’Tis the season … for extremes …

Overall, fishing has been really good lately, punctuated by some of the friendliest, most pleasurable clients a guide could ask for. But mixed in with those days of constant calls of “Fish on!,” there have been perplexing days when, despite great conditions, the bites were not nearly as consistent.

Such was the case this past week. Dan and I guided a group on the Big Hole River, with stellar results. That was followed the next day with me and Charlie on the Madison, enjoying some absolutely phenomenal fishing with our clients. The guys were whooping, hollering and laughing when we reached the take-out – what a day! … The next morning, Charlie and I couldn’t wait to get back on the Madison, with the memory of the previous day’s fishing on our minds, and a clear, warm sky beckoning to us; we were chomping at the bit to get on the water! … But it was one of “those” days … The guys caught fish, and had a great time, but the bite was slower, much slower, than the day before. The only difference in conditions was a mild north breeze that produced a very moderate drop in air temperature, but noticeably, there was nearly a complete lack of hopper sounds on the banks. The day before, we were serenaded by a resounding chorus of “clicking” from the tasty morsels flying around all day … Such is fishing … And as the true nature of fishing, a handful of quality fish, and a day on the water in pleasant company on one of the most beautiful rivers in the world was nothing short of a wonderful day filled with great memories.

Hoppers and ants have been the flies of choice. The Morrish Hopper, along with the Delektable Twisted X in tan/brown and olive/gold, produced most of my better fish. The Delektable Cinnamon Ant, along with a variety of small Trude patterns, were also providing quality and quantity.  

Marty the Montajun 

Fishing has been a bit sporadic … some days are really good, some days are more challenging. There have been a bunch of twinks, with better fish mixed in, tight to the banks and in the non-descript middle. Less action has come from the rock slicks lately, at least not ones that are eating hoppers and ants.

The Half Down Hopper has still been one of my “go to” patterns, as well as the Yeager’s 409 in red and the Neversink Trude. The # 10 Royal Trude has been producing nice fish in the morning and the Royal Wulff has been a good “go to” when fishing a single-fly rig. Tight-lining a Natural Zonker to a #14 Prince Nymph has produced some consistent action, although the bigger fish have not been taking it. A hopper pattern that has been somewhat consistent is Morrish’s Hopper, which I’ve been running in tandem with the Half Down Hopper or an ant pattern with good success.

The flows are back down below 1,000 cfs, so long, downstream drifts are a big help to fool wary, late-summer trout. The low flow has also made 4x the standard tippet with the dries, and I have been seeing a lot of spools labeled with a 5 on ‘em; I hate to drop that low but when the situation dictates …

Whether they want to look up or not, it’s finally sunny and warm, so GO Fishing!!

Charles P.

The Jan and Ken group was back in town for some Madison River therapy.

Four days in a row of sun, wind, rain, clouds, hail, cold, warm; a healthy dose of Montana was had by all. The group was great, catching trout, making new friends, enjoying the Madison River Valley. The smiles, handshakes, and conversations tell the story. Flyfishing takes you to some of the most beautiful places on the planet. I refer to it as soul food and highly recommend a good dose. Take 4 days in a row and let us know how you are feeling in a couple of weeks. Review the gallery of photos. You be the judge; priceless!

Dan
   

Bunny Fur and Hoppers…that’s about as good as it gets…The last week has been good…Really Good. Bright bunny fur has been working well in the morning (6-10:30 A.M.). Natural Zonkers, JR’s CH Streamer in Olive/White, and the Delektable™ Badger Screamer tight lined through the middle and in the deep Trenches next to the big rocks have been deadly. Try dropping some sz.18-20 mayfly emerger’s off the back of the bunnies to replicate the Trico’s, Psuedo’s, PED’s and other small mayfly’s we have been seeing up by the shop lately. The Soft Hackle Pheasant Tail and the Micro Mayfly have been my trailer’s of choice in the morning’s.

Once you start hearing hopper’s buzz the around the bank, tie on a flesh colored Three Decker, a Rainy’s Grand, a Red Slammer, a Tan Carnage Hopper, or your favorite hopper pattern and HOLD ON! Keep ‘em a couple feet off the bank or on the small shelf’s created by gravel bars in the middle and never judge a fish by the size of the strike. The biggest fish will move the smallest amount of water sometimes when eating hoppers, not to say that some big fish won’t give the classic takes, but a lot of the time they don’t even break the surface…they just suck ‘em down; never judge a book by it’s cover kinda deal. Other dries that have been working well in the afternoon include: the Delektable Flying Ant in cinnamon or black, the purple Twisted X in an eight, Half Downed Hoppers in a 12, gold Turks Tarantula’s in 12’s and 14’s and the rose Twisted X in a 16 have all been good second’s in a two fly rig. However, if I can find a single fly that is getting a good amount of attention, I will usually keep it at just the one…We had a good amount of rain and colder temps coming about in the later afternoons, and when that happened I went back to the bunny.

The lighter colored streamers weren’t producing like they were in the mornings but the darker colored ones were moving some large fish under the clouds. Olive and Black were the colors of choice during the late afternoons (4-7). The Olive MCCune’s, the Black Christmas Tree, and Shiela’s Sculpin (which isn’t olive or black, I know) have all been good producers later in the day. The small mayfly trailer’s I previously mentioned have still been working in the afternoon, but so have Prince Nymphs, Lightning Bugs, and a range of Caddis emergers. Tight to the bank or short stripped through the middle, these combo’s have been deadly under a little bit of cloud cover. So whether you’re a dry guy, a streamer guy or a nympho, you’re gonna be happy, so GO FISHING!!!

Charles P. 

Photos from that week added by Nancy