10 Best Midge Flies for Winter Trout Fly Fishing

We pulled up to the gravel parking lot, which was completely vacant of other anglers. Most anglers this time of year are holed up tying flies, snow skiing, or just trying to stay warm. The cold, freezing February fog hung low in the valley. Ice formed on the window of the mid-90s Chevy Blazer—a guide vehicle that, like many, had been run into the ground. Even once idling, the Blazer’s heater had difficulty keeping the cold air at bay. The temperature on the dashboard registered an icy –7°.

With expectations set low, we crested the last rise to the river. The air was freezing, yet to our surprise, wide, flat runs, slow bailouts, and flat water on the inside of moderate-speed bends were teeming with rising fish. Porpoising trout, with dorsal fins slicing through the water and wide-open mouths inhaling minuscule insects, could be seen in all directions. The trout behaved just as they would during a green drake hatch—eating recklessly. Black midges blanketed the water’s surface, and on closer inspection, though small individually, many were clumped together in rafts of floating insects, making them the ideal mid-winter meal. The fish were on them, and it created some of the best fly fishing of the season. The lesson that day was clear: a midge hatch can appear at any time, and having the best midge flies is a must.

Winter Fly Fishing and Midge Hatches

Although often overlooked and underappreciated, winter fly fishing can be outstanding. The rivers are quiet, and though cold, trout still need to eat. Tailwaters—usually beaten to death all summer long—are mostly vacant of other anglers in the winter. Midges provide a year-round food source for trout. In the coldest months, on many streams, they are the primary, and sometimes only, forage item. Midges are incredible insects; they are important to both trout and anglers. Yet, their small stature and less-than-sexy profile often leave them, as well as midge flies, unnoticed.

I won’t bore you with the intricacies, scientific names, or a deep dive into the midge lifecycle—there is plenty of information and digital content that explains it better. I do want to point out several aspects of the hatch and why midges are so important to anglers. For the reasons listed below, you should have a variety of midge patterns in your fly box for winter fly fishing.

Midge Life Cycle

First, midges are primitive insects related to common household flies and mosquitoes that go through a four-stage life cycle: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The latter three stages are important to both fish and anglers, so fly patterns should reflect all three phases. Most importantly, because they are biologically primitive, they can inhabit almost any type of water. Midges live in clear water, dirty water, polluted water, cold water, warm water, lakes, rivers, streams, retention ponds, and even wastewater treatment plants. Their distribution is so widespread that no matter where you are reading this, midges are likely relevant to you as a fly angler in pursuit of trout.

Second, as I mentioned above, midges hatch 365 days a year. The consistent nature of the hatch and the constant presence of midges make them a staple for trout. This is especially true in late summer, fall, and winter. The seasonality and short hatch window of other aquatic insects—and the inevitable waning of summer hatches—leave major voids in a trout’s diet. Midges fill the gap; on many streams and rivers, they are the only reliable insect available.

Third, although small, midges occur in such great numbers that they provide plenty of calories for winter fish. When conditions are optimal, adult midges will blanket the surface of a river. One unique characteristic of midge behavior that differentiates them from other insect hatches is their ability to find other adults and clump together into small, floating rafts. While an individual midge may not offer many calories, a floating raft of multiple adult midges provides a similar caloric value to many summer mayfly and caddis hatches. This behavior makes them easy to catch, high-value targets for feeding trout looking for valuable energy to make it through winter.

Best Midge Flies for Winter Fishing

Fishing a winter midge hatch is an opportunity that should not be missed. There are many excellent winter midge flies to choose from. Below are 10 fly patterns—some of my favorites—that work in a variety of fly fishing scenarios. It is wise to have a few larva, emerger, and adult patterns to cover all phases of the hatch. They are not ranked in any particular order. Hopefully, you will be inspired to store the skis in the garage, leave the warmth of the fire, or store the tying vise and take advantage of the best fly fishing of the year.

Best Midge Flies for Winter Trout

Midge larvae burrow into the soft substrate of rivers and lakes. When available as a food source, midge larvae are found in the deepest parts of the water column near the river floor. As a general rule of thumb, midge larvae are most productive when fished in the lower portion of the water column. Tungsten-weighted nymphs—or incorporating split shot into your nymph rig—are often required to get the flies into the strike zone.

Sometimes, simple patterns are the best. The Zebra Midge is a simple yet effective pattern consisting of thread, wire, and a tungsten bead. The tungsten bead gets the fly deep into the strike zone. Despite its lack of pomp and frill, it catches fish 365 days a year.

Common colors for Zebra Midge patterns are black, red, and brown. Olive and purple can be productive too. I like to start by fishing black in the morning and then switching to red or brown in the afternoon.

If you’re looking for a midge larva pattern with a realistic profile and a little flash, then the Rojo Midge is an excellent fly pattern. It combines the characteristics of an imitative fly pattern with just enough flash to add a dash of attractor characteristics.

Midge larvae contain high amounts of hemoglobin, which oftentimes results in a natural red tint. The red glass bead gives the Rojo Midge a tiny bit of sparkle to imitate a larva’s natural red color. The white gill tuft and elongated nymph hook match a midge larva’s profile. Because it lacks weight, it is best fished under an indicator with a heavy-point fly or by incorporating split shot into your leader setup.

One of the most difficult aspects of fishing midge flies is their small hook size doesn’t allow for much weight to be tied into the fly.  This makes getting larva patterns deep enough to reach feeding fish—especially through swift currents—a challenge.

Dawkins DD midge incorporates a second smaller tungsten bead behind the first.  Not only does it add extra weight, but it also creates a better profile and a contrast in color. This is an excellent pattern to target trout in shallow water as a dropper in a dry-dropper rig or to fish deep under an indicator in a two-fly nymph setup.

Low, clear water moving at minimal speed can create technical angling conditions. Trout have ample time to inspect flies, and during the winter months, these are likely the conditions you will encounter on many tailwaters. Having a pattern in your fly box that stands out is key.

The Flashy Money Midge is tied with a thread body but incorporates midge tubing creating contrast in the segmentation of the fly. A small amount of flash is tied into the transition between the thorax and the head. That flash is critical—when millions of larvae drift in the current, the minute sparkle of this pattern helps it stand out. This is an excellent pattern for catching tricky trout in technical scenarios.

Midge Emerger Fly Patterns

Emergers represent midge pupae transitioning as they prepare to hatch into adults. To make their way to the river’s surface, they trap air bubbles between their pupal shuck and body. The air bubble helps buoy them to the water’s meniscus—the tough barrier created by air pressure pressing against the surface water. Many emergers die, can’t make their way through, or become stuck in the meniscus, making them easy prey for winter trout.

Emerger fly patterns can be fished anywhere in the water column. They can be nymphed, swung vertically, or fished in or just below the surface film. Porpoising trout and the absence of a visible mouth breaking the surface to feed is a clue that trout are taking emergers. This is the ideal time to present flies higher in the water column utilizing an emerger pattern.

The Hanging Midge sits perfectly in the water’s meniscus. Incorporating hackle and CDC fibers, it hangs in the surface film with the lower half of the fly submerged. This presentation simulates a midge emerger struggling to break through the surface. The white CDC tuft provides the angler with a clear visual marker on long casts.

I love to use this pattern if fish refuse an adult, or a pod of feeding fishing suddenly stops eating a productive pattern. Making a sudden switch will usually result in additional fish opportunities.

When seined in a kick net, it’s remarkable how small and thin the profile of a natural midge emerger can be. The No Mercy Midge is a simple, no-frills emerger pattern that matches the slim profile of the natural insect.

Incorporating a thread body, wire ribbing, a shiny hard-coat body, and a white CDC wing that lies slightly forward, it is deadly when fish are selectively feeding in the surface film. Because of how the wing is tied, the pattern hangs almost vertically in the water and just beneath the surface film. This unique presentation makes it an excellent choice for heavily pressured water.

If you’re looking for an all-around great midge pupae pattern, the Chironoflash Midge Pupae is an excellent option that imitates midges and blue-winged olives. This fly is particularly effective in late winter and early spring when both midges and blue-wing olives can appear.

The midge tubing body and dubbed thorax make this fly sturdy. What sets it apart is the small amount of flash tied directly behind the thorax, simulating the gas bubble of an emerging midge pupa. It is unweighted and can be fished in the surface film on a greased tippet or under an indicator higher in the water column to simulate pupae moving vertically to hatch. Nymphing the fly on long drifts and swinging it through the water column can be productive, too.

Midge Adult Dry Fly Patterns

Adult midges appear similar in shape and size to mosquitoes. Once the pupa breaks through the meniscus and frees itself from its pupal shuck, it spends time on the water’s surface drying its wings before flight.

This period of vulnerability is exploited by trout. Fully exposed snouts and open mouths feeding on adults become visible to the angler.  This is your opportunity to present a dry fly pattern to trout feeding on the surface. Below are the best midge flies imitating adult midges that are effective for winter fly fishing.

The Griffith’s Gnat is a high-riding classic fly pattern. Although it doesn’t look like much, it does a tremendous job imitating the clumping behavior of adult midges on the river’s surface.  Both the Griffith’s Gnat and the hi-vis Griffith’s Gnat make spotting small flies in flat light much easier than other conventional adult midge patterns.  It is also an excellent dry fly to fish in tandem in a two-fly dry fly set up with an emerger as the second fly hanging in the surface film.  The emerger pattern will be invisible to the angler, so having a clear sighter fly as a frame of reference to where your emerger is located makes detecting strikes easier.

It is always wise to have a mix of dry fly patterns in the fly boxes—some that sit high on the water and a few that sit flush with the surface film. Trout can be picky, and subtle changes in presentation can make all the difference.

The CDC wing and biot body give Harrop’s CDC Adult Midge a distinct low-riding profile. The CDC wing makes it relatively easy to see, too. CDC also adds natural movement to fly patterns like no other material on the fly-tying market. This pattern rides low on the water, delivering the perfect surface impression capable of fooling the most discerning trout.

I love versatile flies. Pat’s Midge is one of those. It’s my go-to dry fly pattern when I receive refusals on other patterns. With this single fly, you can cover both adult midges and crippled midges that never fully break free of their pupal shuck. In addition, the antron loop wing makes this fly easier to spot than other midge patterns.

When adult midges rest on the surface of the water, they are often accompanied by the pupal shuck from which they just emerged. Unable to break free from the shuck, they spend longer amounts of time drying their wings, or they are never able to leave the surface at all.  The presence of the pupal shuck is a dead giveaway to educated trout that these insects are easy targets requiring less energy to catch. This single fly performs well at catching both porpoising trout and trout feeding on fully formed adults.

Final Thoughts:

Winter midge fishing can be a technical but rewarding pursuit. When conditions are right, rivers can be blanketed with midges, rising fish, and entire stretches to yourself. Our picks for the best midge flies for winter fishing give you the options needed to cover larval, emergent, and adult stages of the life cycle. These flies have versatility and have consistently proven themselves over the years of fishing to the most technical winter fish. While there are plenty of options out there, these recommendations will get you started catching winter trout, even on the toughest days.

15 Best Flies for Winter Trout