Goulburn Griffith's               

Hook: Daiichi 1330 or Tiemco 100 # 14 - 20

Thread: Black 8/0 Uni Thread

Tail: Pearl Coloured Shimmerflash

Under body: Peacock Herl

Hackle: Grizzle

1/ First off wrap a nice even base of thread starting from near the front of the hook and extending to the point where you are going to tie in your first part of the fly, the tail. This point should be roughly level with the barb on the hook. Once this is completed and you have a good bed of thread proceed to step two.
2/ Now take two pieces of the Shimmerflash and cut away from the clump. Take them and measure against the hook shank as the tail should be equal to the length of it. Now tie in these two pieces extending straight out the back of the fly and slightly apart. Trim off the excess and wind thread back in line with the hook barb ready for step three.
3/ The next step requires finding a nice fat piece of peacock herl which will be use to make the under body of the fly. This should be tied in with the direction it will be wound in mind, so that the bushiest side of the herl will be on the outside of the wraps and therefore make the nicest body possible. Tie out to the rear and out of the way of the next step.
4/ Now select a Grizzle hackle feather to suit the hook size you are using. Feathers from Hoffman Saddles are particularly good for this type of fly as you can tie between 8-10 flies from the one feather. Strip some of the barbles from the bottom of the feather and tie in just as you have the previous materials. Then wind the thread to the front of the hook.
5/ Take the herl with your fingers and gently wind it forward to the front of the fly. I like to wind in a clockwise direction. Do this being careful to place each successive wrap just in front of the previous one. This will give you a nice plump under body. Also be careful not to break the herl by being gentle with the herl as it is delicate. Now tie it off and trim the excess.
6/ Lastly take the hackle feather and wind it forward to the front of the hook. Depending on what sort of fly you want either use minimal turns or up to six. This will either cause it to to sit low in the film or high on the top representing and emerging chironomid or the mating adults. Once you get to the front tie in and trim the excess. Use two half hitches to finish off.

The Pattern

This fly pattern was sent to me about three years ago by a good friend of mine from Wales. As some of you would be aware they are first rate chironomid fisherman and are light years ahead of us when it comes to this type of fishing. This is because of the colder climates and the type of waters they fish where midge are probably the most consistent hatching insect. They have developed techniques for catching trout dining on midge over the last century and beyond and it was for this reason that the patterns he sent were of particular interest. Many of the notes on how to fish them were also very interesting. But sitting in the bottom of the selection was this fly which I immediately could relate to, a Griffith's Gnat variant! This humble little pattern has been a favourite of ours for many years so to see another variation on it was exciting.

The notes that came with it talked of it's effectiveness when fish are taking either the adults or the emerging midge. I was somewhat doubtful about the second claim as the person who sent it made sure he included at least three strictly imitative emerging chironomid patterns as well. Also, we only seemed to use the Griffith's here in Oz as a representation of the balling midge. He explained that the tail of flash material was a small trailing shuck and that it worked probably more often than the exact imitations. So we tied a whole bunch of them from #14-22's and have been fishing them since. They have turned out to be one of the best patterns for when trout are selectively feeding on midge.

We use it everywhere, in still or running water, with a dead drift or sometimes retrieved slowly across a lake's surface. It probably takes more trout for me than any other pattern over the course of a season. Another effective technique is to hang a small pupa from it while fishing the hatch, that way covering a couple of aspects of what is going on. They should be carried in all sizes and if you want to be pedantic tie two styles. The first having a very sparse hackle so that it sits low in the film like an emerger. The other with a much more densely hackled body so as to cause it to ride high for when the fish are taking the balling adults.

This is a very effective fly for early season risers on the Goulburn. Often through Spring and Autumn you will find fish rising, particularly in tail outs of pools on no see ums. Most often this is to midge and this fly in the appropriate size should fool quite a number of these difficult trout. Remember to also use light gear and tippets to maximise both your enjoyment and effectiveness.

Regards

Antony