Land of the Giants and Madison River Fly Fishing: Fall

Fall  Land Of The Giants And Madison River  Fishing

After one of the hottest and driest summers we have seen in Montana, cooler and wetter weather in mid September was welcome.  On Labor Day Weekend the afternoon high on the Madison River reached 97 degrees.  Only 10 days later we were dealing with cold, rain and wind on the Madison and fresh snow in the mountains.  Hot mid summer days are not always best for targeting large but September and October always offer some cooler, darker days to get the big fish moving.  September was our best month for the larger browns on the Madison River this year.  The last 2 weeks of September produced some real trophies.  The first run of darker skies and stormy conditions after the heat of August always seems to get the bigger browns feeding. We see fish in September and October that did not seem to be there in August. September and October are out favorite times to target larger fish on the Madison River.  Those fall fish are fat in in preparation for the spawn and late season often produces the biggest fish that I see all year.

The Land of the Giants on the Missouri River is always a great option for targeting large trout in the fall.  This section of river is known for truly massive fall brown trout that migrate from Holter Lake into the Land of the Giants section of of the Missouri River to spawn.  However, the real draw for us is the large numbers of big lake run rainbow trout that make the same migration.  It is hard to beat catching numbers of rainbows that would be trophy fish on most other western rivers.  Between the trees changing, the crowds thinning and the big fish moving, fall is my favorite time of year in Montana.

Fall Madison River Fishing:

Land of the Giants Missouri River: