Chronomids I tied and couple experiments

[reelman]

I tied up 7 'mids. The 8th one is one my 12 year old daughter tied. See if you can tell, I can't.

I also wanted to try tying a convincing water boatman. The other 2 were first attempts at chronomids (please disregard).

I should be catching something on these, but no luck yet. Hmmmm. Any pointers?
Chronomid fishing is something I haven't tried until now, so it could be technique sensitive.

[reelman]

These are tied on size 16 salmon egg hooks. It's what I had.

[The Quadfather]

Any pointers?
Chronomid fishing is something I haven't tried until now, so it could be technique sensitive.

I am always amazed at the quality of fishing gear that people seem to produce themselves. I am not a fly expert by any means but those look like what I buy in the store. Your 12 y/o should be commended also. I am very much a rookie fly angler, but I believe that I have been told that Chronomid fishing does have some technique to it.
Below is a cut/paste from an article I read on Chronomid technique:

Floating Line and Long Leader Technique
A variety of fly lines can be used to effectively fish larval, pupal and adult patterns but the floating line is the most versatile and often the most effective. This is because the majority of pupal emergences occur in water less than about 8 metres. A floating line and long leader without a strike indicator allows effective coverage of the entire water column at these depth ranges. As mentioned earlier, rainbows prefer to feed on the larvae and pupae closer to the bottom than near the surface of the lake. We want to present imitations of both larvae and pupae as close to lake bottom as possible. The traditional approach is to use the floating line and a tapered leader that is at least 25% longer than the depth zone being fished. A weighted or un-weighted pattern is cast out and allowed to sink to within about a foot of the bottom. A very slow (watching paint dry slow!) hand twist retrieve or strip retrieve is then used to move the larval or pupal pattern horizontally through the water while the fly stays in the desired depth zone. This technique is extremely effective but it requires considerable patience to wait for the fly to sink and then to maintain the slow retrieve. Just keep in mind that the real pupa are moving very slowly up through the water column but the goal here is to keep the fly in the depth zone that the trout are actually feeding. Strikes are often very soft as the trout are just inhaling pupa after pupa while lazily swimming along or near the lake bottom. This same setup can be used to wind drift your fly from the anchored position. With a gentle breeze at your back, cast out to either side, and allow the floating line and fly to be pushed downwind. The undulating motion caused by the wave action imparts a natural up and down action to the fly.

Floating Lines and Strike Indicators
Floating lines and strike indicators are a deadly combination for fishing larval and especially pupal patterns. Indicators allow a pattern to be suspended at a very precise depth. Hard shelled indicators such as those made by Thill or Frog Hair are durable, easy to cast and very visible. The rule of thumb for fishing indicators is to set the depth of the fly about 30 cm off the lake bottom and gradually move higher by 3 to 5 cm intervals if there is no luck at the deeper levels. Sometimes the trout will only want the pupa if it is sitting almost perfectly still and other times a slight bobbing action of the fly is enough to trigger a strike. A slight riffle or chop on the water often provides the perfect amount of action to a pattern suspended under an indicator. Movement can be further enhanced by wind drifting with the indicator setup. Indicators are ideal to use when fishing depths of between 5 and 15 feet. They can be used effectively in deeper water such as 20 to 25 feet but in these cases a quick release indicator will make it a lot easier to land a fish. There will be days when the trout will pull the indicator quickly under and other days when all one sees is a slight quiver of the indicator therefore it pays to be watching it very closely at all times.

Sinking Line Technique
The chironomid pupal ascent can also be fished effectively with sinking lines. Slow or intermediate sinking lines and particularly the clear intermediate lines, can be used in place of the floating line and long leader nymphing technique if fishing water in the 5 to 8 metre range. Use the count down method to determine where your fly is in relationship to the lake bottom. Ideally, we want the pupal pattern to sink down to the bottom before initiating a continuous slow hand twist or strip retrieve bringing the fly right to the surface of the lake. This sinking line technique presents the pupal pattern through the entire depth zone that the fish may be feeding in. Often the strikes will occur just as the fly is still within a metre of the bottom or when the fly is within a couple of metres of the surface. Hitting fish high in the water column tells us the trout are following the pupal pattern up from the lake bottom and then grabbing the fly just before it gets too close to the surface of the lake.

Deep water chironomid emergences occur at depths of over 8 metres and upwards of 15 metres. These emergences generally take place during the mid to late summer period. Fast sinking fly lines are very effective in imitating the pupal ascent from these depths. Take a type 3 to type 7 full sinking or density compensated sinking line and cast out the same depth anchored in. Allow the fly line and pupal pattern to sink until straight up and down. Begin a slow but continuous hand twist retrieve bringing the fly right up to the surface of the lake just like the real pupa. As with the intermediate sinking line technique, the strikes generally occur within a couple of metres of the bottom or within 2 metres of the surface of the lake. The takes are almost always very hard which makes this an exciting way to fish. A 3 metre long leader is ample for this particular technique.

[reelman]

Thanks. I'm glad to see you cut/pasted that. My jaw dropped at the novel-like response in so short a time. I can't wait to go try it out - Thursday I think.

[Rooscooter]

Even though I have been fly fishing for nearly 30 years (Wow! has it been that long?) I am learning new techniques every year (and forgetting a few as well).

As for chironomids: several years ago I began adding chironomid fishing to my Stillwater bag of tricks. I too read the articles about the various techniques and how to match the hatches etc. After a few unsuccessful trips I began to get discouraged and was about ready to give it up when I tried the last technique listed above (Deep water). This single technique has yielded many very productive days on the lakes around Spokane. I have had days when I have caught over 30 fish using this approach. I now am a very big believer in fishing chironomids, especially in the spring and fall. Often times it will work well even when there is no evident hatch. I also have had a lot of luck with the "indicator" technique.

As for the patterns you have tied. I tend to stick with Black with a silver rib and a white bead (Ice Cream Cone), Wine with a black rib and white bead and brown with a silver rib and white bead. I also tie a couple of more complicated patterns using olive V-rib and copper flash as a base but the basic colors above will work just as well most of the time.

Good luck and let us know how you do

Tight Lines!