Madison River

GAGE LOCATION

DAY/YEAR
GRAPHS

CURRENT
STAGE/FLOW

WHAT TIME

Madison near West Yellowstone

7 30 year

1.79 / 399

9 pm

Madison below Hebgen Lake

7 30 year

/

N/A

Madison at Kirby Ranch

7 30 year

/

N/A

Madison below Ennis Lake

7 30 year

/

N/A

CITY

West Yellowstone

NOAA

Accuweather

TWC

Ennis

NOAA

Accuweather

TWC

Bozeman

NOAA

Accuweather

TWC

HATCH

NYMPH/
LARVA

PUPA/
EMERGER

DUN/
ADULT

EGG-
LAYER

Blue-winged olive

October caddis

Green caddis

Golden stonefly

Salmonfly

Cranefly

Midge

Scud

Sculpin

Baitfish

Sowbug

Both the upper Madison (above Ennis Lake) and lower Madison (below Ennis Lake) can fish well in winter. Look for fish in deeper sections.

On the lower Madison, the bank is high enough that you can spot deep water by looking for color changes; look for greener (vs. browner) water when the sun is high. Also, look for places where little waves are dancing on the surface but the water isn't going anywhere. These "bathtubs" can hold a bunch of trout.

Wherever you find suitable water, streamers and small nymphs drifted near the bottom can pick up fish. Some anglers feel that sparsely-tied streamers work best here. Sculpin and crayfish imitations are good choices. These can be especially effective when fished downstream from spawning brown trout because sculpins and crayfish are attracted to spilled eggs. However, under no circumstances should you target spawning brown trout. These fish need to be left alone. When fishing downstream from redds, you are targeting rainbows, not browns.

The usual blue-winged olive and midge hatches are the only events that will bring trout to the surface.

For more on November tactics and flies, see the Rivers in General report.