Springtime on the Madison River in Montana is best surmised by the famous Mark Twain; “In the Spring I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours.” Fishing can also be that way in the Spring. Different bites at different times of day, different places that the fish are holding from day to day and of course different bugs catching different Trout. This week showed all the colors of Spring in Montana.
Streamflows at the beginning of this week were 999cfs @ Kirby and 1,250cfs @ Cameron, with 100 to 150cfs fluctuations everyday as it warmed and cooled and finishing off the week rising to 1,250cfs @ Kirby and 1,430cfs @ Cameron as we saw some warmer weather Friday and Saturday.
Fishing at the beginning of this week was best in the morning until about 1:00 PM and then tapering off the rest of the day. As the week went on, we saw more consistent fishing throughout the day. The most productive bite from Lyons Bridge to Varney Bridge was the Nymphing/Streamer set up. Whereas in the Wade Only section Dry Fly action was to be had with Skwalas, BWOs and Midges. Streamers, Stones & Worms are very productive this time of the year especially on a swing or weighted dead drift.
For those that braved the changing Spring conditions they were rewarded for their efforts; the pictures tell the rest of the story.
Nymphs: Delektable Lil’ Spanker PT or Silver #12-#18; Delektable FB Sparkle Kaboom Stone #6-#10; Delektable Mega Prince Olive Flashback #10; Wire Worms Pink or Red #4-#8; Flossy Worm Pink or Red #12; Delektable Kaboom Stone #6-#10; Pat’s Rubberlegs Olive/Brown, Black or Brown/Black #6-#10; Lightning Bug Silver or Pearl #14-#16; Delektable Mega Prince STD Flashback #6-#10; Delektable Hurless Nymph Gray or Olive #6-#10.
Streamers: Delektable Screamer Single Olive/White, Black or Olive #6; Sculpzilla Olive/ White #8; Zonkers Silver, Copper or Natural #6; McCune’s Sculpin Olive #4-#8; Trevor’s Sculpin Olive #4; Dali Llama Olive/White #6.
Dries: Para Adams #12-#18; Purple Craze #12-#18; Delektable Mega 2 Tone Chubbyness UV Dark Olive #10-#12; Delektable Secret Stone UV Dark Olive #10-#12.
