Rex, AKA T-Rex, with one of his fine catches this past week
Photos courtesy of Brian Worley and Katie Kennedy

Introduction by Katherine Robinson

I have fallen in love with the Madison River this summer, every part of it. Every summer, I choose an area to focus on fishing so I can really get to know each river and understand it under every circumstance and condition possible. Three summers ago was the Henry’s Fork, two summers ago was the northeast corner of Yellowstone National Park, last year was the Yellowstone River and this year is the Madison.

I choose the Madison to dig into and get to know on a personal level. One thing I have learned about the Madison is that she can be very moody. I killed it one day this summer and caught too many fish to count. The very next day, I caught two fish the whole day. Same setup, same flies, same everything but no fish. Everything is so dependent on another and one tiny change in something hugely changes another thing.

I have learned that when fishing the Madison your flies need to be specially tailored based on weather, hatches, flows and even fishermen. What works for some people, doesn’t always work for others. You can have two people killing it, but they might completely disagree on setup and flies. And if they switched rods, one guy's setup might not work for the other guy.

The Madison River is not like the Northeast corner or the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone River. Bringing only one pink hopper will not always work. These fish are educated and you have to learn how to trick them. You have to know where they hide in low or high water. You have to learn the habits of the trout and the flies. What they do during a storm, after a storm; in high or low water; on a hot sunny day or a cloudy day. You have to learn the trends in each hatch. When will the Salmonflies end and the hoppers start? What will the evening caddis hatch do after a rainstorm? 

There’s a science and this is my scientific method explained:

1.    Define the Purpose: Choose what you want to accomplish. Do you want to catch as many fish as possible no matter what the size or do you want to catch a few huge-o trout? Do you want to fish dry flies or streamers? Define your purpose of the day and learn how to make it work!

2.    Construct a hypothesis: Based on weather, flows, hatches and anglers take your best guess as to what is going to happen in the day and rig accordingly. Make sure to keep step 1 in mind during this step.

3.    Test the hypothesis: GET ON THE FISH! Fish until you can’t fish anymore and start over from step one until you find a method that works for the day.

4.    Analyze data: What was the weather like? What method of fishing worked? How were the flows? How was the hatch? How do all of these correlate? Think about what methods you didn’t try and why. Analyze the data and create your personalized method to catch loads of fish in different conditions.

5.    Draw Conclusion: Think about what you might try in the future under the same conditions.

6.    Communicate results (or don't): Keep your secret methods to yourself or share with friends. Communicate and exaggerate the size of the fish caught and tell a few fishing lies in the process.

Like I said, it’s a scientific process and takes time to perfect. Learning The Madison River is a process and even long time guides are still figuring her out. All I know is that I’m in love with the Madison River.