6/12/2026: Madison River Fishing Report
Summary
Fishing on the Upper Madison has been pretty decent over the last several weeks, with wind the main complaint rather than the water. The bigger story this week is rising flows: Hebgen is essentially full, so the dam is finally sending water downstream. That nudges the salmonfly hatch back a touch but should turn on the streamer bite over the next week.
At a glance: Hebgen Dam 699 cfs, Kirby 842 cfs, Varney 1100 cfs (rising) | Hebgen Reservoir 99.6% full and rising | Rising as the dam ramps, salmonfly window opening
Fishing on the Upper Madison has been pretty decent over the last several weeks, with wind the main complaint rather than the water. The bigger story this week is rising flows: Hebgen is essentially full, so the dam is finally sending water downstream. That nudges the salmonfly hatch back a touch but should turn on the streamer bite over the next week.
Note. Flows are rising all week. Northwestern Energy began stepping releases up roughly 5% per hour (noon to 5 pm) and will keep climbing through Friday until outflow matches inflow. Expect changing levels, moving color lines, and shifting wade access day to day. Wind is the other hazard: the open middle river below Varney has been blowing 30 to 40 mph at low flows, dangerous and miserable in a boat. Stay up high or find shelter in the trees when Aeolus shows up.
Best techniques
- Nymphing is the workhorse by a long shot. Up top, small Pat's Rubber Legs and TJ Hookers in #10-12, plus Olive Caddis Larva, Zebra Midges, Dips, and smaller perdigons in the #16-18 range. BWO nymphs still earn their keep on the colder, cloudier days.
- Dry-dropper on the float: dropping tungsten off a Royal Micro Chubby has produced some really fun days through the float section.
- Dries are improving with small attractors and adult caddis, though they remain a distant second to the nymph rig for now.
- Streamers still are not great, but expect that to flip quickly as flows tick up. Work Mini Envys, Mini Whiteys, Double Screamers, Mini Loop Sculpin, Bangtails, and micro envys in Black, Olive, Yellow, Olive/Black, and Natural. Retrieve matters as much as pattern: some days a slow twitch or jig, other days a hard strip back to the boat, so keep experimenting until you crack the code.
Hatches
Salmonflies: a few have been spotted down low, but a full-blown emergence is still a little ways off. Slide Inn's best guess is around June 16, roughly a week ahead of normal, though rising flows may push it back. Call the North Slide in Ennis for big-bug intel next week. Caddis: adults on the water; olive caddis larva working subsurface. BWOs: still in play as nymphs on the colder days. Midges: small dips and zebra midges remain steady producers in the nymph rig.
The Fly Box
Nymphs: TJ Hookers, Zebra Midges, Dips, Pat's Rubber Legs
Dries: Royal Micro Chubby
Streamers: Mini Envys, Mini Whiteys, Double Screamers, Bangtails, micro envys, Mini Loop Sculpin
Outlook. The week is all about water coming up. Flows rising daily out of Hebgen should color things slightly, improve the streamer fishing, and set the stage for the salmonfly emergence shortly after. Keep nymphing as the bread-and-butter approach, watch the lower river for the first big bugs around the 16th, and be ready to fish streamers harder as the river fills in.
Sources
- Slide Inn / Galloup's, "Madison River Fishing Report for June 10th, 2026" (June 10, 2026) to https://www.slideinn.com/madison-river-fishing-report-06-10-2026/
- Madison River Fly Fishing Company, "Cold on the shoulder" (last updated April 23, 2026; pre-runoff, not current) to https://www.mrfc.com/blogs/madison-river-fishing-reports/cold-on-the-shoulder
Sources and Thanks
| Shop | Report date | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Slide Inn (Galloup's) | June 10, 2026 | Madison River |
| Madison River Fly Fishing Company (Ennis) | April 23, 2026 | Madison River |
