Counting today there are just four more days left in the Park season.

Four more days.

Four more days in what has been one of the better ‘west side of the Park’ seasons in recent memory.

The Madison continues to fish well to say the least.  With 4-5 inches of snow in Bozeman this morning, I’m guessing that WY and the river corridor have had some snow.  No matter, you need to go.  There probably won’t be the gorgeous sun reflection on the Madison that we saw on Saturday given today’s overcast – there’s an angler in the river just off the right hand bank at the apex of the curve – hard to see at this resolution.

At this point it doesn’t seem to really matter where you’re fishing on the Park section of the Madison – there have been crowds in the ‘history holes’ but fish are well spread this year, in good numbers, and feisty.

You can pick your approach to suit your mood (and perhaps how cold your hands are) – traditionalists are stripping streamers of all sorts, though yellow and brown buggers are working well and Blue Ribbon Flies’ newsletter this week suggests a Light Spruce streamer as well.  Husky soft hackles (10-14) are working on the swing, and nymphers are having some fun too as evidenced by the picture below.

The One Who Must Be Obeyed and I just happened to catch this fortunate angler and his guide on Saturday with a nice fish on and grabbed a series of shots with the fish being netted, admired and then quickly released.  And yes, he was nymphing…..

Just four more days.

The very short remaining Park season is not reason to despair; the Madison between the Lakes and below Quake (even much of the way to Ennis) has been fishing very, very well with Baetis and midges on top and the usual culprits below.

Midmorning Update:  I’ve been emailing back and forth with John Juracek in WY this morning, and he noted they did not get snow to speak of.  Makes the river look even better for the next few days.  Keep an eye on a potential storm with snow Friday / Saturday….

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The Park section of the Madison continues to fish well during these last weeks of the YNP fishing season, and as you might guess, the pressure is beginning to wane a bit.

The opening of the big game hunting season this weekend will likely knock the number of anglers down another notch or two yet again.

I’d venture that in the collective minds of most fisherfolk who think about or fish the Park Madison in the fall streamers are considered the approach of choice; I’d even venture further than most conjure up visions of Bakers Hole and the Barnes Pools as the place they’d prefer to be standing.

If that describes you and your world, go to it; just recognize full well that even at that this late date you’ll never experience anything close to solitude around those famous runs – at times it can seem more crowded that the Madison Junction campground during the midsummer crush.

This year fish continue to be well distributed throughout the system – wander some, get away from the ‘drive-by guys’.  Think about swinging some larger soft hackles too; during my early fishing career I thought this was an archaic, less productive approach used by stiff upper lipped, tweed wearing pricks from more civilized regions, when in reality it’s a great approach to use in this setting.  Maybe it’s just me, but when I fall into my soft hackle cast, swing, step rhythm it seems I can relax and take in more of the river and its surroundings.

The weather forecast couldn’t be better.

Get out and wander a bit….

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The Madison in the Park is still fishing quite well and, as is to be expected this time of year, is still pretty danged crowded.

The story is pretty much what you’d expect to hear – olive and yellow streamers and soft hackles have been the most productive, and Baetis are still making an appearance on the overcast afternoons.

Yellowstoner has recently used the term ‘drive by fishing’ – we’d have to agree that with the crowds it can seem a bit surreal on the Park section of the Madison this time of year.

There’s a lot of great Park water  this time of year almost within spittin’ distance of the much, much more famous holes on the Madison.  These other waters are smaller, require some walking / bush-whacking / route finding / dealing with critters (some big critters potentially), etc.

You’ll find fish just as big and just as eager and a lot less fisherfolk if you explore a bit.

Tip of the day – locals drive dirty,  beat up, older POS classic vehicles with a ‘6’ on their non-vanity Montana plates; note where they’re parked and have walked in.   Bring your lunch and your bear spray.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The Park section of the Madison has been in fine fettle this year, maybe fishing better this fall that it has in some years.

Jake and I were in the Park yesterday believe it or not on business (really) and spied a fair number of anglers plying the Madison despite the bright (more or less) mid-day sun and breezy 36 degree temperatures; as you can see from the pic it was a gorgeous day with little snow persisting along the river (we have more on the ground in Bozeman, and it’s snowing here this morning again).  More on a change coming in the weather below.

Soft hackles, streamers and olives have been taking fish with some consistency for patient anglers willing to play the game on the Madison.  The sun has been the fly fishers fairly consistent companion for most of September, pushing the best fishing windows to early morning and late.  We’ve been most lucky in the evening, though admittedly that’s part laziness – to be on the Madison at 7 AM means pretty much a 5 AM departure from Bozeman for us – the river is well worth it but it’s been fishing well in the evenings too and there’s the bonus of Baetis in the afternoons (watch for overcast days) from about 330 or 4 on.

It probably seems we’re I’m a bit weather obsessed – it comes from years of running a horse operation up in the Flathead near Kalispell.  We were out in the weather every day of the year, multiple times a day, no matter that the weather – it’s been hard to shake the habit of watching the weather and calculating how long chores are going to take and what gear we’d need to wear for that particular outing.  Getting on the river in the weather is actually pretty similar – when it gets chilly you need to be a tad more thoughtful about gear, staying warm, travel and food.

There’s an unusually chilly air mass moving down out of Canada – not really cold mid-winter stuff, but enough to get your attention.   Tomorrow’s high in West is forecast to be 34, with high temps then not clearing freezing for the next three days, and Saturday morning is forecast to be a chilly -2.

That will definitely  be a two cup of coffee morning.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The Madison in the Park has enjoyed one of the better Septembers in recent memory in terms of fun and productive fishing – there have been good numbers of runners (rainbows and browns) and active fishing despite the bright sunshine dominating the weather for almost the entire month.

Speaking of weather – it has changed with a vengeance today.   Driving to an early morning meeting at 0640 this morning here in Bozeman it was raining and 38 with a stiff northwest wind blowing.  For the first time this season Bozeman and much of the greater Yellowstone area (including the entire Park) have been issued their first Winter Weather Advisory (purple on the map)…..

And the forecast for West Yellowstone looks snowy and a bit chilly, particularly when you compare it to the very warm temps that have graced the area for most of the month – hells bells, it was 85 in Bozeman yesterday afternoon.

As you’d expect this time of year streamers and soft hackles have been the name of the game on the Madison, and will be even more so given the advent of some genuine fall / transitional weather.  We and many others have been awaiting the arrival of fall weather to push the fall hatches – you can bet the Madison BWOs will be out this afternoon.

A final thought on the Park section of the Madison – October will be a very good fishing month without a doubt.  If you haven’t fished this section of the Madison during a good year you should get here sometime in the next few weeks.

Note well you won’t be alone or even close to it; there have been a large number of fisherfolk plying these hallowed waters this fall with more no doubt on the way given the weather change.  Maybe I’m getting to be a more cantankerous, spoiled,  selfish son of a bitch, but I just don’t like fly fishing in a crowd.  The trophy waters are a great experience to fish, but there are miles and miles of smaller, lesser-known and much less crowded waters to fish ‘just around the corner’ from the Madison.  Yellowstoner has been singing this song for several weeks now.

These days it will be hard to go wrong with almost any of the neighborhood waters.  We’ll drive by and snap your pic on the Madison (it is a magically photogenic river) and will probably fish it very late or very early on the way to or from some other places.

And dress warmly the next few days – I’m sitting in my office here in Bozeman and figured the rain had already stopped this morning as I could no longer hear the soft patter on the roof.

It did stop raining – it’s snowing.

Wahoo.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The reports from the Madison in the Park are more and more encouraging; there are consistently more fish moving in despite Mother Nature’s offering of an almost summer like September thus far.

Prime time continues to be early and late, with more of our circle of fisher folk fishing late in the day.  Our most trusted Madison fiend has been hitting the water between 630 and 7 and staying until after nine (yep, it’s dark then) and reports that this ‘early runner season’ has been the best he can remember in a few years.

Streamers and soft hackles are the ticket with streamers coming more into play this week as compared to last.

There are still fish rising to Baetis and midges too so be on the lookout for heads popping.

Driving out of the Park yesterday evening there was an army of elbows on the Madison…..you won’t have it to yourself.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

So we’ve not been the only ones to notice that the Madison is getting a little crowded these days – there are lots of fly fisher folk trooping up, down and across many of the ‘traditional’ fall runner holes (Baker’s, Barns, Junction Pool, etc.) and even some of the ‘lesser’ runs all the way up to the confluence.  Yellowstoner appropriately calls it the ‘Meadow Mambo’.

I think I saw the guy dancing in the video casting with those same movements on Grayling the other day.

Are there runners in the river?  Hell yes.

Are there a lot of them?  Nope.  But more are on the way.

A younger and more nimble fishing acquaintance recently called me ‘a tottering old geezer’ for swinging soft hackles on the Madison and Firehole;  I gently reminded him that I always outfish him when I do.  Soft hackles have been particularly useful on the Madison in the mornings, though we’re having more fun throwing terrestrials and baetis when they’re around.

Cloudy days will be much more mayfly-ish from here on out, though our current heat wave (90 or better in Bozeman the past two days and another due today….) is makes it feel more like mid-August than mid-September.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

There’s no question that fish are beginning to move up, though clearly not in great numbers yet.

Coolers nights, shortening days, better flows, higher Hebgen levels, cooler water all summer, alignment of the stars, gravitational fluxes – a veritable cascade of explanations have been offered as to the somewhat early start this year.

Are there lots of runners in the river?  Nope.  Are they randy pushovers yet? Nope.  Are there increasing numbers of elbows giving it a try on the Park section of the Madison these days?  Yep.

Oversimplifying a fair amount – you’ll have better odds fishing later in the day, best when the direct sun is off the water.  Odds will probably improve swinging streamers and soft hackles (we were on the Firehole last night).

I know that folks are still getting a fish now and then with smaller hoppers, beetles and ants, as well as the odd hatch now and then.

Yellowstoner has a nice array of classic Madison flies on display here; he’s also damned right about Grayling right now (shush – don’t tell anyone else…)

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The Park section of the Madison is kinda stuck in the middle of the transition from the summer to the early fall season (still).

There’s no question that a few runners are starting to squiggle up into the river, and more are staging.

Warm and sunny afternoons have made it feel like (late) summer is still successfully hanging on.  Mornings are notably cooler though and it seems days have been shortening at an almost alarming rate the past few weeks.

There are still Tricos in the morning and fish rising (some nice fish, but you’ll work for them) to hoppers, ants and beetles in the afternoons.  Soft hackles in transitional light have worked for us too.

Better in a few weeks; looking for some cooler weather.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

We’re hearing more and more chatter about the Park section of the Madison beginning to wake up a bit from its summer siesta.

Part of me wants to think it’s still summer, and in some respects it is – there’s lots of bright sunshine around, it’s still pretty danged warm most days (at least for the neighborhood), and there’s more green foliage this time of year than we’ve seen in decades.

On the other hand days are getting noticeably shorter, much of the high country underbrush is wearing it’s fall gold, there’s been snow in the high country now a couple of times already, and the throngs of tourists are definitely thinning out.

Another sure sign of fall – there’s more and more discussion of runners in the Madison and around the typical staging areas in the delta.  Blue Ribbon’s team notes that most of the runners are from Cardiac Hill down to the lake.  There are also Tricos and a few Olive spinners in the mornings, hoppers and terrestrials are in play all day, and even a few Caddis in the evenings.

Conditions are far from their fall prime, but things are beginning to come around.

The pic was taken on the Park section of the Madison a few weeks ago….

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

Just a couple of years ago this week during an outrageously hot and dry summer, the Park section of the Madison was a forbidden ghost town – the river was closed to fishing, flows were well below average, and the cool weather of fall seemed months away.

Not so this year.

A week or so of cool (some might even say cold) nights and still robust (average or better) river flows have kept the Park section of the Madison fishing pretty damned well.

We’ve even heard a few of our colleagues in the neighborhood whispering about the earliest sightings of fall run fish on the Madison.  Hell, the Blue Ribbon Fly guys even mentioned it in their newsletter this week (so it’s not much of a secret).

Evening Caddis and morning spinner falls still probably draw the most attention, though terrestrials and Tricos (Bakers and down) shouldn’t be ignored.

It’s going to warm back up the next few days, but I think we’re about to genuinely turn the corner on another summer season in the Park.

Wahoo.  This fall should be a great one.

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

There’s better water in the Park right now – the Park section of the Madison is still quite warm due to the inputs from the lower Firehole and Gibbon.

The relatively cool summer has kept the Madison alive and kicking in the Park with morning PMD (spotty) and more widespread Caddis activity, with terrestrials (small hoppers, ants, beetles, bees and wasps) drawing enough interest on the right kind of day and on the right kind of water to keep anglers on the water.

It’s frankly almost impossible to not fish this water as you trek in and out of the Park from West.

Better Park Madison days are just around the corner – days are shortening and the bow-neighbors are already tuning up for elk season opening in just a few weeks.

Should be a great fall…….

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The stretch of the Madison River inside Yellowstone, viewed by literally thousands of visitors every year as they enter YNP via the ever popular West Entrance Gate on the eastern edge of West Yellowstone, may be one of the most photographed of all the waters in the neighborhood.  Jake and and I were on the river before 6 AM yesterday morning to capture some shots we needed to round out a project – the fog began to dance just as the sun came up.

For many a fly fisher the comforting riffles and bends of the Park bound Madison signifies that they’ve finally ‘come back home’ to Yellowstone for another season.  (Hell, I think that every time I drive into the Park…..)

Though there are probably still an occasional decent  morning PMD spinner fall and some Caddis early and late, as well as some fish to be had on terrestrials cast tight to the bank, this time of year we typically join the growing chorus of folks suggesting that the Madison be given a break during the (typically) warmest days of the year in August.

There’s no official temperature reporting gage on this section of the Madison, though the lower Gibbon has been pushing 72 and the lower Firehole almost 80 (ouch) this past week.

Fall isn’t that far off, and we’ll all be chasing big runners on the Madison again……

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

The Park section of the Madison River is still giving up some very nice morning fishing during the PMD spinner falls – they’re roughly from 730 or so until 1030 or 11.  Our PMD maniac friends are having the most fun in the meadow below Madison junction and the section between 7 Mile and the upper end of Riverside Drive.

Yep – that’s slick water, and it requires fine tippets, a steady hand, a perfect float, and a spinner in the 18-20 range colored a tempting and precise olive.

This is big boy and girl fly fishing.  If you can’t run with the Big Dogs, stay on the porch.

Terrestrials aren’t a bad play here either……

Tags: River - YNP - Madison

As extraordinarily well as the river between the lakes (damned crowded) and on the upper Madison has been fishing, the Madison River in the Park has been getting a bit warm on these long, sunny days (and given the very warm input from the Firehole).

Unquestionably we agree with the admonitions coming from most quarters to head for other waters – there are a hoard of waters even yet on the west side of the Park that offer great fishing right now.  Yellowstoner is right on the mark with his recent reporting on the upper Gallatin, Graying, Fan, and other less favored waters.

That said, hitting the Madison in the early morning (or late evening) as you travel to and fro can still bring a smile to the grumpiest fly fisher.  There are still lots of bugs on the water at these times – mainly Caddis, terrestrials (might be the big players), and PMDs at varying stages of their life cycle – though there are a handful of other things to experiment with in the early mornings in particular.

Have that early cup of coffee or two and be on the road early……

Tags: River - YNP - Madison