Spring is nearing its end here in the Greater Yellowstone Region, and what a few months it was to fly fish the area. This spring reminded me how special a time it is to be in Montana, with minimal crowds, epic hatches, and beautiful, greening landscapes. I’ll jump right into summarizing this spring of fishing in Montana while sharing how I fished, what I learned, and what left me curious. I hope you enjoy the read and had a memorable spring on the water.
Spring Fishing In Montana Recap
Sporadic Weather and Flows
The weather shifted from hot to cool multiple times this spring, causing runoff to occur in spurts. Watching river flows was critical for success. It reminded me of a quote I read in one of John Gierach’s books, “Montana is where they watch stream flows more than the stock market.” If you were able to time flows correctly this spring, the fish were feeding voraciously.
While we had a decent snow year, much of it has already melted. Some rivers are in better shape than others, though I can’t help but hope for some cool, wet weather over the coming weeks. Hatches have been earlier than usual this spring, and most rivers are ahead of schedule as I write this article. You never really know how it’ll pan out, but it looks like we have another hot and dry summer here in SW Montana and the Yellowstone region. I imagine we see our first hoot owl restrictions in the next few weeks.
Spring Hatches in Montana
This spring reminded me of how epic dry fly fishing can be during the spring months. Our typical spring hatches include midges, blue wing olives, caddis, march brown mayflies, skwala stoneflies, and salmonflies. This spring was a fantastic one for dry fly anglers, as the hatches were intense. We had lots of cloudy, cool weather, which is ideal conditions for many spring hatches and rising trout.
I experienced my first intense march brown hatch, which sparked my desire to chase this hatch more often in the coming years. Just so fun.
The skwala is our first big bug hatch of the year, and the trout take notice. Even when you do not see many stoneflies on the water, fishing the big dry can pay off with the trout looking up for a big meal. Along with the march brown fishing, I lucked into some amazing skwala fishing this spring in places I hadn’t before. These spring hatches made for some memorable dry fly eats and kicked off another year of match-the-hatch fishing.
Spring Brings The Big Ones Out
I harped in much of my content that the spring is the time of year to find the big one. The big trout are on the prowl after a long winter, and much of their food base becomes available to them. This spring was no different, as the intense hatches and cloudy weather provided us with numerous opportunities to catch the big one.
If you know me, you know I’m not necessarily after big fish. I structure many of my fishing days around the hatches, techniques I’m learning, or a unique adventure. That being said, I love a big trout just as much as the next guy. The challenge and rarity of these fish are addicting, and I love the opportunity to go up against the smartest trout in the river. What a blessing to live in Montana, where these beautiful fish reside.
Stillwaters Were Tough
I harp on fishing the stillwater’s each spring to get away from the crowded tailwaters and muddy freestones. While I had some fun times on the lake this spring, it wasn’t due to the good fishing. I spent many hours watching the bobber or stripping a fly with little action.
As fishermen, we like to come up with explanations on why we didn’t catch fish. I could point to the cold weather fronts, barometric pressure, and full trout to explain my little success on the lakes this spring. However, it is likely more a result of a lack of understanding and knowledge about these diverse and complex fisheries. There is a great deal to learn in fly fishing, especially when fishing on a lake. I’ll give them another go next spring!
On To Summer
We are in the best few weeks of fishing of the season. The early summer hatches are in full swing, and the backcountry is opening up for summer adventures. There is no place I’d rather be than Southwest Montana and the Greater Yellowstone Region. I wish you a stellar summer of fishing.
My Setup
Dry Fly
Rod: Orvis Helios 3f 5wt or Echo Trout X 6wt, both 9 feet long
Line: SA Amplitude Trout Taper or Infinity Taper (Smooth)
Leader: Standard 9 foot 3x leader, with necessary tippet sections added to lengthen
Nymph
Rod: Sage Pulse 9 ft 6wt
Line: SA Infinity Taper
Leader: Standard 7.5ft 2x leader to a tippet ring, with 3x or 4x fluorocarbon to the flies (2-4ft). Using a bobber.
Streamer
Rod: Echo Trout X 6wt 9 foot or Echo Streamer X 8wt 9 foot
Line: SA Infinity Taper (6wt) or Airflo Shovelhead 280-grain (8wt)
Leader: 9 foot 1x standard taper leader or just a few feet of 20 and 12lb maxima ultragreen.
Each season, I add a new fly to my box that becomes a staple. I saw the power of the royal purple chubby this spring and added many to my summer dry fly box. The olive and orange leech, using dirty bird dubbing, was my top-producing lake fly. Lastly, the black EP fiber comparadun was crucial in seeing my dry fly during baetis hatches on cloudy days. Tie a few of each yourself, and let me know how they fish for you.
What Did I Learn?
This spring, I learned the value in the fisheries that are just good enough to satisfy us but not good enough to be popular fisheries. They may not be heavily written about or known for their abundant hatches or high trout populations. The anglers who fish it are often locals, as these fisheries will never make those “50 places to fish” bucket lists.
But these fisheries are just good enough to hold a special place in our hearts. Whether it be the scenery, solitude, or something else that makes them special, these fisheries are the ones we hold under our tongue and only share with the select few who might understand. The fishing is rarely spectacular, but catching a few trout here and there is good enough.
I have a few of these fisheries that I frequent each year. The few days spent exploring these watersheds alongside great people were the highlight of my spring, and I learned how truly special these places are.
What Left Me Curious?
On that note, a dilemma continues to arise in my fishing that I can’t seem to get right. How do you go about sharing fisheries and fishing information with friends? What is the best etiquette on the topic?
Let’s face it; there are fisheries, hatches, and fishing information that we each want to keep private for some reason or another. Many fisheries cannot withstand the immense pressure our famous rivers face, and they would not fish as well if everyone and their mother were fishing them. And what is worse than pulling up to one of your deared fishing spots to see multiple fishing rigs already there?
That said, it can be challenging to keep these things a secret. You want to have a close inner circle of friends to fish these places with, but you don’t want them sharing these fisheries with all their friends. I find myself becoming increasingly secretive as time passes, inviting anglers to explore and learn for themselves.
I know it’s a loaded subject. I’m interested to hear your feedback on the topic.
Thanks for following along. I wish you a summer full of learning on the water.
Nick
2 thoughts on “Spring Fishing Recap 2025”
So, your not into catching “Large” trout? What are the ones in all those pictures?
Haha I’m into catching large trout just as much as the next guy (I say that above). I just don’t always structure my days around the biggest trout. We (not all those fish pictured above were caught by me) were lucky to come across some big trout this spring, that is for sure. But I do not go out to all the fisheries here known for big fish and toss streamers every time I go out. I don’t even measure many of the fish I catch. We are just lucky to have many big trout in this region and sometimes they are willing to eat a purple chubby, san juan worm, or other standard trout fly. But it’s not like I went out fishing big streamers for these fish, they just happen to eat a fly that any trout in the river would’ve ate. Lots of luck! But just like many anglers, if a big trout is rising next to a little one, I enjoy the challenge of casting at the big one.
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