Intro | Where and When | Hatches | Resources| Madison Map (2.5 MB .PDF)

ne thing I've noticed through my years of writing about trout water is that every time the quality of fishing declines on a famous river, it eventually rebounds and produces some excellent fishing a few years before the angling masses catch on.

In recent years, no river fell harder than southwest Montana's Madison and, perhaps, no river took longer to be rediscovered. After whirling disease was discovered in the Madison in the mid- to late-1990s, the number of visiting anglers dropped off. Locals who fished the river during that time enjoyed some awesome fishing for an increasing number of browns and a few survivalist rainbows, and they experienced a level of solitude no one will likely see again. A dozen fish a day. Two-dozen fish a day. Three-dozen fish a day, with a few specimens stretching to 20 inches or more. No boat-launch lines. No flaring tempers. No refusals. Just pure gluttony enjoyed at a leisurely pace. Those were the days to savor.

 

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By 2001 the word was out that the Madison never really died and, in record numbers, anglers from everywhere inked their reservations to fish the "50-mile riffle," eager to rekindle their relationships with an old, generous friend. During the 2001 season, more than 86,000 angler days were recorded on the upper river between Hebgen Dam and Ennis Lake-the highest (at that time) ever recorded. In 2003, Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks documented more than 119,000 angler days in the Hebgen Lake to Ennis Lake stretch alone! Overall, the river hosted more than 190,000 angler days, making the Madison the most heavily fished river in the state, far exceeding the region's other big-name streams.

Aside from the outstanding fishing, another relatively recent development is also contributing to the Madison's hordes of anglers. A few years ago, outfitter and nonresident angler restrictions were placed on the Big Hole and Beaverhead rivers and many anglers and outfitters moved, in part or in whole, to the Madison. Today, the Madison is regarded as the ticket and the most dependable trout stream in a trout-infested, tri-state portion of the country dubbed the Golden Triangle.

Though populations were low in the '90s due to whirling disease, rainbow trout numbers are on the rebound, and the chances of catching fish over 18 inches are good.

Anglers come from everywhere, not just neighboring waters, to fish the river. They are bailing out on their local streams where extended drought has cauterized trout production. The Madison, which is regulated by two major dams and fed by snowpack in and around Yellowstone National Park, maintained decent flows through the drought, setting it apart from nearly every western trout stream. In addition, the rainbow trout population, which crashed in the mid- to late-'90s due to whirling disease and erratic flows, has rebounded, and the outlook for reproduction and survival is optimistic.

You can't blame anglers for their enthusiasm. The Madison's wild rainbow and brown trout average 12 to 15 inches and often stretch beyond 17 inches. They are abundant and are the kind of fish we love-solid, well fed trout that eat dry flies and nymphs with abandon and fight valiantly in the river's eager current, occasionally taking us to our backing. The river offers all types of water and angling challenges, and it fishes well year-round.

The Madison is nothing less than a grade-A, first-rate trout stream, a place trout bums call home, and a stream that serious trout anglers should rank high on their hit list.