MATT'S MIDGE

"I came up with the Matt's Midge in the basement one cold and snowy March day in 1999 having a few beers with my roommate waiting for the guide season to bust open. At the time there wasn't that many midge adult patterns out there and the ones that were available were hard to see on the water when you get down to 20 and smaller. The Griffith's Gnat is a great fly, but midges aren't always clustered. The reason I tie and came up with Matt's Midge is because it is a single midge pattern and the poly split wing sticks up off the hook which makes it a lot easier to see on the water even in the smallest of sizes. I guided in Colorado and one of the most frustrating things is when your client can't see his dry fly so something like the Matt's Midge definitely helps. I fished the pattern in most of the western great tailwaters like  the San Juan, Bighorn and Green River and not to forget the South Platte. I came up with   the pattern after I fished the San Jaun River for the first time. I was using a Griffith's Gnat's tied down to a size 26 which I could see in the bright sun but when the light became low and an evening midge hatch started it was very hard to see so that's when I decided I have to come up with something better than this. I think the Matt's Midge works well because it can be used as a single midge pattern and the trout might also take it as a cluster when it's in a bigger size than what's actually on the water during that midge hatch. The most exciting thing about dry fly fishing is seeing the fish eat your fly but if you can't see your fly you're not catching fish, that's what I like about the Matt's Midge, I can see it." - Matt Miles