Upper Madison: Hoppers and especially ants continue to produce the best dry fly fishing. Apart from that, nymphing with smaller size nymphs will get you into fish most consistently throughout the day. We have been seeing a few baetis the last few days with the nastier weather, but we are still a few weeks away from seeing consistent hatches of them. Whether fishing dries or nymphs, good drifts are key for the rest of the season as these fish have seen a lot of flies at this point.
Flies: #10-12 Grand Hopper, #12-14 Thunder Thighs, #16 Arrick’s Ant, #20-22 Baetis Cripple, #16-18 Red Neck, #16 Olive Biot Czech, #16-18 Shop Vac, #16-18 Guide Dip, #16 Green Machine, #16 Black Krystal Dip, #16-18 Black/Green Lightning Bug, #18-20 Zebra Midge
Hebgen Lake: Right when we were starting to get some consistency on the lake, cold mornings have significantly slowed the hatches of Callibaetis. Tricos on the Madison Arm in the mornings will have fish rising until the wind picks up. We have been catching a few fish on ants, and suspending a Turkey Callibaetis or unweighted pheasant tail has been working well also.
Flies: #16 Turkey Callibaetis, #20-22 Trico Calf Wing Spinner, #16 Pheasant Tail, #14-16 Arrick’s Ant
Gallatin: There have been some baetis around providing some dry fly fishing, especially during the evening hours. The nymphing remains consistent with small baetis and midge imitations. Look for the streamer fishing to pick up here with this cooler weather.
* Our special thanks to the crew over at Gallatin River Guides for providing us with the most up-to-date info on the Gallatin.
YNP
NE Corner: Terrestrials have been the name of the game on Slough, Soda Butte and Lamar lately. Ants have been working best, but smaller hoppers and beetles have been good as well. PMDs are getting a little scarce but can still be found on colder, gray days. Keep an eye out for Drake Mackerels as well starting about this time through the fall months. As usual, if you are struggling getting fish to come up, try fishing a dropper rig or stripping a small leech.
Flies: #14-18 Rusty Spinner, #16 Tilt Wing PMD, #16 PMD Missing Link, #14-18 Missing Link, #10-12 Thunder Thighs Hopper, #10-12 Parachute Hopper, #14 Bogus Beetle, #14-16 Arrick’s Ant, #14 Red Neck, #14 Orange Bullet, #8 Simi Seal Leech
