There are a few (VERY FEW) lake run fish up into the Madison in the Park so far.  Soft Hackles and Streamers are the best way to fish this time of year, as anglers are really searching for a needle in a haystack.  Nymphing will hook an angler up with untold numbers of whitefish, so if that is your thing, tie on the bobber.  Dry fly fishing for resident fish has been pretty good.  The river has some Tricos in the mornings, Baetis on cloudy days and a decent caddis hatch just before dark.  Hoppers can find some fish as well provided the conditions are good for terrestrials.

Firehole River 9/1/2010

The Firehole has cooled back down and is certainly a good option on cloudy days.  Baetis and Caddis are hatching in good numbers and there are plenty of fish rising.  Stay off the Firehole in the middle of the day when the sun is on the water, aside from then, it should be good to go for the rest of the fall unless we see a few days in a row back in the 80’s.

Gibbon River 9/1/2010

Baetis hatches in the Meadows have made for some great fishing on cloudy days in the afternoons. The larger fish are no pushovers but there are often enough heads up that one gets plenty of chances to fool some fish.  CDC Comparaduns in #20-22 are rarely refused.  Keep a few small Pheasant Tails in the box to hang off of the dry for a really difficult fish.

Gallatin River (YNP) 9/1/2010

The Gallatin is getting good Baetis emergence on cloudy days.  Tilt Wing Duns, Thorax Duns and Paramergers are all effective when cast with a good drift over rising fish.  Attractor and terrestrial fishing can be a lot of fun when the sun is on the water, but the fish are pretty demanding of an excellent drift at this point in the season.

Slough Creek 9/1/2010

Slough is seeing some good fishing, but there are a few more anglers around due to the dirty water on the Lamar.  Drakes have started, but there hasn’t been enough to really get the fish interested yet.  This should change quickly.  Midges and Baetis are the most important aquatic insects to imitate and one should always come with plenty of small terrestrials.  The fish are tough to fool throughout the river right now.  A careful approach and accurate first casts hook a lot more fish than the 17th cast.  Get is right the first time!

Lamar River/ Soda Butte Creek 8/1/2010

Water conditions on the Lamar continue to be variable, as we are still seeing some thunder showers. Keep an eye on the stream flow when you are headed out to the river as rises in the water generally equate to muddy water.   Soda Butte has stayed in pretty good shape and has had some hatches.  Epeorus, Baetis and even a few Drakes are starting to hatch.  The fish are super picky so make sure to have the color and size of the natural matched perfectly.  The further upstream one goes on Soda Butte, the more the fish actually act like Cutthroat, but the smaller the fish get.

Hebgen Lake-Quake Lake: 9/1/2010

We are still finding trout between the lakes that are willing to rise to attractor style dries, especially when the weather is stable.  Nymphing however, has been much more consistent.  Flows are down below 900 CFS which makes it a little easier to get around.  This is very noticeable when high stick nymphing as it makes covering the water effectively a lot easier.  If you are catching a lot of whitefish on nymphs, it is probably a good idea to keep moving.  Catching a trout in a spot that has a big school of whitefish is pretty tough.

Quake Lake-Lyon Bridge: 9/1/2010 

Fall Baetis fishing on the Madison makes for some of the most enjoyable and challenging fishing one will encounter throughout the year.  While some of these #22 mayflies can be found almost every afternoon, the cloudy days offer the biggest hatches and certainly the most rising fish.  Perfect drifts are a must so it is often necessary to sneak close to risers to make short accurate casts.  When the fish aren’t into the Baetis, terrestrial fishing has still been pretty good and the nymph fishing in the morning isn’t too shabby as well.

Lyon Bridge to Ennis: 9/1/2010

In the “float section” of the Madison, we have enjoyed some good Baetis fishing.  These small mayflies are tough to fish imitations of our of the boat, but the fish can often be conned into eating something a little larger than the #20-22 naturals.  Sunny days have seen pretty good hopper/ant fishing.  Small Baetis nymphs are the most productive subsurface patterns, though streamers can be pretty effective in the morning hours.

Gallatin River:  9/1/2010

The Gallatin is seeing pretty good Baetis when the weather is cloudy.  Unfortunately, the river below the Taylor’s Fork has been dirty more often than not lately.  When clear the fishing has been very good.  Sunny days see plenty of terrestrial fishing and the nymphing remains very solid.  While the river won’t see fishing as it did during the peak of Spruce Moths again, it will fish very well throughout the fall.

 Hebgen Lake: 9/1/2010

Due to our chilly weather, the Gulper fishing on Hebgen has slowed down a bit.  It should pick back up for the first half of September once it warms up so don’t pack away the Callibaetis box quite yet.  Dries with nymph droppers are the most effective way to fish, but straight dry fly rigs can fool plenty of trout if properly presented.

Hebgen Lake-Quake Lake: 8/24/2010

Fishing has been better between the lakes recently as the water temps at the dam are beginning to drop.  Both nymphs and dries have been effective methods of finding fish.  Fishing Ants and Beetles in soft water along the bank if a great way to temp some fish that most anglers overlook.  Small Dips and Baetis nymphs will attract a lot of whitefish, but trout will eat them as well.  Long dead drifts are the  to catching fish on both nymphs and dries as it seems fish will give each morsel an extra glance before ingesting it.

Quake Lake-Lyon Bridge: 8/24/2010 

The “wade section” has been fishing pretty well with dries.  Again, it pays to fish the soft water on the edges of the river, even if it doesn’t appear to be very deep.  Some surprising trout will be found and can be brought up to attractors like Olive Stimulators and Wulffs.  Hopper fishing has been sporadic and it pays to cover a lot of water trying to bring fish up.  The takes can be tough to hook and surprisingly subtle.  Baetis style nymphs such as Micro Mays and Tailwater Tiny’s are the most effective subsurface flies.

 Lyon Bridge to Ennis: 8/24/2010

Spruce Moths are just finishing up in the float section.  We are due for some flying ant falls any day now, provided we get some warm calm evening weather.  This “hatch” can make for some of the best dry fly fishing of the year as almost every fish keys in on these insects when they are on the water in force.  Wulffs, Cinnamon Flying Ants, Parachute Ants.  All can be be deadly, just make sure to get a good dead drift.

 Gallatin River:  8/24/2010

Spruce Moths are also winding down on the Gallatin, so it is time to make the switch to small attractor dries, Ant patterns, Beetles and yes, Hoppers.  Fish aren’t normally quiet as Gung-Ho for the other terrestrials as they seem to be for the Moths, but you can certainly raise plenty of fish to them.  

 Hebgen Lake: 8/24/2010

Gulper fishing is probably about at its peak at the moment.  Cool mornings delay the Callibaetis hatch and subsequent spinner fall, but once it gets going, the fish are keyed in.  Long accurate casts with a good emerger, dun or spinner pattern are necessary to fool a fish that has a wash of naturals to feed on and a fish hooked on a dry on Hebgen is a great angling achievement.  With that said, you will have plenty of shots at fish most mornings until true fall weather ends things for the year.

There are still a lot of Caddis just before dark.  It takes a lot of hunting to find a decent fish eating them, but if you want some close by match the hatch fishing, the Madison is an option.  Tricos are hatching in the mornings, but most of the fish feeding on these tiny mayflies are as diminutive as the insects themselves.

Firehole River 8/24/2010

It is time to fish elsewhere until things cool down in the fall.

Gibbon River 8/24/2010

Attractor dry fly fishing in the pocket water can be a lot of fun, but don’t expect to catch anything noteworthy.  Bigger fish await in the meadows, but they are tough to fool this time of year.  Terrestrials are this ticket.

Gallatin River (YNP) 8/24/2010

The Gallatin in the Park is fishing a bit tougher than it has been.  There are a few Spruce Moths around, but they are pretty sparse anymore and the hopper fishing can be fun, but there aren’t many aquatic insects to get the fish eating on the surface.  Baetis will make for a good rise when fall weather hits.

Slough Creek 8/24/2010

Slough has been a lot of fun as of late. The fish are no pushovers, but stalking these picky cutthroats can be a great way to spend the day.  As usual, the second and third meadows offer slightly less difficult fish.  Try using offbeat flies (big, little, that one time experiment) unless there is a hatch of midges or Baetis.  Terrestrials still rule the day when there are no hatches.

Lamar River/ Soda Butte Creek 8/24/2010

Water conditions on the Lamar continue to be variable, as we are still seeing some thunder showers. Keep an eye on the stream flow when you are headed out to the river as rises in the water generally equate to muddy water. There isn’t much hatching so plan to fish terrestrials and attractors to pull fish up to the surface.   Cover a lot of water when fish aren’t rising and get as long of drifts as possible.  At times, twitching the flies can get fish to react when a dead drift isn’t getting much action.

The Madison is still seeing some Caddis just before dark.  Ants and Beetles can be effective in the morning hours.  Mid-day isn’t the best time to be on the water right now.

Firehole River 8/10/2010

It is time to fish elsewhere until things cool down in the fall.

Gibbon River 8/10/2010

Hopper fishing in the Meadows is a super fun way to kill a sunny afternoon this time of year.  Now if we can just get a sunny afternoon, we’ll be in business.

Gallatin River (YNP) 8/10/2010

The Gallatin in the Park is by far the best option close to West that doesn’t involve braving the dreaded Yellowstone Park road construction on the Gibbon.  Ants, Stimulators, small Hoppers and Rusty Parachutes have all been good flies.  Hatches are thinning out a bit, but make sure to have some Rusty Spinners for the mornings and evenings.

Slough Creek 8/10/2010

Slough is getting a lot of angler attention when the Lamar and Soda Butte are blown out, but the fishing has been pretty good.  As usual the fish are tough to fool (especially the big ones) but will succumb to a properly drifted dry most of the time.  Beetles, Ants, PMD’s and small attractors can all fool fish, but once refused by a trout will not be effective.  Change flies and try again.  Dropping a small Sawyer Pheasant Tail off a dry is an old trick that often works with picky fish that won’t commit to eating a dry.  

Lamar River/ Soda Butte Creek 8/10/2010

Water conditions on the Lamar have been off and on this past week.  Keep an eye on the stream flow when you are headed out to the river.  Terrestrial fishing has been really solid when the river is clear and there are also some good PMD hatches coming off. As always, it usually pays to walk a bit from the road to find fish that see a little less pressure.  Soda Butte has also been dirty, but is fishing very well (if you don’t mind some company) when clear.  Smaller flies tend to be more effective on Soda Butte as its fish know every hopper pattern in the Umpqua Feather Merchants catalogue by now.

Hebgen Lake-Quake Lake: 8/10/2010

Warm water flowing from Hebgen Dam continues to keep fishing between the lakes from being as good as it should be this time of year.  Inconsistent weather has slowed the hopper bite as well.  However, fishing hard and covering water with both nymphs and dries can yield some nice fish.  Craneflies and Caddis are the most prevalent hatches in the mid and upper sections while  Callibaetis are coming off in large numbers at the lower section near the inlet to Quake. 

Quake Lake-Lyon Bridge: 8/10/2010 

Evening fishing has been slow on the Madison due to massive thunderstorms that have been an almost every day affair.  Spinner falls should pick back up when the weather stabilizes.  Epeorus, some small PMDs and Caddis are still hatching, though not in numbers we saw in July.  Terrestrial fishing should pick up when the sun shines in the afternoons.  Small nymphs continue to produce nice fish, even with the stormy weather.

 Lyon Bridge to Ennis: 8/10/2010

Hopper fishing has been very good when the weather is sunny but almost non-existent once the storms roll through.  Spruce Moths have been sparse but some mornings the fish have targeted them fairly heavily.  There are still decent numbers of Epeorus on the water and the fish are eating them pretty well. Fish have also been looking for ants to munch on.   Nymphing has been effective in the mornings with the bite tapering off after noon.  Small bugs in the #16-20 range have outperformed larger nymphs, though there are nocturnal stonefly shucks all over the rocks these days.

 Gallatin River:  8/10/2010

North of the Taylor Fork, the Gallatin has been off color due to all the rain.  Look out for some great Spruce Moth fishing when things get back into shape.  Caddis, hoppers and ants are all go to flies when the fish start looking up.  In the meantime, drifting nymphs is still very productive despite the cloudy flows.

 Hebgen Lake: 8/10/2010

Shark Week only lasts 7 days on the Discovery Channel but on Hebgen Lake it lasts throughout the entire month of August. Get your Callibaetis into the tank while the fish are eating.  Gulper fishing has been its usual difficult and incredibly rewarding self lately and anglers will have plenty of chances to cast at large consistently rising fish.  If casting dry flies to big rising trout isn’t your thing, go ahead and bob up some fish on Chironomid Pupa or Callibaetis nymphs.  The fish will certainly eat them readily.

Hebgen Lake-Quake Lake: 7/31/2010

If you are looking to rip Whitefish in large numbers, head between the lakes and get a good drift with a Crystal Dip under an indicator.  A few trout may surprise you every once in a while if you are lucky. Tossing Wulffs and Trudes around is a better way to raise a few trout. Keep an eye out for Caddis in the evenings.

Quake Lake-Lyon Bridge: 7/31/2010 

The Madison has some great dry fly fishing to offer almost every evening right now.  There are still good numbers of Caddis and Epeorus Spinners on the water.  Some nights the fish will be more interested in the Caddis, so make sure to have some Iris and CDC patterns in the box.  For the mayfly spinner falls, a Calf Wing Rusty Spinner in #16 is tough to beat.  Try to sneak in close to rising fish and make short accurate casts.  Your hook setting and presentation will reap the rewards.

 Lyon Bridge to Ennis: 7/31/2010

Mid-day fishing on the Madison’s float section has been tough most days, but the morning bite has been very consistent as most of the fish feed before the water gets warmed up.  Both nymphing and throwing dries have produced a lot of nice fish as of late in the mornings.  Dries have been better than nymphs most afternoons.  Dips and Shop Vacs have been the best sub surface bugs.  On top, Epeorus Duns and X-Caddis have produced in the morning hours and there has been the start of some good hopper fishing in the afternoon.

 Gallatin River:  7/31/2010

The Gallatin is fishing quite well north of Big Sky.  We’ve had good action on nymphs and even better fishing with dries.  Basic attractor dries fish as well as anything and we are even starting to fool some fish with terrestrials.  Olive Hare’s Ears and Flashback Pheasant Tails have been some of the better nymphs.  Keep an eye out for Caddis hatches late in the day.

 Hebgen Lake: 7/31/201o

Tricos and Callibaetis have been plentiful on Hebgen in the mornings.  The fishing has not been consistent from one day to the next, but when it has been good, there have been a lot of fish rising.  Bobbing up fish on Turkey Callibaetis Nymphs and Chironomids is always an option, but fish are pretty willing to eat both Callibaetis duns and spinners, especially later in the mornings.  As usual, things are pretty much over once the wind comes up.

The Madison in the Park is still seeing good evening Caddis activity.  Rising fish can be found almost every night for the brief time when the sun sets behind the mountains until it is just about too dark to see.  Hopper fishing hasn’t been too fast paced in the afternoons, but can be fun if you want a quick and easy fish close to West.

Firehole River 7/21/2010

It is time to fish elsewhere until things cool down in the fall.

Gibbon River 7-31-2010

Anglers looking for a challenge can enjoy some tough fishing in the Gibbon Meadows.  Trout can be fooled with attractors and beetle patterns, but everything has to be spot on and one must get a bit lucky.

Gallatin River (YNP) 7-31-2010

The Gallatin is seeing pretty good PMD hatches in the afternoons and the fishing has been great during these hatches.  In non-hatch times, we’ve had good luck prospecting with ants and Royal Stimulators in #16.  Evening time brings good numbers of Caddis, but be aware of the bears if fishing after the sun goes down.

Slough Creek 7/31/2010

Slough has been its normal mid summer self lately.  There are sizable and picky Cutthroat that are tough to catch but very rewarding.  Rusty Spinners, Ants and Beetles have all been fooling fish, but everything needs to be spot on.  Fishing very small flies or very large flies can often be the ticket to getting a reaction from a sullen fish that acts like it has seen it all.

Lamar River 7/31/2010

Keep an eye on the stream flow for the Lamar.  Spikes in flow usually indicate post thunderstorm dirty water.  The river has been fishing well when clear.  PMD hatches have been pretty good in the afternoons and there are increased numbers of terrestrials in the last week or so.  Fish rising to PMD’s are pretty easy to fool because they are suckers for a cripple or parachute.  The hoppers are pretty small this year so far but in the afternoons they are plentiful and active.  Twitching hoppers with rubber legs can draw a lot of interest from fish that ignore a dead drift.

Hebgen Lake-Quake Lake: 7/21/2010

We’ve seen some good fishing between the lakes as of late.  There are a lot of Caddis in the evenings and fish can be brought up to a dry pretty much all day long.  Cover a lot of water with a Trude or Large Parachute and you will be in business.  In the evening, look for rising fish and drift Parachute Caddis over them.  Nymphs will catch plenty of fish, but expect to weed through a lot of Whitefish. Be nice to Whiteys when you get them, treat them as you would any native fish in the river!

Quake Lake-Lyon Bridge: 7/21/2010 

Evening fishing is as good as it gets in the “wade section” of the Madison right now.  There are a ton of Caddis hatching and laying eggs in the evenings and the Epeorus spinner falls have been great between dusk and dark.  Iris Caddis, Parachute Caddis and CDC Caddis are among our favorite caddis imitators.  A #16 Calf Wing Rusty Spinner or Rusty Parachute is all you need to imitate the Epeorus.  Fishing either Caddis or Mayflies behind a more visible fly such as a Trude or Stimi can help one track the drift much more effectively.

 Lyon Bridge to Ennis: 7/21/2010

The Madison’s trout are enjoying plentiful feeding.  Morning hours have seen the best bite, as the water often warms up a little too much for excellent fishing late in the afternoons.  There have been good Epeorus hatches and spinner falls, and a lot of caddis doing their thing as well.  Finding soft water to fish dries in is the key to raising fish from the boat.  Drifts must be perfect, so sharpen your reach casting skills before you get on the water.  Nymph fishing has been consistently working well.  We’ve had our best nymph bite on Black Lightning Bugs, Shop Vacs and PMD Emergers.  A few fish here and there will eat a large stonefly nymph but the smaller (14-18) nymphs are getting  a more consistent bite.

 Gallatin River:  7/21/2010

The Gallatin has been fishing very well north of Big Sky.  PMD’s and Caddis have been the primary insects to imitate, both on the surface and with nymphs.  Fish can be found rising most of the day and the evenings have had tremendous caddis activity until nearly dark.  

 Hebgen Lake: 7/21/201o

Gulper fishing is getting going on Hebgen Lake.  There are quite a few Callibaetis hatching.  Some  fish can be found feeding on them most mornings, but it takes some hunting to find risers.  Long accurate casts are the norm when hunting these difficult fish, so one must enjoy the challenge.  Stripping or bobbing Callibaetis Nymphs and Chironomids has been very productive lately.  This is far easier fishing than casting dries at cruising fish, but a bit less rewarding.