Fall has arrived in southwest Montana and The Madison River is in prime condition for some great pre-spawn brown trout fishing. The flows have remained fairly flat since last month. “Indian Summer” like weather conditions  have made for some awesome October fly fishing. We know it’s not going to last so get out there and enjoy it while it lasts. Check out our October Specials to get in on the fun and save some cash! Read on for our Upper Madison River fishing report for 10/8/14:

FLOWS:

• Hebgen Dam 985 cfs
• Kirby Ranch 1,140 cfs
• Varney Bridge 1,340 cfs

CONDITIONS: Visibility is great at 3 to 4 feet. Very clear.

STREAMERS: The streamer game is prime.The classic strip, jerk and pause is getting the bigger fish moving. Tight line with a spilt-shot and no indicator; or dead drift under an indicator and minimal mending is your best bet for good streamer action. The big brown trout are in their aggressive pre-spawn stage and are looking for big protein. Good news for streamer fishermen! Check out my TOP 10 STREAMER FOR SW MONTANA for more suggested streamer patterns.

• Mini-Loop Sculpin and Zonker’s in Natural and olive and brown size # 4-8.Whitlock’s Hare Sculpin, Sheila Sculpin, Stalcup’s Sculpin, McCunes Sculpin, Exasperator Sculpin, Trevor’s Sculpin, Big Gulp Sculpin,
• Don’t forget to add a small beadhead dropper 15-18″ tied off the bend of your streamer.

• Micro May’s, Flashback Pheasant Tails, Soft Hackle Pheasant TailsBeadhead Prince’s, Psycho Princes, CDC Princes, Psycho May’s.
• Green Spanker, Silver Spanker, Silverman’s Caddis,  Lawson’s Electric Caddis, Serendipities. Three Dollar Dips, Zebra Midges size #14-18.
• Lightning bugs in silver or gold, Red Copper John’s size # 14-18.

DRIES: The dry fly bite has tapered off and most of our fishing is down stairs.

• Chubby Chernobyl’s with the wing trimmed down in gold, olive and UV tan size #10-12
• Goddard Caddis size #14-16, Elk Hair Caddis size # 14-16. Iris Caddis size #14-16.
• Royal Wulff, Royal Cripple, Royal Trude size # 12-16.
• CFO Chernobyl Hopper in tan or peach, Morrish Hopper in tan, yellow, or pink, Clodhopper in peach size # 8-12.

NYMPHING: Nymphing two nymph’s under a srike indicator is also still very productive.

• Tough to beat a Pat’s Rubber Leg Stone in black, brown, olive or tan size # 6-10.
• Tungsten Golden Stone size # 6-12.
• George’s Rubber Leg Brown Stone size # 6-10.

Good second fly choices include:

• Delekta’s CDC PT Spanker, silver, green and red. Beadhead Prince’s, Psycho Princes, Psycho May’s, Micro May’s, Flashback Pheasant Tails, Soft Hackle Pheasant Tails, Silverman’s Caddis,  Lawson’s Electric Caddis, Serendipities, Three Dollar dips, Shop Vac’s, Red Copper John’s size #14-18.

TIPS: October is brown trout spawning season so watch your step and stay clear of bright gravel! For more information on the Madison River and guided fishing trips on Montana’s Madison River please contact FishTales Outfitting. Happy Angling!