Winter has set in here in the Madison Valley and with it comes some of our favorite times to fish. When the weather permits the fishing can be outstanding this time of year. Rainbows pile up in the deep, slower holes and are usually pretty eager for a good meal.
Nymphs are usually the name of the game, specifically stonefly nymphs. We’ve been catching fish on a variety of Delektable nymphs such as the balanced Mega Prince, Standard Mega Princes, Hurless Stones, Stonefly Candy and Mr. Rubberlegs in Goldenstone.
Streamer fishing has had its days; you’re best off with smaller sculpin patterns and a slower retrieve. Flies like Sheila’s Sculpins, Sculpzillas, Delektable Single Screamers, Trevor’s Sculpins and Sparkle Minnows are all good choices.
Dry fly fishing has been pretty inconsistent but be sure to bring a few good adult midge patterns out there just in case you stumble into one of those runs full of rising fish.Griffith’s Gnats, CDC Midges, Sipper Midges and Brook’s Sprout Emergers are good choices. The hatches should be getting more consistent any day now and through the beginning of March we should see some good dry fly fishing.
The river can get pretty slushy down towards town and could totally freeze over eventually, so if you’re thinking about fishing below Varney you’ll want to take that into consideration; for the moment it’s clear but one real cold night could change that.
