Remember Brown Trout and Whitefish are beginning to spawn; play your fish quickly, if you must snap a picture do so quickly and take off your gloves before handling. Pay attention to where you’re wading, avoid lighter colored pea gravel and if you see fish spawning let them do so in peace. We all must take care of our precious resource; little acts of preparedness and consciousness go a long way to keeping our beautiful river and trout protected for generations to come.
Legends of the Fall are being created this Mid-October! We may have seen the last of the sweet days of Fall this week. Prior to our first Valley Snow the big front brought an uptick in catching and a huge drop off following. Seems that every creature of the Madison Valley has started to hibernate for the Winter. Those cold mornings sure make it harder to get out of bed but no worries, the Fish feel the same way!
Streamflows are at their Winter set point, Kirby at 886cfs and Cameron at 1,066cfs. We should see little fluctuations in flows from this point until Spring. BWO’s and Midges are still popping but look for them in the heat of the day. Nymphing has still been very productive and Stoneflies with a tungsten bead trailer have been working consistently. Trout are lethargic and slower moving this time of the year and will be going into the Winter months. Waking up, enjoying a warm brew (maybe pack some with you too) and taking your time before getting on the Water (fishing during the heat of the day in a 2-3 hour window) will be your best success as you and the Trout are sufficiently warmed up for the day and ready to play!
At Beartooth Flyfishing we have had a fantastic season here on the Upper Madison River! We are so grateful and thankful for all our Customers, Guides and Dear Friends that keep our business alive and thriving. We stay open during the entire Winter however our hours have changed to Tuesday through Saturday 9am to 5pm, closed Sunday and Monday. We will be having some awesome Markdowns and Sales coming in November so come on by, get the best free coffee on the river and check out the shop without the crazy crowds of the Summer. Who knows what treasure you could find!
Nymphs: Delektable Guide Stone Olive/Brown, Black, or Black/Brown #8-#10; Delektable FB Sparkle Kaboom Stone #8-#10; Delektable Mega Prince STD FB #8-#10; Standard Flashback PT #16-#18; Geppert’s Master Emerger #18; Delektable Lil’ Spanker Red, Silver, Blue or PT #16-#18; JH Zebra Midge Red or Black #18-#20; Copper John Red #16-#18; Splitback BWO #18-#20; Delektable Prince Brandon #14-#16; Psycho Prince Purple or Yellow #16-#18; Delektable Twinkle Red, Black or Olive #18-#20; Wire Worm Red #6-#8; Delektable JH Hammerhead GTBH Prince or Hare’s Ear #16-#18.
Dries: BWO Para Sipper #18-#22; Sparkle Dun BWO #20; Delektable Curved Hook Ranch BWO #18; Snowshoe Emerger BWO #20; Hi Vis BWO Spinner #20; Delektable Teaser BWO or Adams #18-#20; Black Sipper Midge #18-#20; Hi Vis Griffiths Gnat #18-#20; Para Adams #18-#20; Carlson’s Purple Craze #18-#20; Delektable Lil’ Chubby Royal or Goldrush #14-#18; Parachute Madam X Orange #10.
Streamers: Delektable Single Screamer White/Olive, Yellow, Black, Spawning, or Black/Olive #6; Galloup’s Sex Dungeon Olive/Black Barred #6; Sculpzilla Natural or Olive #4-#8; Zonker Copper/Natural, Olive or Pearl #4-#6; McCune’s Sculpin Olive #4-#8; Dali Llama Olive/White or Olive/Black #6; Delektable SS Jointed or Double Screamer Black/Olive, White/Olive, White or Spawning; JR’s Conehead Olive #6; Coffey’s CH Sparkle Minnow Sculpin or JJ #6; Trevor’s Sculpin Olive #4.
