A Rising River, Caddis & March Browns
May 29th, 2019 -
The River’s on the rise, again. After a brief intermission of the 2019 Run Off it seems like we are once more at the beginning of the melt. The River dropped significantly with this past 7-10 days of Cold Rain & Snow. The USGS Madison River near Cameron, MT for the last three days shows what we think to be the second/real start of the 2019 Run Off, hopefully kicking into gear.
It seems we are 2-3 weeks behind normal for the snow melt and conditions that we usually find this time of year. Taking this into perspective, we might be looking at a late June peak and higher than normal water into the beginning of July.
What does this mean for The Hatch and the fishing forecast you ask? Let's get into the heart of whatever it is I’m rambling about….
“The Hatch!” Salmonflies. King of all Stoneflies, and of all hatches...really. Nature's great bonanza that all fly fisherman love, and live for!
Ya, not yet. Patience Grasshopper. It will come. 2019 Run Off is just at the beginning stages, so it may be later than normal. Deeeeep breath! We have to get through the big, brown water first.
Sammy's are hatching on the Henry’s Fork, so if you're jonesin’ for the big bug action. That is the place to be….today!
In the meantime, the last few days the Caddis and March Browns have been hatching on the Upper and Lower Madison with fish taking both. We've seen a few nice fish on March Brown dries, but you're probably going to get better numbers nymphing.
Rubber legs, worms, hare’s ears, Princes and buggers have been working. And, there’s been streamer junkies catching fish on every color in the rainbow. The fish are active and willing to eat. With the water temps reaching 52 F at Kirby today, we should see quite a bit more hatch and fish activity in the coming days before it blows out. Get it while the getting is good. Golf season will be here soon!
Stop by the shop anytime for a “fresh-off-the-water” fly fishing report.
Check out the latest Madison River Fishing Report here.
