Lower Madison River Fishing Report
Date: 06/13/2025
Posted by: Toby SwankCurrent Conditions
The Lower Madison River continues to be one of the better options for anglers fishing near Bozeman this June. The river is in great shape with just a bit of greenish color to it and good, steady flows. Whether you are wading or floating, the sections between Warm Springs and Greycliffs are all fishing well.
Although salmonflies are really known to hatch in big numbers on the lower Madison, we are hearing reports of the big bugs around in the Beartrap Canyon.
The “big hatch” right now is the Brown Drake hatch. There are more and more of these giant mayflies on the river. The better dry fly fishing is during the spinner fall in the evenings and during cloudy periods in the afternoons.
Nymphing continues to be solid throughout the river and our Bozeman fly fishing guides have been sticking with the lower Madison basics like crayfish and little mayfly imitations. Fish these under a strike indicator with some added weight, we are running leader lengths in the 5’ range with 3X tippets to the lead fly and 4X to the smaller bug.
Conditions are difficult to predict; one tool that our Bozeman fly fishing guides rely on is NOAA's Norris Hill weather station. If it's really blowing there, it's likely blowing pretty good out on the lower as well - but that isn't always the case as that station is located at the top of Norris Pass. It's worth checking out, though, so that you can come up with a plan B if it turns out to be too windy once you hit Black's Ford.
Helpful Articles (click to read):
- Lower Madison River Fly Fishing in June
- Guide to Fly Fishing the Lower Madison River
Stream Flows
Flows
Recommended Flies
Dead Drift Crayfish
Tan Clouser
Copper Zonker
Hare's Ear Guides Choice
PMD Crackback
Iron Sally
Frenchie
Sparkle Minnow
Lower Madison River Fishing
Read the "Lower Madison River Fishing Guide" for a comprehensive introduction to fly fishing in Montana on the lower Madison River from the Bozeman fly fishing guides with Fins and Feathers.
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