Madison River Whitefish

[Silver Creek]

Just read Craig Mathews blog on the Blue Ribbon site http://blue-ribbon-flies.com/blog (post dated 16 Jan, 2011) and he mentioned the whitefish pop had crashed on the Madison. Can't remember the last time I caught one below Quake, although I stick with dries most of the time. Since whities are a pretty good indicator for water quality, this could be of some concern.

Regards,
Scott

The decrease in whities really surprises me.

I've found the highest concentration of whitefish in the section of the Madison between Hebgen and Quake Lake. That's where I go.

Below Quake, the higher up you are the more whities I catch. You also need to fish right on the bottom. I caught a lot of whities last year, on some days more whities than trout, but I was direct line nymphing without a strike indicator. They will be in the faster water.