From Georgia Streams to Montana Cut Banks: What One Day on the Gallatin River Taught Me About Trout Fishing

Growing up as a Georgia fly angler, I became deeply familiar with the Southeast style of trout fishing. Our waters are tight, choked with rhododendron, hemlock, and endless tree cover. You learn quickly that you’re not casting over your shoulder—you’re roll-casting under branches, slipping flies into tight seams, and drifting nymphs through pocket water where small to medium-sized trout live tucked under rocks and logjams.

Most of my early fishing was subsurface, too. Georgia trout will absolutely eat dries, but nymphing is often the bread-and-butter approach. Tight quarters, limited space, and wary fish teach you patience and precision. It’s a style of fishing I still love.

But the first time I headed West, everything changed.

Discovering Montana’s “Endless Possibility” Fly Fishing

My first trip to Montana was in 2015, and from the moment I stepped onto Western water, I was hooked—completely and permanently. It wasn’t that the fishing was easy (it wasn’t). It was the wildness, the space, and the feeling that you could pick a random spot on the map, hike in, and find untouched water full of wild trout.

That idea—that you can explore and find your own fish—felt like a whole new world compared to the often-pressured streams back home.

One day in early July on the Gallatin River cemented that feeling forever.

Early July on the Gallatin: The Bugs, The Weather, The Setup

If you’ve fished Montana in July, you know the vibe:
bright sun, cold water, mountain air, and enough bug activity to keep trout looking up.

By early July, the salmonflies are mostly gone, and the golden stones are tapering off. But the river still teems with life—caddis, PMDs, yellow sallies, midges, and the occasional hovering hopper on the banks.

That day was textbook Montana summer:
bluebird skies, a slight breeze, and bugs everywhere.

I started with one of my all-time favorite Western summer combos:
a micro chubby to mimic an oversized caddis or small stone, paired with a caddis trailer.

It’s a confidence rig for me—buoyant, visible, versatile.

Turning the Corner to the Perfect Cut Bank

I worked upriver, picking off a couple of small risers but missing more than I’d like to admit. Then I rounded a bend and saw what every angler hopes for:

A textbook cut bank.

The water was the perfect depth—just dark enough to hide something big. The current pushed tight to the bank with that slight inside seam that screams “trout lie here.” You just know when a big one could be holding.

Before I even made a cast, it happened.

A monster—easily the biggest trout I’d seen that day—darted out from under the bank, ate something just below the surface, and slid right back into the shadows.

Instant adrenaline.

This wasn’t a “maybe” fish. This was the fish.

What Flies to Throw on the Gallatin River in the Summer

When you’re fishing the Gallatin in early to mid-summer, the bug menu is diverse—and constantly changing. On this particular July day, I cycled through nearly a dozen patterns trying to figure out what that big trout tucked under the cut bank actually wanted.

I started confidently with my go-to combo: a micro chubby paired with a small caddis trailer. In summer, this setup imitates everything from small stoneflies to oversized caddis and works well in fast riffles and tight seams.

But that stubborn trout wanted none of it.

So I worked through a full lineup of classic Montana summer staples:

• Caddis Dry Patterns. Elk Hair Caddis is a clasic here, but I enjoy the egg laying caddis and link caddis that give extra triggers to the trout. 

• Small golden stone patterns - Any minny chubby with a yellow or tan body or a stimulator pattern.  

• Mini hoppers - The Micro Chubby with a wide gap hook is my #1 searching pattern as it imitated large variety of bugs and is large enough to hold some droppers.  

• PMDs and small mayfly dries - Depending on life cycle of the bug you may choose different options, but I personally love the parachute style flies. 

• Ants and beetles - Great searching patterns especially in summer and fall.

• Nymph droppers - Typically something with emerging wings works great like Lexi's Holo Midge.  Also, mini stoneflies an mayflies act as a bigger meal for trout to seek.  

• Stimulators - Mini and brown for caddis and larger yellow and orange for stoneflies

Despite the perfect drift and clean presentations, he wasn’t buying any of it.

The Cast That Finally Worked

Right before giving up, I tied on something different—a thick olive Chubby Chernobyl with a black flash tail. Big profile. Strong silhouette. Enough motion to stand out without looking unnatural.

It wasn’t stonefly season anymore, but something about the shape, color, and flash matched what he wanted.

I laid the fly inches—literally inches—off the bank.

He exploded.

After a 2–3 minute fight that felt like twenty, I finally slipped the net under him. One of the most satisfying fish of my life.

What That Fish Taught Me About Trout Fishing

That day changed how I fish Western rivers. Three lessons stood out, and I still rely on them today:

1. Look Before You Step

If I had rushed in without scanning the bank, I’d never have seen that trout feed. Observing first can be the difference between catching a giant—or spooking it forever.

2. Your Cast Has to Hit the Bank

Big fish on cut banks won’t move far. You need to land your fly within a few inches of the edge. Accuracy matters more than elegance.

3. The Right Fly Matters More Than You Think

I cycled through nearly a dozen patterns, but that olive chubby with a flash tail was the magic key. Even outside peak stonefly season, it was “close enough” to trigger a big-fish response.

Sometimes the trout aren’t picky—until they are.

Final Thoughts: Why I Keep Going Back West

Georgia will always feel like home water. The tight casts, deep nymphing, and small wild trout are where I learned to fish.

But Montana—especially rivers like the Gallatin—taught me something different:
The combination of wild fish, big water, and endless possibility never gets old.

Every trip reminds me why I fell in love with fly fishing in the first place.

About the Author

Jordan Redd is a Georgia-born fly angler and founder of Redd’s Flies, a family-owned fly shop dedicated to restoring trout habitat across the country. Jordan grew up fishing the tight, brush-covered streams of North Georgia before falling in love with the wild waters of Montana on his first trip in 2015. Today, he combines his passion for fly fishing with a commitment to conservation, supporting organizations that protect coldwater fisheries and the future of wild trout.