The flow of the Madison is 2,350 CFS and has been dropping for the last 6 days: Upper Madison Flow at Cameron. The water clarity is around 18 inches above the West Fork and around 12 inches below. It is snowing outside the Beartooth Lodge as this report is being written. Warm weather in the seventies is predicted for this weekend, which should start the dry fly fishing–big time.

If you don’t already have plans to fish the Upper Madison this summer or fall, make them now. Once this runoff subsides–probably sometime in June– the fly fishing on the Upper Madison is going to be spectacular–especially the dry fly fishing.

Marty and Brad fished above the West Fork on Saturday afternoon, in the muddy, high flow water. Marty caught a lot of fish, fishing big nymphs tight to the bank. The hottest nymph was the #6 Delektable Braided Flashback Big Red. They were also hitting the Delektable Hurless Stone and Delektable Mega Prince. Marty caught his fish on a rebuilt 60 year old Granger bamboo rod that Dan and Marty had just finished rebuilding. Both of these were caught on the Big Red:

Fishing has been very good with nymphs between the lakes. Please be careful of the pea gravel spawning beds. The water is somewhat discolored, but the fish are feeding actively. Notice the color of the water behind fly fisherwoman Catalina and her Bow. This was caught on a #14 Hogan’s Red Headed Step Child:

The streamer fishing has also been excellent. Two boats within the last two days have scored heavily on the Delektable Screamer Olive Black, and a full range of other colors and styles, between Lyons and Mac. Streamer fishing is also hot between Varney and Town.

Recommended Flies

To see the Delektables™ go to: Delektable Flies Gallery

Nymphs:
Delektable™ Hurless Olive, Gray #6, #8; Delektable™ Mega Prince #6, #8; Pat’s Rubberleg Brown #6,#8; Delektable EggHead Midnight Fire #6, Delektable Big Red #6, Delektable Worm, Red or Brown #8; Red Wire Worm #6, #8, Hogan’s Red Headed Step Child

Delektable Hurless Stone Flashback Gray

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Delektable Braided Flashback Big Red

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Worth a Try: Delektable™ Lil’ Spanker Pheasant Tail or Lil’ Spanker in Red, Silver, Olive #18;#16,#14; Tungsten Beadhead Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle #20; Delektable™ Twinkle Midge and Zebra Midge #20,#18; WD40 Olive #20

Dries (not likely) :

Snowshoe Cripple BWO #18; Q’s Loopy Cripple Stacker BWO #18; Snowshoe Baetis #20; Adam’s Midge Cluster #20; Stalcup’s Hatching Midge #20 (Split Wing Adams #12 ) March Brown Parachute #14; Klinkhammer #14

Streamers:

Delektable Screamer Olive Black, Olive and Yellow, Single and Double, #6, or your favorite pattern.

Delektable Screamer Olive Black

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Dan, Marty, Nancy, Brad

The flow of the Madison is 3,450 cfs. The inflow to Hebgen is 2884 cfs. The Conservation Pool is 87% full. The flow out of Hebgen is 1,984 cfs and has increased steadily over the last four days. This is a different river than it’s been for the last decade.

If you don’t already have plans to fish the Upper Madison this summer or fall, make them now. Once this runoff subsides–probably sometime in June– the fly fishing on the Upper Madison is going to be spectacular–especially the dry fly fishing.

Dan and Marty fished above the West Fork on Saturday afternoon, in the muddy, high flow water. They caught a lot of fish, fishing big nymphs tight to the bank–Delektable Hurless Stone, Delektable Mega Prince, Delektable Braided Flashback Big Red. Marty caught a 20" brown on the Delektable EggHead Midnight Fire:

Wade fishing and fishing from the bank is the way to go now. How many can throw a fly from a boat 4 to 6 inches from the bank–and keep it in there–consistently and accurately? If you’re in a boat, get out to fish this dirt. Fish eat a whole bunch in the dirt. There’s a lot of food coming at them. They’ve been in the winter mode for a long time. They’re hungry. A lot of nutrients are coming at them that they don’t usually see–a lot of worms, with the earthworms being washed from the banks, joining their aquatic cousins–orange, red-banded, brown-banded. It’s a smorgasbord. The stoneflies are active, because they will be hatching pretty soon, so they’re getting dislodged into the current.

So fish the upper Madison from Hebgen to Quake Lake and from Quake Lake to the West Fork, and below. Fish have been eating in dirty water for millions of years. They know how to do it.

Recommended Flies

To see the Delektables™ go to: Delektable Flies Gallery

Nymphs:

Delektable™ Hurless Olive, Gray #6, #8; Delektable™ Mega Prince #6, #8; Pat’s Rubberleg Brown #6,#8; Delektable EggHead Midnight Fire #6, Delektable Big Red, Delektable Worm, Red or Brown #8; Red Wire Worm #6, #8

Delektable Hurless Stone Gray

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Delektable Braided Flashback Big Red

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Worth a Try: Delektable™ Lil’ Spanker Pheasant Tail or Lil’ Spanker in Red, Silver, Olive #18;#16,#14; Tungsten Beadhead Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle #20; Delektable™ Twinkle Midge and Zebra Midge #20,#18; WD40 Olive #20

Dries (not likely) :

Snowshoe Cripple BWO #18; Q’s Loopy Cripple Stacker BWO #18; Snowshoe Baetis #20; Adam’s Midge Cluster #20; Stalcup’s Hatching Midge #20 (Split Wing Adams #12 ) March Brown Parachute #14; Klinkhammer #14

Streamers:

Delektable Screamer Olive and Yellow, Single and Double, #6:

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Dan, Marty, Nancy, Brad

Upper Madison River Fishing Report (29-May-08)

The net inflow to Hebgen is approximately 10,000 cfs, with the Conservation Pool 87% full. The flow out of Hebgen is 1,774 cfs and has increased steadily over the last three days. The flow near Cameron is 2,430 cfs and rising.

If you don’t already have plans to fish the Upper Madison this summer or fall, make them now. Once this runoff subsides–probably sometime in June– the fly fishing on the Upper Madison is going to be spectacular.

Dan wade fished on Sunday below McAtee, near Palisades, and near the Sun West Ranch–in the very muddy water. He hooked over 20 fish and landed over 10, in about 5 hours of fishing–with only 6 to 8 inches of visibility. They were taking Delektable Flashback Hurless Stones and Mega Princes, #6 and #8′, and that was all they were taking.

Fish real tight to the bank. Dan spooked a bunch of fish wading up the banks, where they were under the banks and they couldn’t be reached with casting. The fish were actually underneath the banks, which is actually very common in these high water conditions. Dan saw some BWOs and March Browns come off, but he didn’t fish any dries.

With Quake Lake being pretty dirty right now, 8 inches of visibility is still plenty from Quake Lake down.

Wade fishing is the way to go now. How many can throw a fly from a boat 4 to 6 inches from the bank–and keep it in there–consistently and accurately? If you’re in a boat, get out to fish this dirt. Fish eat a whole bunch in the dirt. There’s a lot of food coming at them. They’ve been in the winter mode for a long time. They’re hungry. A lot of nutrients are coming at them that they don’t usually see–a lot of worms, with the earthworms being washed from the banks, joining their aquatic cousins–orange, red-banded, brown-banded. It’s a smorgasbord. The stoneflies are active, because they will be hatching pretty soon, so they’re getting dislodged into the current.

So fish the upper Madison from Hebgen to Quake Lake and from Quake Lake to the West Fork, and below. Fish have been eating in dirty water for millions of years. They know how to do it.

Recommended Flies

To see the Delektables™ go to: Delektable Flies Gallery

Nymphs:

Delektable™ Hurless Olive, Gray #6, #8; Delektable™ Mega Prince#6, #8; Pat’s Rubberleg Brown #6,#8; Delektable Worm, Red or Brown #8; Red Wire Worm #6, #8

Delektable Hurless Stone Gray

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Delektable Worm Red

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Worth a Try: Delektable™ Lil’ Spanker Pheasant Tail or Lil’ Spanker in Red, Silver, Olive #18;#16,#14; Tungsten Beadhead Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle #20; Delektable™ Twinkle Midge and Zebra Midge #20,#18; WD40 Olive #20

Dries (possibly) :

Snowshoe Cripple BWO #18; Q’s Loopy Cripple Stacker BWO #18; Snowshoe Baetis #20; Adam’s Midge Cluster #20; Stalcup’s Hatching Midge #20 (Split Wing Adams #12 ) March Brown Parachute #14; Klinkhammer #14

Streamers:

Delektable Screamer Olive and Yellow, Single and Double, #6:

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Dan, Marty, Nancy, Brad

May 21, 2008

The Upper Madison from Windy Point down is blown out. The flow near Cameron is 1,940 cfs. The release from Hebgen is stable at 972 and the net inflow to the reservoir is around 1500.

Some hardy souls are floating from Lyons Bridge to Windy Point and fishing the right bank, for the five or six miles before the muddy water from the West Fork discolors the entire river, but Dan did not think that would be worth it, so didn’t take his Dad out on Opening Day–the first Opening Day he has missed in many years. Those who fished on Opening Day above the West Fork had a good day.

It is time to fish the upper Madison from Hebgen to Quake Lake and from Quake Lake to the West Fork. This water will remain fishable regardless of the runoff and even if the release from the dam increases. Quake Lake may become slightly discolored, but not enough to affect the fishing down to the West Fork.

The good news about this rapid melt is that a substantial amount of the snowpack has melted and the chances are good that the fishing will be good by the middle of June. Indian Creek didn’t even start flowing hard until yesterday. It took all those days of heat to get the melt really started and a lot of the lower elevation stuff has come down. The high water is not a problem. The Madison fishes well in conditions of high flow, as long as the clarity is reasonable.

Recommended Flies

To see the Delektables™ go to: Delektable Flies Gallery

Nymphs:

Delektable™ Hurless Olive, Gray #8; Delektable™ Mega Prince #8; Pat’s Rubberleg Brown #8; Delektable™ Lil’ Spanker Pheasant Tail or Lil’ Spanker in Red, Silver, Olive #18;#16,#14; Tungsten Beadhead Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle #20; Delektable™ Twinkle Midge and Zebra Midge #20,#18; WD40 Olive #20

Delektable Hurless Stone Gray:

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Dries:

Snowshoe Cripple BWO #18; Q’s Loopy Cripple Stacker BWO #18; Snowshoe Baetis #20; Adam’s Midge Cluster #20; Stalcup’s Hatching Midge #20 (Split Wing Adams #12 ) March Brown Parachute #14; Klinkhammer #14

Streamers:

Delektable Screamer Olive and Yellow, Single and Double, #6:

Riverborn Fly Company www.riverbornflies.com

Or:

Your favorite big or medium stonefly nymphs, BWO nymphs or dries, midge nymphs or dries, or your favorite streamers.

Dan, Marty, Nancy, Brad

The Upper Madison from Quake Lake to McAtee bridge will open this Saturday. This will be a welcome event for both anglers and fish, especially the fish from Varney down, who have seen an enormous amount of pressure the last several weeks. It would certainly be good if the FWP would leave Lyons to Town open all year. This would have little, if any, effect on the spawning conditions for the Rainbows and would relieve some of the pressure from Varney down during the early Spring–a great time to fish the Upper Madison River.

The flow on the Upper Madison is around 1000 cfs and stable. Water clarity is very good. This should make for excellent conditions for Opening Day. The warm weather predicted for this weekend will probably change that soon, as the high snow begins to melt. As the melt increases and the West Fork discolors the river, the river will still remain clear down to the West Fork.

The vagaries of the lower elevation snow melt have affected the fishing recently. It’s been pretty slow up at the Beartooth Fly Shop, because of the closure of the "Upper Upper". So we have taken advantage of the opportunity to get out and do some fishing, before all the activity of the regular season begins. Sunday (the 4th) Dan, Marty, and Brad took an afternoon float from McAtee to Varney. We had some great action on nymphs–large stoneflies and small Lil’ Spankers and Dan caught one fish on a dead drifted Delektable Christmas Tree streamer. But Dan gave up fishing the streamer after awhile and went back to nymphing. The "Fly of the Day" was a Lil’ Spanker-red-#18.

On Tuesday (the 6th) the boys went out again and had a very slow day. The warm days on Sunday and Monday had increased the melt, put some cold water into the river, decreasing the temperature and slightly increasing the flow, and this made both the insects and the fish lethargic. Starting off, we had absolutely no action on nymphs, so we switched to streamers. We had some slow action on streamers, but got several very nice size fish. We didn’t catch a fish on a nymph until late in the afternoon, when Dan caught a nice brown on one of his Delektables in Development–a brown stonefly pattern, which he had tied that morning and will be available next season. Here it is:

Below Varney it was almost all streamer action, with the Delektable Double Screamer–Olive and Yellow–catching the most fish. There was a moderate baetis and midge hatch late in the afternoon and one fish was caught on the surface on a #20 Adams Cluster. Things had definitely improved by the next day , when Gunnar went from Storey to 8 Mile and his clients boated over 20 fish (from 12" to 20"), on the same Olive and Yellow Delektable Screamers.

Recommended Flies

Delektable Flies can be viewed in the Delektable Flies Gallery under the

Beartooth Products tab

Nymphs:

Delektable™ Hurless Gray #8; Delektable™ Mega Prince #8; Pat’s Rubberleg Brown #8; Delektable™ Lil’ Spanker Pheasant Tail or Lil’ Spanker in Red, Silver, Olive #18;#16,#14; Tungsten Beadhead Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle #20; Delektable™ Twinkle Midge and Zebra Midge #20,#18; WD40 Olive #20

Dries:

Snowshoe Cripple BWO #18; Q’s Loopy Cripple Stacker BWO #18; Snowshoe Baetis #20; Adam’s Midge Cluster #20; Stalcup’s Hatching Midge #20 (Split Wing Adams #12 ) March Brown Parachute #14; Klinkhammer #14

Streamers:

Delektable Screamer Olive and Yellow, Single and Double, #6:

Fly from Riverborn Fly Company

Or:

Your favorite big or medium stonefly nymphs, BWO nymphs or dries, midge nymphs or dries, or your favorite streamers.

Dan, Marty, Nancy, Brad