Blog

I have spent many days in the fall around southwest Montana rowing clients around and tying on flies over the years. I can say that honestly, the October Caddis hatch is a bit disappointing. Have we caught trout on dries? Yes, more on the nymphs, but it’s just one of those hatches that should be better that it is in our area.

Have you ever asked yourself the question, "What time of year is it best to use the Hopper and a Dropper?" You also might be asking "Why fish a Hopper and a dropper?" and "How do I rig up a Hopper and a Dropper?" Read on for more tips.

On Monday, June 13th the Yellowstone River breached its banks to unprecedented levels. In April, we received an unusual amount of snow. Precipitation isn't unheard of in SW Montana in April, but with less than a great snowpack, we were happy to see the snow and rain to boost our lacking snowpack. We went from a miserable 70% of average to over 100%.

Make your life easier by purchasing your Yellowstone National Park fishing license online.

With Bozeman’s central location between the Yellowstone and Madison Rivers, it is a great place to base your stay if you want to fish the famed Mother’s Day Caddis hatch. This hatch is very specific to the water temperatures on the Madison and Yellowstone Rivers. Water temps must be around 52 degrees to key the brachycentrus occidentalis to hatch in the millions on these two trophy waters.

Many people have been inquiring about our fishing trips, but one of the main questions asked is, "How do we get there?" Fortunately, Bozeman, MT has the busiest airport in the state of Montana. Now, I’m not talking LAX, LaGuardia, or ATL, but for our state of 1 million residents, it is a major point of entrance to SW Montana.

We commonly get asked, "Where is the best fishing in Montana?" Without a doubt, in many anglers' opinion, it is located in Southwest Montana in Bozeman, Montana. Why? Bozeman is centrally located between three world class rivers: the Madison, Yellowstone and Gallatin Rivers, plus many lesser known streams. Each of these rivers is unique, and they are blue ribbon fisheries loaded with a healthy population of wild trout.

Many, many years ago I used to frequent a certain oil change business here in Bozeman, MT. There was an older gentleman that used to work there, and he was in charge of meeting customers and making small talk as they waited for their vehicles to be serviced. I can’t remember his name, so I’ll call him Tom. He was a super friendly guy and he always talked fishing with me as he noticed all my fishing gear I always kept in my truck. I never thought much about our conversations as I only frequented the business every 5000 miles.

Slow and steady is the mantra for winter fishing in the Bozeman, Montana area. The trout live in different water in the winter than they do in the summer. You want to find the slower pools or deeper, slower moving water. The trout are conserving their energy, working as little as possible when water temps are below 42 degrees. The only bugs hatching this time of year are midges, and they are sporadic and day-to-day.

This year we are offering our popular “Spring Special” again. From now until April 30th, all full day float or walk wade trips are $475 for one or two anglers. Save 20% and fish uncrowded waters. Coming to Big Sky to ski? Snowmobiling in Yellowstone National Park? Why not add on a day of fly fishing?

If you haven’t visited Bozeman, Montana before, you're in a for a treat. Bozeman is the fourth largest city in Montana, with a population of about 50,000. It has the busiest airport in the state servicing many different major carriers. It is a college town with an outstanding downtown area filled with many different restaurants and shops.

The big news is, on the early hours of November 30th, the Hebgen Dam, which controls the flow for the Madison River had a malfunction and reduced flows immediately from about 650 CFS to about 150 CFS. No one knew about this till the following morning. There was a lot of confusion at the beginning.