Winter Midge Hatches have Begun

They're back! When I was out on Rapid Creek this past Sunday I saw fish feeding on midges up top. I hadn't seen any fishable hatches yet, but there they were. The midge hatches that occur January through March here on Rapid Creek in town are spectacular. Maybe it is because any hatch that brings fish to the surface in the middle of winter is rare and something to celebrate, but to me it seems that winter or not these hatches generate some of the best dry fly fishing of the year. I fish in town much more than I used to and have begun to look forward to the fishing opportunities to be found there during the winter. The midge hatches are definitely a highlight.

If you get a chance to fish this hatch here are a few flies to take along:

F-Fly (tie in black or olive size 18-20)

Morgan's Midge size 20

CDC Adult Midge size 20

Matt's Midge size 20-22

Winter Outing

Was able to make it out on Rapid Creek in town yesterday. The weather was nice and the fishing was great. I was experimenting with French Nymphing and finally started to get the hang of it. Started about 10:00am and fished until 1:00pm. Got several fish on a small bead head pheasant tail tied Czech style with a hot-spot behind the bead.

Most of the fish took this hot-spot pheasant tail. A couple were fooled by an orange hunchback scud. By noon midges were hatching and in the slower runs fish were rising steadily to the freshly emerged adults. I was able to fish dries for the last half hour of my outing. Several fish hit an size 18 olive F-fly and a size 20 griffith's gnat also had a few takers. All in all it was a very successful trip. Hard to believe that fishing this great took place on a stretch within the city limits only 5 minutes from the house.