the big orange bug. It has been awesome. If you are still in the Salmon fly craze think Sun West and upstream for the peak of the hatch. Lyons bridge is probably the epicenter as of this writing. Remember the fish have pattern hangover and will still be looking for the large bugs days and even weeks after the main hatch has gone past. Small Ball We h...
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Salmon Fly Madness on the Madison
Salmon Fly Season The big bugs have arrived and the fish have noticed. Salmon flies are hatching right now in the varney section of the river. There is even spot hatches above this into the flats. With the cooler rainy weather the fish have taken notice but action has yet to be really hot. The bugs hatched but have not had a good day to fly and really get fish excited for the dry. Fishing this Week All of this will change with the sun and warmer temps this next few days. The bugs wi...
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Fishing Report for the Madison River
Salmon Flies Soon! The main question we are getting in the store is when will the salmon flies show up on the Madison River. . That is a great question. We are all eagerly awaiting the prehistoric arrival of the big bugs. Our best bet is at least another week. We have been seeing a bunch of rain which is good. It makes the grass green, fills the lake and cools the river. This will push the hatch back a little. Our guess is that by the 22 we should have some bugs here in town. That i...
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Run Off Fishing Report
Run Off on the Madison River The high water has arrived and we are in run off mode here on the Madison River. We are currently sitting at about 1700CFS at Kirby. The folks at the dam will increase flows on the 25 of May significantly. They are planning on a flushing flow to coincide with the peak of run off. The will increase flows out of the lake to 3500 CFS at the Kirby Place and hold it there for several days then bring it down. This entire process will take about 10 days because...
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Weekend Fishing Report for the Madison River
Rain Showers and Good Fishing We are seeing typical spring like weather for the weekend. Rain showers and overcast skies. This is pretty typical and what we expect for May on the Madison River. Our guides are buys floating and catching fish in the off colored water. As for water. The Madison River is a little high and slightly off colored. While it is not gin clear there is 1-2 feet of clarity and good to go fishing wise. Most of the mud is coming from the tribs. Places like wigwam cr...
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Spring is Here Weekend Fishing Report
Spring has Finally Arrived Nice weather is on the horizon and spring is here to stay on the Madison River. Let's hope. We are looking at a week full of nice spring like weather and the fishing will go off. If you are around and fishing right now do it. Runoff will be a long one this year and we will be locked out of the good stuff soon. Our guides are full swing doing spring special guided float trips. If you get a chance jump on one of them you will have a great time. Wha...
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