Northwest Reel Life July 2024 Volume 3 Issue 9 - Flipbook - Page 22
released a nice 16-inch thick
brown trout.
Our setup for the day was
a quality 5-weight Orvis
rod and reel, floating line,
and 8-foot leader. A pair
of size 8 girdle (stonefly)
bugs tied 18 inches apart
were the fish enticement,
and bites were monitored
by orange strike indicators
(all the better to see in the
early morning sunny glare).
Our instructions – when in
doubt, set the hook! While
“bucket fishing” requires a
degree of accuracy, it is a
technique that lends itself
well to intermediate and
even beginner fly anglers.
The casts are not terribly
long, and if you miss the
sweet spot of the “bucket”
there is enough underwater
structure that you still have
a good chance of getting a
hookup.
While the Madison does
not have the fish numbers
of the Missouri, there are
still plenty of fish to be had,
and Sam explained that
guides only promote catch
and release on the river, so
numbers have remained
very consistent over the
years.
As I noted earlier, this river,
at springtime flows, in my
opinion, would be a degree
of difficulty I would not
recommend to beginners
behind the sticks. There
were more than a few large
boulders that could easily
pin or flip a driftboat. So,
if your rowing skills are
marginal, leave the boat at
home and hire a guide. Or
wait for the slower flows
of summer, but plan on
having to share the river
with a whole lot more
anglers. We continued
the float catching fish at
a regular pace, beautiful
rainbows and brown
trout, and an occasional
whitefish. We didn’t catch
any of the great white
buffalo, AKA arctic grayling,
but Hunter assured us they
were in there. Brent, our
film crew for the weekend,