Madison River Outfitters Fishing Report 8/6/2019
Montana
Upper Madison: Terrestrial fishing on the Madison has started to pick up nicely this past week despite the fact that we have had almost daily afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Hoppers, ants and beetles have all been productive so fishing a hopper with an ant or beetle dropper is a great option. If you’re looking to find and fish to some rising fish, fishing in the evening will be your best bet. Be sure to have your caddis pattern of choice along with some rusty spinners during these evening hours. The nymph fishing remains strong and is probably still the best way to consistently get fish in the net throughout the day. Making sure you are getting a good, drag-free drift becomes crucial to your success this time of year as these fish have just seen too many poorly drifted flies at this point in the season. Smaller nymphs (size 16-18) have been much more productive than their larger counterparts.
Flies: #10-12 Pink/Tan/Yellow Thunder Thighs, #14-16 Arrick’s Ant, #14-16 Bogus Beetle, #12-16 Royal Trude, #16-18 X-Caddis, #18 PMD Sparkle Dun, #16-18 Rusty Spinner, #16-18 Purple Parachute, #14-16 Lake Prince, #16-18 Shop Vac, #16 Red Neck, #16-18 Green/Black Lightning Bug, #16-18 Guide Dip/$3 Dip, #16-18 Krystal Dip, #16-18 Soft Hackle Hare’s Ear, #18 Zebra Midge
Hebgen: We have been starting to have more and more consistent fishing on Hebgen this past week and it should only continue to improve. The number of Callibaetis and Tricos we have been seeing in the mornings is picking up and the fish have taken notice, though some days the rises have still been sporadic rather than actually tracking. If you find a good pod of rising fish, dropping a Turkey Callibaetis off your dry fly is always a good option.
Flies: #16 Callibaetis Parachute, #16 Callibaetis Sparkle Dun, #16 Callibaetis Cripple, #16 Turkey Callibaetis
Gallatin: The Gallatin in the park stretch is running cold and clear and is fishing well. For flies, attractors, terrestrials and caddis should have you pretty well covered. Almost daily afternoon storms have been adding some color to the river below Taylor Fork, but when it’s been clear it’s fishing well with the same types of flies as in the park stretch.
Flies: #12 Chili Dog, #14-16 Lime/Royal Trude, #12-16 Parawulff, #14 409, #8-12 Royal/Peacock/Golden Chubby Chernobyl, #16 Tan X-Caddis, #14 Full-Tilt Sally, #16-18 PMD Sparkle Dun, #16-18 Rusty Spinner
Yellowstone National Park
NE Corner: Drakes, PMD’s, caddis and terrestrials are all in play in the NE corner right now. Attractor patterns are always a solid option as well. With all the storms we’ve been having, be sure to check out the Lamar flows before heading over. As usual, even when Soda Butte and Lamar might be off-color, Slough should be running clear.
Flies: #12-16 Royal Trude, #12-16 Parawulff Adams, #12 Missing Link Green Drake, #14-16 Missing Link, #16 PMD Sparkle Dun, #16 D.O.A. PMD Cripple, #16 Tan X-Caddis, #14 409, #12 Quill Jig, #12 Lucent Jig, #16 Olive Biot Czech
Yellowstone above the Falls: Look for PMD’s and drakes to be your most consistent producers over here, especially in their spinner form. You may still see some golden stones hanging around and even if you don’t, it’s very likely that one of these fish will still eat one. Water levels have dropped even more at this point, which has made it a little easier to get around.
Flies: #8-12 Golden Cubby Chernobyl, #12 Chutes Green Drake, #12 Missing Link Green Drake, #14-16 Missing Link, #16 D.O.A. PMD Cripple, #16 PMD Sparkle Dun, #16 Tan X-Caddis, #12-16 Rusty Spinner
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Tom Forsberg
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