Catchin' midges

[5wt 0]

Been fishing at a new section of stream and the trout a just killing these little midges that seem to swarm the surface. I've tried griffith's gnat and 18 adams and some 18 BWO and they produce a little but not at all as well as the fish are rising. And this is an all day event, not just morning or evening. (I'm going nuts here) They are so small and fast I can't get a good look at them for color. Are there some common colors I can tie and try or is there a way to catch them without destroying them?

 

Thanks

 

[mgj 0]

two suggestions...

go smaller w/ the dry fly imitations. try #20 and even #22.

go to a dry dropper rig w/ tiny midge pupae or larvae imitations.

[conehead 0]

Hey 5wt,

 

I was borna and raised in Pgh. What stream are yo fishing?

 

I now live in central PA, and fish midges a lot, especially in the Yellow Breeches.

 

When trout get picky we use #22, #24, and #26. Tie them in black and gray. I'm told that the male and female are represented by these 2 colors. Can't remember which is which. I try both until I see which one works best.

 

We fish them on 8X tippet; many times I tie on a #32 dropper.

 

The #32 is just a hook wrapped with olive green crystal flash and one turn of small peacock herl for a color.

 

A griffin's gnat tied on a #24 or #26 can also produce.

 

It's frustating, but I love the challenge of fooling a cold blooded reptile with a brain the size of a pea; at times it's the only game in town.

 

Conehead

[rougetrout 0]

Definitely try the dropper with a small pupa or midge. I like to use a misquito pupa or emerger as a dropper. Also a midge that works well for me and that is easy to tie in many colors involves a size 20-28 hook and a single strand of any color ostrich herl. Strip ~1/2 on the herl of the fuzz and tie in at the bend. Wrap the strand forward such that as you reach the front of the hook the remaining fuzz wraps and causes a little puff of fuzz on a nice hard body. I like these in dun, olive, red, tan, brown, and yellow. The fish often pick up on these and not just here but I have a friend in St. Louis who swears by these little buggers. Good luck!

 

[Michigan Trout Guy 0]

I don't have much experience fishing with midges, but I see quite a few while fishing and they are normally black, grey or a pale green or yellow color. Good luck.

 

MTG

[5wt 0]

QUOTE (conehead @ May 23 2005, 06:14 PM)

Hey 5wt, I was borna and raised in Pgh. What stream are yo fishing? I now live in central PA, and fish midges a lot, especially in the Yellow Breeches. When trout get picky we use #22, #24, and #26. Tie them in black and gray. I'm told that the male and female are represented by these 2 colors. Can't remember which is which. I try both until I see which one works best. We fish them on 8X tippet; many times I tie on a #32 dropper. The #32 is just a hook wrapped with olive green crystal flash and one turn of small peacock herl for a color. A griffin's gnat tied on a #24 or #26 can also produce. It's frustating, but I love the challenge of fooling a cold blooded reptile with a brain the size of a pea; at times it's the only game in town. Conehead

Conehead,

 

I live in the Laurel Highlands and am talking about Laurel Hill Creek. The other night my brother and I were up there and he said it best. "It was like serving broccoli at an ice cream party."

 

I definitely have to get the bifocals out and tie some 20's and 22's. I've never tied that small.

 

Do you tie black body black hackle and Grey body Grey hackle? or do you mix them up?

 

Just thread for body?

 

 

 

Thanks

 

[conehead 0]

Your brother has a good sense of humor. I have been fishing midges for years and still have days like that (no good, stinking, picky, pea-brained, poor excuse for a .........some days trout remind me of a finicky house cat)

 

1. I tie two microfibets (dark dun) for the tail, black thread for the body, and black hackle wound catskill style (no wing).

 

2. Also two microfibets (light dun, looks almost clear) for the tail, gray thread (light dun) for the body and a gray hackle (light dun) wound the same way as above (again no wing)

 

3. ICSI midge (I Can See It): same as #2 for the tail, try and dub a little thicker body of gray dubbing, yellow hi-vis para post, and a grizzly hackle wound para style This is tied in 20-26. One of the local Orvis guides came up with this one. Some days it's the key, other days, doors locked.

 

I have never fished the highlands, I'll have to give you and your brother a call (once you find out how to midge those trout).

 

I will try and post some midge pictures when I get home.

 

Conehead

[nightfish 0]

For small midge dries, keep them simple. Thread body (8/0 or finer...I like Gordon Griffith's 14/0), a short shuck & rib of krystal flash or midge flash, and just a couple turns of grizzly hackle, trimmed flat on the bottom. To avoid bulk, attach the thread with as few wraps as possible, untwist teh thread so it lays flat, and tie in the flash at that point. Wrap evenly down the shank & back up to cover the shank, do the rib, attach the hackle, wind a couple of turns & secure with no more than 3 wraps. Do 2 3-turn whips & call it good. If you want a wing, use a very sparse bit of white or light dun polypro yarn, or a sparse tuft of snowshoe before you attach the hackle, or ditch the hackle entirely. Snowshoe is nice because it compresses very well, has a nice sheen & is naturally water repellant.

 

Colors...Black, cream or pale yellow, gray and olive seem to cover the spectrum well for my local bugs.

 

If the fish are being really finicky, try a pattern that gets in the film. The above on a TMC 2488 is a good choice, and with the trailing shuck, it presents an easier target than a skittering adult. Without the hackle, it's a pretty easy pattern to tie in #24-#30.

 

See my post on western midges for another easy pattern:

http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?showtopic=10056

 

You also may need to go down to 7x & extend your tippett.

[Al Beatty 0]

Hi 5wt,

 

I often tie several small midges on a larger hook like a #14/#16 stimulator style. Usually about three in a row is all I try to fit on a shank. It sure is easier to see and tie on a tippet than a #22 or #24 hook; at least it is for my older eyes. Take care & ...

 

Tight Lines - Al Beatty

www.btsflyfishing.com

[rougetrout 0]

The multiple midge bodies on one larger hook shank is a great idea Al, I will have to try it.

[nightfish 0]

That is a cool idea...I'll have to try that. Thanks Al.

 

Another idea, from the book "Micropatterns", is to tie a body on the front half of a larger hook.

[rougetrout 0]

That is another good idea. Have you ever experinced problems with the visable rear portion of the hook shank scaring fish?

[Philly 0]

I end up doing a lot of midge fishing. I tie almost all my midge patterns on the TMC 2488. Most of mine are ones I've thought up myself. For my favorite I use a mix of black and red-brown CDC for the body and white CDC for the wing. You can find a picture and tying instructions here http://www.danica.com/flytier/jcaruso/wissahickon_midge.htm

 

This has worked real well for me in PA, NY, VT and Ontario.

 

I do a couple of more. One I came up with by catching midges. I don't live far from a river. Close enough that mayflies sometimes end up on my window when I'm tying at night. Last fall, I was tying when I notice that some midges had worked their way through my screen, or some crack around the air conditioner and were landing on my tying desk. I managed to get a few into a container. They were all black bodied and ranged from around a size 20 to a couple that were way smaller than a 32. The pattern is fairly simple. Black thread for the body, wings from a fine artifical hair, and tuft of gray CDC behind the hook eye to represent the rather prominent antennae on the midges. Tied them as spinners but I haven't had a chance to fish them yet.

Also I've downsized the Usual to a 20 and 22, and a Snowshoe Quigley down to the same sizes and these have caught me a few fish.

[5wt 0]

Thanks all. I will definitely be tying tonight. Can't wait to try the 2 or 3 on a hook deal. I'm gonna get those pesky wabbits.

 

[Flyweaver 0]

"Trico's" by Bob Miller has instructions for tying 2 Trico's 0n a size 18 df hook see if you can get a copy to look at. He also has a few good midge patterns.