![Montana fly fishing reports overview](/sites/default/files/uploads/2024-07/madison_river_900x600_ben04821.jpg)
Fishing in southwest Montana is in full on late summer mode. Hatches of caddis are active throughout the day. PMDs are still bumping around on our tailwater rivers like the Upper Madison and Missouri Rivers. With the hot weather we are having and the forecast saying it will remain for at least another week or so, it means early mornings and into the afternoons is the best window of fishing action. Late evenings can also fish well, but it is also ok to hit a local bar or restaurant and fish again in the early morning.
We expect the terrestrial fishing--hoppers, ants, and beetles--to really pick up in the coming weeks. Our cold and wet spring means there are ample grasses which means there are also plenty of grasshoppers. We are optimistic of another very good hopper season to come and be excited for some twitching hoppers.
Overview
Peak activity this time of year coincides with the emergence of aquatic insects during the hatches. Pay close attention to the insects on the water at a given time, often PMD’s hatch before yellows sallies for example. On highly fertile fisheries with thick hatches like spring creeks and tailwaters the trout become very selective during the hatch and you must imitate the correct species as well as life cycle of the insect that the trout are keying in on. On less fertile freestone streams it is more of a potluck and the trout will feed more opportunistically. On spring creeks plan on match the hatch but if you are fishing waters with sporadic hatches try big attractor dry flies on top or large streamers down under to move fish farther than smaller patterns. Expect to fishing to slow down abruptly once the insects are gone but you can often continue to pick fish up later in the day. In the evenings there is often another flurry of activity just before dark.
Hatches
Aquatic insects are by far the dominate food source right now on most streams and rivers. Expect to see pale morning duns (small size 14 yellow and light grey mayflies), yellow sally stoneflies (size 14-12 yellow), caddis (several species, tan and cream size 16-10 – fast active fliers), golden stoneflies (big size 8 with dark gold body) and even some late salmonflies (giant size 2, three inches long). There are also some different drake species of large mayflies hatching that can excite fish such as brown and eventually green drakes. Make sure to have all stages of the life cycles in your boxes. For mayfly species like the pale morning dun have nymphs, emergers, cripples, duns and spinners. For caddis have larva, pupae and adults. For stoneflies nymphs and adults.
Fly selection
You basically have to determine if you are going to match the hatch or bust the hatch this time of year. When you can see fish actively rising on the surface it is generally best to match the hatch. The same as true before a hatch, nymphing with the imitation of the nymph or emerger that the fish will see later is a good bet. When the hatch starts if fish are on the surface it is best to match the hatch or try a “cripple” or “emerger” pattern behind an adult imitation. If the hatch gets to a blanket stage then try a size or two larger than the natural. If fish are not taking flies off the surface then the nymphing game can be tougher during the peak of the hatch unless you are sight casting. There can be so many naturals underwater that your imitation has beat the odds that are often 100:1 with so many real bugs in the water. If you are nymphing during a strong hatch it is often better to switch to much larger patterns or streamers dead drifted or stripped rather than compete with naturals.
Interestingly when a hatch is sparse we flip flop are strategy. On the surface you can still catch fish with an exact imitation but you can often be even more successful with a large attractor fly that will move fish farther. The trout aren’t so keyed in on the natural that they won’t switch gears and eat something even bigger like a fat albert or chubby Chernobyl. When nymphing it is nice to continue to have an exact imitation but consider trailing it behind something larger like a big stonefly nymph, crayfish or sculpin.
Reading water
Flows are all over the place right now on different rivers. On fisheries that have already dropped significantly trout are already moving into deeper runs for protection but on the rivers with higher flows they are in the safe havens that have slower current speeds like along banks, behind rocks and on the inside corners of bends or slower tail-outs.