The fishing around Twin Bridges was excellent last week! Unfortunately, mother nature decided to crank the heat up on us and now we are experiencing some low level snow melt. That being said, we still have some fishable options. Below is a brief description of each river:
Jefferson: The river is currently on the rise and severely off color. This one will be offline for at least the next week.
Big Hole: With the Big Hole being a freestone, as soon as the the low level snow melts, the upper end will become fishable. Time frame for this will be roughly 3-5 days. Once it starts dropping and clearing, stonefly nymphs and skwala dries will definitely take fish. We should start seeing our spring Baetis hatch here soon. Just need a few clouds and clear water. Nymphing will definitely be the mainstay with fish stacked on inside corners and long and(or) slow runs. Once the water temps start warming up, look to find fish spread throughout the runs, The san juan worm is king this time of year.
Beaverhead: The river is currently low. It is also closed until the 3rd saturday of May upstream of Henneberry access.The river below there should be wade fished, as it is too small to float. Nymphing with Baetis, worms, and the typical tailwater flies will work well. Look for hatches to get going here soon, and do some sight fishing to trout up eating BWO’s and maybe a few midges. Streamer fishing will also be good on cloudy days.
Ruby: Flows out of the dam are great currently. The river is fishing well from Sheridan all the way up to the dam. Typical spring flies will work well. Blue wing nymphs and possibly some dry action. Worms, eggs, pheasant tails, and small midge nymphs will be the go-to flies subsurface. If you get a good cloudy day, tossing some streamers will most likely entice some of the nicer fish to com out and play!
Madison: Although the river is seeing an abnormal amount of pressure for this early in the spring, the mother maddy continues to produce solid action all day long! Reports are coming in of fish starting to feed on topwater flies, i.e. blue wings and midges. If you are looking to find fish rising, look for softer seems, long tailouts, and slick pockets. The streamer fishing has also been getting some nice fish to come out and strike. The rainbows are mostly on the last leg of the spawn, so please be respectful and leave them be. The fish that are now “post spawn” will be ready for a good size meal, so retrieving streamers can become more effective for them as well. Nymphing is almost always the way to catch em over here, and if that is your program, think stones, worms, eggs, and some mayfly nymphs. Also known as the turd and worm combo!
Feel free to give us a shout here at the shop if you are planning on heading this way! We are officially open for the season and will be in the shop on limited hours 8-2 daily during the spring time.
Chris Knott
406-684-5651