A Montana Fly Fishing Blog
Quiet on the rivers in Bozeman, MT this November. We have been on the Yellowstone River and Madison River this past week and have been spoiled with perfect fall weather, total solitude, and great fly fishing. The blue winged olive hatches of October are on their way out but strong hatches of midges have taken their place. Calm days will make for quality dry fly fishing.
It is a winter wonderland in Bozeman, Montana today. What happened to fall? Came and went quicker than we could have ever believed. As for the fly fishing? Cold days make for often tough conditions for anglers but great for our trout. Our fly fishing guides have been on the water daily for the last week and have seen it on all on the rivers and streams near Bozeman: snow, sun, good dry fly fishing, great nymphing, and even a hopper eating trout or twelve.
It’s middle of October in Bozeman, MT: fall is in the air, our rivers are quiet, and the fly fishing has been great. Great fly fishing doesn’t necessarily translate into easy fly fishing every day, in all conditions, but when conditions have been right and angling has been good, the fly fishing has been as great as great gets.
Our Montana fly fishing guides and anglers on the water have seen a little bit of everything since our last report: snow, sunshine, more snow, fall colors, and lots of rising trout. We had a historic early season winter storm move through that marked an abrupt end of summer-like conditions and brought about colder-than average fall temperatures in a hurry. In spite of often trying conditions, the fly fishing has remained solid around Bozeman, MT particularly the fall dry fly bite.
Fall is in the air in Bozeman, MT and our Montana fly fishing guides and anglers have been enjoying great fly fishing on a daily basis. We’ve received our first taste of cooler and wetter weather over the past week and were treated to great hatches of Blue Winged Olives (BWOs) and Fall Drakes on our Bozeman area rivers. Anglers can expect this pattern to continue through the end of the month: cooler overcast and rainy days will mean good mayfly hatches while warmer and sunnier days will continue to produce good hopper fishing. Smaller terrestrials will also continue to be important for dry fly anglers and trout as flying ants and beetles will stay on the menu. Streamer fishing has started to pick up across Montana as has the fall nymph bite on the Missouri River. Look for hatches and the fly fishing to only get better through the end of the month. Late September is one of our favorite times of the year to fly fish in Montana: quiet river and strong hatches make for fun days on the river. Our guide’s calendars are just about booked for September but still time to plan your Fall fly fishing trip to Bozeman or the Missouri River in October.
Flows are solid, water is cold, and the fly fishing has been great in Bozeman, MT this August. Dry flies have been king on all of our local rivers with hoppers and stoneflies producing some of the largest average size fish we have consistently seen in years. Some days it has seemed like every big brown in the Yellowstone River and Madison River have been looking up and eager to crush the first big hopper that comes their way. Sure makes things fun.
Happy Independence Day! The 4th of July is a big deal in Montana. Rodeos rule in small towns, parades in bigger, and a good ol’ time of it everywhere. Our larger rivers may be crowded but it’s a holiday weekend after all, and everyone is out for the same reason: to have some fun, so join in!
Not much new to report on. Foam fly fishing is still great with large hoppers being the first choice for getting big fish to look up. Hoppers being a generic term for all big foam flies that float. Don’t forget to twitch. The twitch has been triggering strikes from big fish on all of…
Snow day in Bozeman. Coming down pretty good, reports indicating several feet deep in the high mountains. What does this mean for anglers that aren’t ready to call it a season yet? Still lots of great fly fishing to be had in Bozeman, Montana. Fly fishing pressure is non-existent on our local rivers like the Madison River and Yellowstone River. Weather becomes the major variable that can hamper success on our rivers in November. Water temps are still great and the fish are on the feed. Float tips this past week on the Madison River were great. Calmer days with highs above freezing will be your best bet from here on out.
The hoppers are here. The banks of the Yellowstone River, Madison River, Missouri River, and many rivers of Yellowstone National Park are buzzing and clicking all day long as hundreds and hundreds of the tasty trout snacks are starting to fly around. We have seen trout on all of these rivers start to key in on our favorite of the terrestrials and it is making for great fly fishing for our anglers and Bozeman, Montana fly fishing guides. Expect hopper fishing to only improve over the next month. Plenty of cold water this year. Shaping up to be one great August to fly fish in Montana
Summer has arrived in Bozeman, MT. The sun is out, bugs are hatching, trout are rising, and all of our local rivers and creeks are fishing well. Expect great fly fishing any which way you drive from Bozeman. The Madison River and Yellowstone River is where you can find most of our Montana fly fishing guides and anglers, but the Missouri River has been a dry fly anglers paradise and will continue to be so in the coming weeks. Head to Yellowstone National Park to stay on the salmonfly hatchand enjoy some of the best wade fishing around. Grab your rod, a few of your favorite flies, and hit the road or give us a call to experience some of the best fly fishing of the year. Summertime and the living is easy in Bozeman, MT.
Rain today, 80 degrees yesterday, and they are calling for 85 degrees in Craig, MT by Friday. Sounds like Spring to me! The fishing gods have been generous to us this past week. Despite variable flows, changing weather, and all of our major freestone rivers remaining blown out (check back in July), our anglers and Montana fly fishing guides were treated to consistently great fly fishing this past week. The Missouri River fished as well as it ever has for us and the Paradise Valley Spring Creeks had good hatches on the more overcast and rainy days. This will be our story for the next month. For clean water and great fly fishing, our local tailwaters and spring creeks will be your best bet. Want to learn how to fish the Missouri River at 15000+ CFS? Give us a shout to hire a guide for the day.
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