What had been a fairly rainy July and August, with a total of 11.6 inches of rainfall as compared to the historical average of 8.68 inches, turned into a dry September. September closed out the month with low water conditions, receiving less than one-third its average - just 1.16 inchesof rain as compared to the historical September average of 3.71 inches. And as a result, over the past couple of weeks our rivers and streams were flowing below average. 

 On Sunday evening, the Beaverkill at Cooks Falls was recorded at 100 cubic feet per second, which is less than the median average flow of 143 cfs over the past 111 years of record-keeping. 

 The highest recorded flow on September 29 was 5210 cubic feet per second in 2011; the lowest flow recorded was just 33 cubic feet per second, which occurred in that drought year of 1964.

 Fly hatches during this time of year continue to be Blue-Winged Olives, Isonychias and caddis flies. The cooler temperatures heading into October will help conditions, despite the low water. And during these low water conditions of autumn, many fly-fishers will turn to using midges, those tiny flies of size #20, #22, and smaller. Midges are distinguished from mayflies, caddis flies and stoneflies, which have two pair of wings, not only by their tiny size; midges, called Diptera, have only one pair of wings.

 Despite their size, midges are an important part of an adult trout’s diet, as they hatch in tremendous numbers. And because of their tiny size, they are one of the first foods consumed beginning from when the young trout fry first begin to feed. Midges are important to fly-fishers as well; they are present in the water all year-round, and can tolerate very cold as well as very warm water conditions. They can hatch at any time of the day.

Fishing with such tiny flies requires extra fine tippets - size 6x, 7x and even 8x - and casting with as little disturbance to the water as possible, especially when fishing during low water conditions. Midge fishing requires making accurate casts to rising fish; you don’t prospect with midge flies.

  Make your approach cautiously and watch for the tiny rises. Sometimes the rise will appear as a dimple or a raindrop on the water; at other times you may see the fish’s dorsal fin followed by the tip of its tail. Choose the fish you wish to cast to, make each cast the best you can, and anticipate that the fish will take your offering. When the trout takes your fly, strike gently by raising the rod and holding the line still in your line hand; this is all that is necessary to ‘set’ the hook, as you are fishing with a very fine tippet that can easily break off and leave your fly in the fish’s mouth. If you need to cast again, lift your fly off the water quietly so as not to disturb rising fish, and false cast until you see a ‘target’ rise to cast to. Once a fish takes your fly, play it carefully, again remembering how fine the tippet is. And using a net to hold the fish will help in removing the tiny fly.

 A midge can be tied simply; this pattern does not call for wings, and uses two fiber tips from the center tail feather of a male pheasant, which after tying on as the tail, are wound up forward for the body. The hackle is a natural (undyed) light blue or honey dun. It’s called the Pheasant Tail Midge, and is one of our favorites.

Pheasant Tail Midge

Tail – Two fibers from the center tail feather of male pheasant

Body – The remainder of the tail fibers

Hackle – Light blue dun (not dyed) or Honey dun