last Evening on the Madison River

I hurried through a retrieving training session with our German Shorthair pup, Finn, and sped to the river arriving at 8pm. As I sat on the bank rigging a new leader and tippet I saw a few trout rise. With all the Hydropsyche caddis flying around i assumed the fish were taking these caddis as they emerged. Knotting on an Iris imitation I walked on my knees along the bank until I was within 15 feet of a couple rising fish. I cast out fully expecting a take on my first, then second, then 20th presentation….Then, after several casts without a take, I reeled in and watched…what did the river tell me? I saw several #20 black caddis, Glossosoma sp. on the water both egg-laying and emerging. I tied on a #20 Black X Caddis and took 3 nice browns on my next 5 casts. I walked further down the river searching for more risers and located a couple more. I tied on a #17 Iris again and was refused again, by the rising fish. OK Craig, what did you learn on the first try?  Black Caddis…I tied the #20 Black X on once again and scored a couple more nice browns, the very fish which had refused to even look at the Iris.

Around 9pm with fish porpoising and rolling in nearly every run and pocket of the river near Big Bend, I knotted on a #15 Amber Iris Caddis and scored several more fish. At 9:45pm I took the best brown trout of the evening, a fat 17″ male that ran me downriver a ways so I decided to call it a night and head home…4:30am comes fast when you climb into bed at 11pm!