Montana Fish Report

Fly selection is always a challenge on the 50 mile riffle, especially when picking a nymph. With a massive diversity of insect life, trying to figure out what a trout might be feeding on is often a crap-shoot. We jump on any clues the river might throw at us.

Each spring, we notice large numbers of big, olive, mayfly nymphs. In fact, this spring it seemed like every time you climbed out of the river there were a dozen or more of these clinging monsters stuck on our boots and waders. Our guides observed these nymphs on their anchor ropes all spring. Many of the nymphs are Rhithrogena (March Browns) while some are green drakes and flavs. Regardless of the species, the abundance sent us straight to the tying bench. The result was a new version of our Madison series of beadheads.

The first introductions were MicroMadison Baetis and PMD nymphs. The MacroMadison is the big brother to its predecessors. With a moose tail, gold ribbed thread body, pearl flashback, and rough zelon dubbed thorax, this nymph is an effective imitation of the large nymphs found on the Madison and throughout Yellowstone Country.