Midge Fly Patterns for the White River Tailwaters
Midge fishing is a specialized aspect of fly-fishing. Generally, it requires light tackle (3-5 weight rods), long leaders (9 feet or longer), light tippets (6-8x), tiny flies (#18-26), a small hand seine or aquarium net to capture flies to help you see what you are suppose to be matching, magnifiers and a good supply of patience! :-)
However, the pleasure of midge fishing can overcome the frustration of inopportune tangles in your tippet, break-offs, and the difficulty of seeing your fly. Fooling a modest to big fish in inches of water, playing them on light tackle, and being able to fish "dry flies" in the dead of winter are just a few of the joys of fishing to midging trout.
An adult black midge
Gray, olive, cream and black will cover about all the variety of midges you will see. I would carry gray and olive dries and emergers in size 20, and cream and black patterns down to size 24 or 26. Many of the dry fly patterns listed above are effective in sizes 20-24. I don't bother tying wings on these patterns.
A dead-drifted zebra midge mimics midge larva and pupa.
Midges have three stages that are important to trout: larval, pupa, and adult. In the larval stage, the midge is basically a worm. The midge in this form can be exceedingly thin such as a blood worm. It can also be fatter and shorter, closer in appearance to a caddis larvae. In it's larval stage trout grub them off the bottom or in vegetation.
Aquatic earthworms also inhabit gravels of the tailwaters. Worms often look like a miniature "red worm." A San Juan worm tied with brown micro-chenille approximates the natural.
Larger forms of midge including crane fly larva, largest of the midge family, can also be found in the tailwaters. These larva are often translucent in appearance, but have strongly defined segmented bodies with a definite head and tail.
Midge larva can also take on a fatter shorter form which is often translucent in appearance.
The pupal form of the midge is the form in which the midge ascends through the water column to the surface to hatch as an adult. This is perhaps the most important stage for trout. As emerging insects, midge pupa are particularly vulnerable. Anglers often see trout "midging" or rising to take pupa off the surface. The sign they are doing this is the trout will not leave bubbles on the surface and sometimes all you will see of the trout above the water line is the dorsal fin.
Brassie (#18-26)
The Brassie is an effective pattern to imitate many midge pupa. They are simple to tie and make an effective dropper fly.
I tie mine with a 3/32 gold bead (size 18 hook), copper wire, and olive dubbing.
Many midge pupa don't make it out of the shuck or are swamped before they get off the water as adults. Trout also take advantage of these insects.
Crystal Midge
A pattern I have used with success particularly in the summer time when fish are finicky during high sun is a crystal midge. Body is a piece of pearlescent crystal flash. Hackle is a few wraps of natural gray ostrich herl. I tie these in sizes 22 or 24.
Griffith's Gnat and Cluster Midge (#18-24)
A Griffith's Gnat is a simple imitation of a midge cluster.
Midge clusters, several midges clustered together on the water mating, attract the attention of trout. A Griffith's Gnat or Cluster Midge pattern is simple to tie and very effective at times.