Winter is definitely settling in here, but the fishing has been heating up recently! We have been focusing mostly on the Upper River above the West Fork where the nymphing and dry fly fishing has been very good.

Euro-nymph tactics have proven very effective. MVP flies are the #12 TB Jig Copper John and #14 TB Jig Pheasant Tail fished on 5X Fluorocarbon. If you’re not familiar with Euro-Nymphing tactics or haven’t tried it yet, stop in or give us a call and we’ll help you out. The Madison is a great river for this tactic, and winter is a great time to do it.

On cloudy late afternoons there has also been a lot of surface activity in the soft seams and tail-outs above Windy Point all the way up through the Slide Area. Fish are primarily rising to midges, so bring your favorite itty bitty midge patterns. You can usually trick a few on #20 or #22 Parachute Adams and Baetis imitation too.

We haven’t gotten many reports from Lyons Bridge down through Ennis lately, but with the weather warming up for a few days now it looks like a good time for float fishing.

Heads up! There are Redds and spawning Brown Trout throughout the Upper Madison, but particularly in the Upper reaches. Keep and eye out and please avoid anchoring or walking through them. It’s just not cool.

Keep tabs on the Madison and Ruby River flows with USGS graphs updated daily.