Opening Day on the Upper Madison….

Dan, Grandpa, and Nancy had a great opening day. It was a warm day with beautiful scenary. Tthe mountains had more snow on them and the sun was in and out. The valley is starting to show signs of green. There was a small amount of the "W" factor. Nancy started off catching more pretty large whitefish and Grandpa was getting jealous. He loves those native whitefish. We floated from Ruby to Storey Ditch because we had to be finished in time for a social outing in Virginia City in the early evening. Not too long after we started, the trout started to feed and we were all catching trout, both Rainbows and Browns and nice sizes.

The flies of choice included the Delektable™ Olive Mega Prince, Delektable Brown/Orange Stoner, and the Delektable EH Twisted Wire Brown/Amber.

For Grandpa and Dan this has been a tradition for many, many years. Grandpa will be 88 this year and still really loves to fish. The boys and I had lots of fun and smiles. Thanks for rowing Dan.

Nancy

Opening Day on the Upper Madison….

Dan, Grandpa, and Nancy had a great opening day. It was a warm day with beautiful scenary. Tthe mountains had more snow on them and the sun was in and out. The valley is starting to show signs of green. There was a small amount of the "W" factor. Nancy started off catching more pretty large whitefish and Grandpa was getting jealous. He loves those native whitefish. We floated from Ruby to Storey Ditch because we had to be finished in time for a social outing in Virginia City in the early evening. Not too long after we started, the trout started to feed and we were all catching trout, both Rainbows and Browns and nice sizes.

The flies of choice included the Delektable>™ Olive Mega Prince, Delektable Brown/Orange Stoner, and the Delektable EH Twisted Wire Brown/Amber.

For Grandpa and Dan this has been a tradition for many, many years. Grandpa will be 88 this year and still really loves to fish. The boys and I had lots of fun and smiles. Thanks for rowing Dan.

Nancy

Dan and Marty, along with four other local guides, Mike, Jim, Bill, and Shad, volunteered in the annual river float of the Ennis High School Science Club. Participants included Science teachers, Wes, a biologist, and the science students. The trip is a highlight of the club’s activities, and combines educational activities with a leisurely float trip on the Madison River.

The day began with an entomology presentation by Dan at the Beartooth Fly Shop. He explained the types and life-cycles of the various insect life in the Madison River. The lessons continued at the boat launch, as the students received another presentation by Mark about the fish of the river, including the fish shocking/counting process conducted by the state biologists and regulators. On the float, the students kept journals of the birds and other wildlife spotted while traveling down the river. This information, along with the presentations, was later compiled in written reports by the students.

An added highlight for some of the students was catching a few fish while floating down the river and spotting wildlife. It didn’t take much time to enjoy some great fishing as the fish were eating fast and furious! The young anglers quickly caught a lot of quality fish before returning to their club assignments.

Important lessons and time on the river, mixing education, the natural beauty of the river, and some fish thrown in … What a great day!

It was, as always, a fun time for everyone involved.

Dan and Marty, along with four other local guides, Mike, Jim, Bill, and Shad, volunteered in the annual river float of the Ennis High School Science Club. Participants included Science teachers, Wes, a biologist, and the science students. The trip is a highlight of the club’s activities, and combines educational activities with a leisurely float trip on the Madison River.

The day began with an entomology presentation by Dan at the Beartooth Fly Shop. He explained the types and life-cycles of the various insect life in the Madison River. The lessons continued at the boat launch, as the students received another presentation by Mark about the fish of the river, including the fish shocking/counting process conducted by the state biologists and regulators. On the float, the students kept journals of the birds and other wildlife spotted while traveling down the river. This information, along with the presentations, was later compiled in written reports by the students.

An added highlight for some of the students was catching a few fish while floating down the river and spotting wildlife. It didn’t take much time to enjoy some great fishing as the fish were eating fast and furious! The young anglers quickly caught a lot of quality fish before returning to their club assignments.

Important lessons and time on the river, mixing education, the natural beauty of the river, and some fish thrown in … What a great day!

It was, as always, a fun time for everyone involved.

One Crazy Weather Day on the Madison….

Two of our favorite fishermen, Michael and Travis, joined Dan for a 12-mile float on Wednesday. A true "deep end diver", Michael was determined to fish even though he was sporting a fracture boot to secure his broken leg from the same week. The day brought temps in the 40s and 50s until about 4 p.m. Then a storm moved in from the north with 30 mph-plus winds and snow. For the next two and a half hours, it was rowing the raft hard, backwards, just to get downstream.

Now for the good news….

The fishing was Kick-Ass, using #8 and #10 Delektable™ Flashback Olive Hurless Stones, #14 Delektable™ Lime Juice and #14 Delektable™ Egghead Twisted Wire nymphs.

Delektable Flies Gallery

One pool was briefly fished during the snowstorm, which produced a nice brown trout, but hypothermia and frostbite were threatening, so wisdom and good judgment ended the trip around 7:00 PM..

Dan