A temporary fix has been put on Hebgen Dam, so fishing on the Madison below is improving and will continue to do so throughout the fall season barring more problems with flows out of the dam. Walking the shoreline around Hebgen Lake and presenting streamers and wooly bugger types has been productive.
Flow out of Hebgen Lake Dam dropped to over 1150 cfs giving a small break to the high flows that the Madison has been experiencing. These flows are continuing to drop fairly steady everyday as they are trying to fix the dam. Call the shop for updated flows.
Flow out of Hebgen Lake Dam remains over 3000 cfs making for very tough fishing on the river below. Hebgen Lake has dropped much because of this. Look for flow out of the dam to remain high until repairs are completed.
Flows out of Hebgen Dam remain well over 3000 cfs, so we do not recommend the river below as a destination. Water level in Hebgen Lake is very low because of the situation at the dam. Look for still waters such as Elk Lake, Hidden Lake, Wade Lake and Cliff Lake to offer some great deep water streamer fishing soon.
Flows out of Hebgen Lake remain over 3000 cfs making for tough fishing on the Madison River below. This also has impacted the Hebgen Lake gulper activity which is about over anyway. On overcast days look for good BWO emergences on such as the South Fork of the Madison River, and the West Fork of the Madison River.
Flows out of Hebgen Dam have not reduced as repairs are not yet complete. We cannot recommend fishing the river from here to Ennis. Hebgen Lake has dropped a lot because of this impacting the gulper event. It is winding down, and so is the spruce moth hatch. As we get into autumn, streamer fishing will become the best way to find action.
Big news here is that trouble with head gates at Hebgen Dam has closed the door on fishing the Madison River downstream to Ennis temporarily. Flows as high as 3500 cfs rushed down the river causing minor flooding and erosion. The river will clear soon, and good fishing will return. Some gulpers are active on Hebgen Lake, and spruce moth patterns bring action on the Gallatin River and the West Fork of the Madison River
Look for a stormy second half of the weekend, but between now & then go with terrestrial and spruce moth patterns on streams.and Speckled duns and tricos are diminishing, so gulpers have slowed on Hebgen and other waters. Give em one last try before the stormy weather begins later this weekend.
Trout going after spruce moths on streams near pine forests and gulpers after speckled duns & tricos (diminishing a bit) are providing best action.
Spruce moths are emerging in big numbers in the area, and for just about any stream in southwestern Montana, the best fly is one that imitates them. This applies to the Madison, the West Fork of the Madison, the Gallatin, the Taylor’s Fork, Ruby River and even the Beaverhead. For still waters, Hebgen Lake gulpers provide the best action, but there are gulpers on other lakes in the region.