Fly Fishing the Madison River

The Madison runs fast, broad, and wadeable from Hebgen and Quake lakes north toward Ennis, a continuous riffle famously nicknamed 'the fifty-mile riffle.' It is a blue-ribbon freestone and one of the most storied dry-fly rivers in the world, draining out of Yellowstone country through the Madison Valley. Wild brown and rainbow trout hold in its boulder-strewn pocket water, and the river fishes well on both nymphs and dries through the summer and fall. Its signature event is the late-June salmonfly hatch, followed by golden stones, summer caddis, and a strong fall Baetis season.

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When to fish

July–October

Best months: July–October

Best
Off-peak

Salmonfly: late Jun–early Jul. Golden Stonefly: Jul.

Today's conditions

Where to fish

Along the Madison River

Big Sky Canyon Village4 shopsBozeman3 shops

Twin Bridges3 shopsLivingston3 shops

Hwy 287 follows the river from Quake Lake to Ennis with numerous FWP fishing-access sites and miles of wadeable public water.

The water

Freestone

Key hatches

Midge
Blue-Winged Olive
Caddisfly
Flav
Golden Stonefly

Hatch calendar

Conditions

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6-day forecast

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Forecast from the National Weather Service ↗

Hatch calendar

Months each hatch is active on the Madison River, with hook sizes and local timing notes.
Hatch · hook	J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
Midge(midges)hook #18–22	January	February	March	April	May	June	July	August	September	October	November	December
Blue-winged Olive(mayflies)hook #16–20Sep–Oct				April	May				September	October
Caddisfly(caddis)hook #14–16Jun–Sep, evenings				April	May	June	July	August	September
Flav(mayflies)hook #14–16						June	July
Golden Stonefly(stoneflies)hook #2–6Jul						June	July
Salmonfly(stoneflies)hook #2–4late Jun–early Jul						June	July
Pale Morning Dun(mayflies)hook #14–18Jul–Aug							July	August
Trico(mayflies)hook #18–22								August	September