Fishing Report 6/19/2026 - Madison River Outfitters

by Nina Lett June 19, 2026

Montana

Hebgen Outflow - 774.3 CFS

Kirby - 1010 CFS

Cameron - 1230 CFS

*Flows as of June 19th*

Upper Madison

The Madison is truly coming into its summer form! With a bump in flows for Hebgen and warm weather all week, the fishing has gotten a lot more productive.

In the mornings, floating a dry-dropper setup through runs with a guide dip or a loop-wing under a chubby is your best bet until those fish are fully keyed in sipping dries.

Towards the afternoons and evenings, throwing caddis dries has been great, as the air is just thick with them. I have also had a significant amount of fish coming up for large attractors along the banks... they must be as excited as we are for salmonflies! I personally spotted quite a few near Ruby Creek at the beginning of this week, so they should be making their way up the river now. We do have a bit of rain coming this weekend so that might slow it down a bit, but it should start back up with the sun on Monday.

Dry Flies - Chubby Chernobyl, Dancing Caddis, Front End Loader Caddis, Water Walker

Nymphs - Guide Dip, Shop Vac, PMD Loop Wing, Full Metal Jacket

Hebgen/Quake Lake

Callibaetis are starting to pop on the lakes, with gulpers targeting them in mornings and evenings especially. The sub-surface bite for chironomids has also been quite steady. If all else fails, strip a leech.

Dry Flies - Parawulff Adams, Hackle Stacker, Long Tailed Spinner

Nymphs - Black/Red Nugget, Ice Cream Cone

Yellowstone National Park

Firehole, Madison, Gibbon - It is in fact the time of year where we start yelling about water temperatures. The Firehole has been hitting at least 75 degrees everyday and the fishing has reflected that,. Fishing the Gibbon in the morning could be productive but, honestly, I would advise heading to the Upper Madison or Gallatin instead of fishing these rivers for the the fishes and your sanities sake.

Gallatin - The Gallatin has been fishing a lot better recently, with plenty of bugs (caddis, PMDs, stones of all varieties) in the canyon and Salmonflies closer down the river past Big Sky. Make sure your dry box is well stocked with some gold or royal chubbies, water walkers, and yellow sallies and see it for yourself!

Northeast Corner - Cold and fast! I'm planning on giving it a good couple weeks till I head out there.

Product Highlight of the Week - Fishpond Summit Sling Pack

As a chronic over-packer when it comes to fishing, this sling pack is my go-to for the last 4 years, especially if I don't know exactly what fish will be wanting in an area.

Two huge pockets with water resistant zippers
Smaller pocket in the front for line treatments, and leaders
Net sleeve
Water bottle pocket

Nina Lett

Author

Also in Madison River and Greater Yellowstone Area Fishing Report

Fly Fishing Reports

Fishing Report - 10/16/2026

by Nina Lett October 16, 2026

Well, the rain (and snow) had a good few days, but seems to be on its way out again. That fall chill is in the air, however, and seems to be here to stay, just like the hungry attitude of the fish!