Madison River, Montana

The Madison River originates in Yellowstone National Park at the confluence of the Gibbon and the Firehole rivers. The Madison flows in a northerly direction for 140 miles to Three Forks, Montana, where it joins the Jefferson and Gallatin rivers at the confluence of the Missouri River. From its origination point (Madison Junction) in Yellowstone Park, the Madison flows North into the majestic Madison Valley, its journey interrupted by two man-made lakes. The first is Hebgen lake, located one and one-half miles from the boundary of Yellowstone National Park. Hebgen Lake is over 16 miles long and has over 50 miles of shoreline and most importantly is full of trout. Just 1.5 miles below Hebgen Dam the Madison River feeds Earthquake Quake Lake, a naturally formed lake created by an massive earth slide during the largest earthquake in Montana in 1959 and was a magnitude of 7.3.  Fifty miles downstream from Quake Lake the Madison River is interrupted again to form Ennis Lake.  Ennis Lake was formed by the erection of the Ennis Dam on the Madison River. The lake is quite shallow and can get very warm during the height of summer – resulting in some fish kill and limiting populations. That said, Ennis Lake has some large rainbow and brown trout that can be found in the lakes deeper holes. Unfortunately, locating these holes on the moderate sized lake can be a challenge.  After Ennis Dam the Madison flows through Bear Trap Canyon before entering the lower Madison River Valley for its final 18 mile stretch. The Madison is one of Montana’s premier wild trout rivers. Due to its national reputation, heavy fishing pressure, good access, high scenic value, and excellent wild trout populations, it has been classified as a “Blue Ribbon” trout stream. The Madison’s characteristic riffle-run-pocket water nature makes it a joy to float fish.   As with most of Montana’s blue ribbon rivers, the backdrop of the  Madison Range, snow capped most of the year, makes for truly magical fishing. Ennis, Montana is the perfect place to stay when fishing the Madison River.

Total Length: 132 miles

Species Present: Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Mountain Whitefish