Lots of people are still calling and emailing to ask about the heat drought conditions. The weather has not been hot for weeks now and we have had lots of rain here on the Madison river. The Madison was relatively low...around 1000 cubic feet per second near Varney bridge until yesterdays rains caused it to rise around 20%. The reason for the low water has more to do with the cool weather than lack of water. Hebgan lake which provides most of the water that flows dawn the Madison River is still 96% FULL ! It was so cool and rainy yesterday that I am looking at fresh snow on the mountains. Likewise, relatively low daytime high temperatures and frequent afternoon thunderstorms have kept the water temperatures well within the happy range for trout. So why is the river low? The most likely explanation is that because the water temperatures are fine, the water is being held back to conserve it in case it gets hot again in August...smart move!
Flows and temperatures on the Madison river have been good...but hows the fishing? It has been pretty good most days with some really great days and a few tough days mixed in. It is not the sure thing huge numbers days that it was a month ago but we are putting up some really great days and seeing a lot more of the big fish coming out to feed on streamers and dries in this low water. Yep...there have been a couple tough days in the mix too. Hoppers are starting to work and the streamer fishing is really picking up now that the early season hatches are fading away.
Alicia and I had a fun Madison river float on a cloudy afternoon between thunderstorms.
This one ate a hopper!
A hopper dropper double! One measured 19 and the other 21! A strong start to the Madison river hopper season.
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