Fresh Big Hole River Fishing Reports

The evening temps have been on the chilly side in SW Montana, triggering the fall pre spawn streamer season. The Madison is giving up some really nice browns on streamers. Some on the strip and pause and some using an upstream cast and a little more dead drift with a good pump and a pause. Look for the usual targets. Hard banks, shelves and faster water. Fly color can make a difference as will size. If fish are following a stripped fly but wont commit will often smash a smaller fly. White is my go to color especially on brighter days but olive, copper, black and combos are must haves. Get in touch to book your fall streamer trip today!

The Beaverhead PMD hatch is still going strong! Pale Morning Duns have been hatching between 9:30-10:30 depending on the temperatures. Large trout are stacked up in the riffles and buckets looking for PMD nymphs and emergers. Sight fishing now is fun! Nymphing a two fly rig is your best bet. We like nymphing with indicators but Euro nymphing works well too. Get your flies at the correct depth with plenty of weight and good mending. Watch your indicator closely and set the hook when it moves or goes under. Let the fish run and do its thing right after you set the hook then start working on gaining line and bringing the fish to the net! Good luck and Tight Lines!

Now that the ‘25 runoff has begun to wain, the Madison River is running a little lower than its historic flows for this time of year. Currently at 1280 cfs, historically more like 2-2500 cfs. Visibility is good with a very slight fuzz of color at about 2-3 feet. We’re right on the cusp of the famous Salmonfly hatch that will offer outstanding dryfly fishing! However many agree that the best fishing is just before the hatch. The fish have been feeding quite opportunistically subsurface on stonefly nymphs, caddis larva, San Juan worms and sculpins. We’re seeing the dry fly action pick up on Salmonflies, Goldens and Caddis. Target the spots with a color change which indicates a hole or bucket as we like to call it. Fish around the boulders front and back and dont be afraid to cast into really fast water. There are fish in spots that dont look like spots. You have to know what to look for so take time to observe and you’ll find yourself landing more and bigger fish! Contact us to book your dream fly fishing trip in Montana!

The pre runoff fishing on the Madison has been fantastic as expected. The flows are still low ataround 1000 cfs and the water is perfectly clear. Most of the shelf ice from the gorge has melted except for closer to Ennis and to the lake. The Ennis boat and Valley Garden FAS’s are closed until FWP can get the sites rebuilt from the ice damage. The most productive method to catch trout is nymphing under an indicator. However, the streamer bite has heated up and there are blue winged olives in the afternoon. Cloudy days are your friend for streamers and dries. The standard rubber legs coupled with a wire or San Juan worm have been the best patterns. Others include the bead head Prince, Purple Psycho Prince, Pheasant Tail,, WD40-50, Zebra midge. Some good streamer patterns include mini Dungeons, Zonkers, Mini loop sculpins but others will certainly work. The dry fly fishing is going to be in softer water wirh a nice foam line. Side channels and soft pockets can hold rising fish.

The Beaverhead regular season opener was Saturday the 17th and although the water is low the bite is good. Nymphing is your best bet on the Beav’. A two fly drop shot rig is what we recommend. Best flies right now are Zebra midges #18-20 in black, red, olive. San Juan worms in red #14-18. Scuds and sow bugs #16-18 in tan, pink and natural. Not much for dry flies right now. The streamer bite is hit and miss. Cloudy days are your friend for streamers.

The Madison River is still pre runoff and offers some great fly fishing opportunities. Flows are up a bit to around 1300 cfs and visibility at about 2.5 to 3’. There are some caddis showing up on the lower stretches and fish will start looking up now. Nymphing and streamers are still your best bet to land some numbers. Run a standard in line indicator nymph leader with your first fly anout 5’ from your indicator and tie the second off the bend of the hook 18” to your second fly. The tried and true Pats rubber legs and a bright San Juan or Wire Worm has been a solid combination. A green caddis larvae is a good second fly choice if you see caddis on the water. An elk hair caddis in olive, tan or brown in a #16-14 along with a caddis pupae if you see risers, will get the job done. Look for soft spots, inside edges, boulders and color changes that indicate good trout holding water.