Fly tying: Half-pint Midge

Here in the West, early spring is pretty tough to differentiate from late winter—many of our fabled trout streams will still be lined with snow for weeks to come. And that means, despite some warmer temperatures that will keep the ice out of our fly-rod guides, winter fishing is still the name the of the game. 

And winter fishing means midges. Above, Tim Flagler ties the Half-pint Midge, a fly that originated out of Craig Mathews' Blue-Ribbon Flies fly shop in West Yellowstone, Mont., where I'm guess it gets quite a bit of work on the Madison and the Henry's Fork. As Flagler describes this pattern, it's a an easy-to-tie Zebra Midge. 

It's a flashy yet functional midge imitation that will get down deep and likely catch the attention of trout still on their winter calendar. Give it a shot and see what you think. 

— Chris Hunt