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Smith Midge question

Started by gamatt53, November 22, 2010, 14:03:31 PM

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gamatt53

Spent the weekend on the Smith for the first time in awhile. Fishing was decent to good on small bwo nymphs and zebra midges during the day. Even stuck  two large (ugly) stocker bows.

However last evening I was pretty humbled during what looked like a heavy cream midge hatch size 26 or smaller...rising fish everywhere and not one to touch my fly. Full on leaping out of the water sometimes and others just gentle rises. Threw everything I had...griffith's gnat, disco midge in the film, tiny little bwo parachutes on and on  and nothing. Any ideas how to attack this hatch next time? Just smaller flies or what?

Woolly Bugger

ex - I'm not going to live with you through one more fishing season!
me -There's a season?

Pastor explains icons to my son: you know like the fish symbol on the back of cars.
My son: My dad has two fish on his car and they're both trout!

5xTippett

I don't even try to match those suckers.  Go find some more fish.

Trout Maharishi

#3
Try a bug authored by a true fly tying genius. Or you can catch a few of them, and hold them up to your porch light at midnight while drinking moonshine  and murdering a chicken on an indian chief's grave under a full moon while playing In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida over and over  . Now get to tying, you may have to toss the first 3435 into the trash, but number 3436 might be strong medicine.  p;
"We're all going to die, all of us, what a circus! That alone should make us love each other but it doesn't. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing."
― Charles Bukowski

gamatt53

Quote from: 5xTippett on November 22, 2010, 16:08:16 PM
I don't even try to match those suckers.  Go find some more fish.

Yea I should have just moved. Tough to walk away from a bunch of rising fish within casting distance though. Should have threw a beetle at em!

5xTippett

My beetles have gone into hibernation, but I have done that into October.   -0-  I hate those little white squirts.  Follow TM's advice and kill a chicken.

rjs123

Been there done that, way too many times  b';  Sorry, I really wish you would have got them to strike but it is nice to see its not just me.

Got out with Darrin around fish camp on Saturday and we didnt exactly kill 'em but like you, got them on bwos and #22 zebra midge.  That wasnt you we saw walking the RR tracks on Saturday was it?

troutphisher

I fish this hatch on a stream in the western mountains of NC. The pattern that has worked well for me is a size 26 or 30 cream midge.
Finding the right size hackle is the most difficult part of tyeing this fly. Capes with lots of neck feathers will provide a few hackles in this size.

Glassfisher has also had some luck with tyeing a cream colored griffiths knat, using cream thread for the body and cream hackle. The size he likes to tie them is 22.
The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.

gamatt53

rjs123 that wasn't me I was below town on saturday.

troutphisher what kind of leader system are you casting to get a size 30 fly to lay out straight lol

troutphisher


Its a pretty simple system. I use a 9ft tapered 6x leader and 3 ft of 6x tippet.
I fish bamboo and use synthetic sylk lines. In the cold weather, the sylk stays subtle and lays out smooth.
The older bamboo rods load better with the new synthetic sylk lines and rolls the leader out smoothly and straight.










The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.

Trout Maharishi

How I don't care how small they are, about 22/24 is as low as I'm gonna go. I take a biot and cut it in half length wise for the body, and get the smallest hackle i can wrap 2 or 3 times. If that doesn't work I use a white, tan, or yellow midge pupa.Guests are not allowed to view images in posts, please Register or Login
"We're all going to die, all of us, what a circus! That alone should make us love each other but it doesn't. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing."
― Charles Bukowski

Fire-Fly

Those fish are pretty smart and have seen it all, you may try some 8-9x tippet ( floro), that may help, but they have seen it all so dont feel bad.

22midge

very nice bug TM .We have been catching some on the size 20  but when they are on the smaller ones you got to go down to them.I dont try but here is a size 26 that will get close to what Ive seen.


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never let a day go by without telling your children how special they are----make a child smile today and gain a friend for life

Trout Maharishi

Quote from: 22midge on November 29, 2010, 21:23:37 PM
very nice bug TM .We have been catching some on the size 20  but when they are on the smaller ones you got to go down to them.I dont try but here is a size 26 that will get close to what Ive seen.


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Nice one Midge 'c;

Ben this is the style I was talking about the other day vs folding over and back material for wing pads and legs on the other pattern we were talking about.
"We're all going to die, all of us, what a circus! That alone should make us love each other but it doesn't. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing."
― Charles Bukowski

Trout Maharishi

"We're all going to die, all of us, what a circus! That alone should make us love each other but it doesn't. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing."
― Charles Bukowski