This is the part of the Madison that most fly fishers know and have either floated or waded. The valley is spacious, sage brush bench land with the Madison Mountains erupting skyward on the east and the Gravellys on the west. Highway 287 parallels the river as it cuts through prime cattle country. Rainbows and browns are the quarry, but the native mountain whitefish is the dominate species in terms of overall numbers. Below Varney Bridge the river slows its pace and begins to braid and wander.
Small islands surrounded by deep channels hold some of the largest trout in the river.
Undercut banks are more common and provide an abundance of brown trout cover. Ennis Lake, formed by a dam built by Montana Power Company in the 1930's, is usually too shallow and silted in to offer significant habitat for trout. From Ennis Lake the river flows for seven miles through the Beartrap Canyon Wilderness Unit and for 28 miles to the Missouri. The Beartrap section is remote and wild and the fishing can be quite good in this whitewater. The influx of warm water dumped from Ennis Lake eventually takes a toll on the fishery in this part of the river.