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Griffith's Gnat
A dry fly, tied #18–24, carried year round. It is tied against 5 named insects in this book, and stands in when nothing is hatching — all year. George Griffith, founding member of Trout Unlimited, on the Au Sable.
A cluster of mating midges rendered as one fly, rather than a single midge — which is why a size 20 will work when a size 24 imitation of one insect will not. The recipe is two materials: a peacock herl body with grizzly hackle palmered its full length, on a standard dry-fly hook in sizes 18–24, black 14/0 thread. It was originated by George Griffith, a founding member of Trout Unlimited. It is fished in winter and on flat summer evenings, and it answers rises that have no obvious cause. The insects it is tied against here are midges, present all year from 33 to 75 degrees; cinnamon flying ants in August and September at 58 to 78; Little Black Stoneflies from January through April at 34 to 46; and Tricos from July through September at 58 to 72. It is also carried as a searching pattern when no hatch is on. Trout are the target species.
- #18–24Hook size
- dry flyType
- AllSeason
- 5Hatches matched
What it looks like
A drawing, not a photograph, and not traced from one. Its proportions were read off 5 independent reference photographs of the pattern and written down as 5 measured characteristics — wing angle, tail length against the shank, how far a hackle fibre reaches — every one of which had to hold across more than one of them before it could be drawn. What survives across many photographs of a fly is the fly.
What it imitates
Each of these is the same hatch record the app's own panel reads, so a pattern recommended on a river card in the app is recommended for one of the insects below.
- Blackfly Simulium spp. · April–June · 40–65°F · #18–22
- Midge Chironomidae · all year · 33–75°F · #18–24
- Cinnamon Flying Ant Formicidae (alate) · August–September · 58–78°F · #16–20
- Little Black Stonefly Allocapnia / Capnia spp. · January–April · 34–46°F · #16–18
- Trico Tricorythodes spp. · July–September · 58–72°F · #20–24
It is also tagged for no hatch at all — a searching pattern.
Tying recipe
In tying order. This dressing is the standard one — these patterns have been in the publicrecord for decades; George Griffith, founding member of Trout Unlimited, on the Au Sable. — and materials substitute freely: the proportions and the silhouette are the pattern, not the brand of dubbing.
| Hook | Standard dry-fly hook, sizes 18–24 |
|---|---|
| Thread | Black 14/0 |
| Body | Peacock herl |
| Hackle | Grizzly, palmered the full length of the body |
When to fish it
A cluster of mating midges, not one midge — which is why a size 20 works when a size 24 single does not. Winter and flat summer evenings.
Carried all year. The insects it matches are active all year, in water from 33°F to 78°F.
Target species
- Trout
Rivers it fishes well
Rivers with a page here that sit in the regions where the insects this pattern imitates are recorded. It is a claim about coverage, not a report of a fish caught.
- Au Sable River northern lower Michigan · July mean 72.1°F
- Catawba River the North Carolina mountains · July mean 76.7°F
- Jackson River the Virginia mountains · July mean 66.3°F
- Muskegon River northern lower Michigan · July mean 71.0°F
- Escanaba River the Upper Peninsula · July mean 68.3°F
- Saint Croix River northern Wisconsin · July mean 77.2°F
- Smith River the Virginia mountains · July mean 51.9°F
- Tygart Valley River the Virginia mountains · July mean 74.6°F
- Kalamazoo River southern lower Michigan · July mean 71.3°F
- Aaron Creek the North Carolina mountains · July mean 76.7°F
- Aaron Run the Virginia mountains · July mean 77.1°F
- Aarons Run the Virginia mountains · July mean 74.2°F
Related patterns
Same type of fly, or tied for the same insects.
- Elk Hair Caddis dry fly · #12–20 — Floats forever, skates on command, works when nothing is hatching.
- Renegade dry fly · #12–18 — Two hackles, fore and aft. Fished damp in the film as often as dry.
- Adams (Catskill) dry fly · #12–20 — The original. Rides higher than the parachute in broken water.
- Parachute Adams dry fly · #12–20 — Universal mayfly dun imitation. Every angler carries these.
- Purple Haze dry fly · #12–18 — A Parachute Adams in purple. Fish it when the honest match keeps getting refused.