Your new go to midge pattern.
Rob Parkins has long been part of the RIO family of Ambassadors. We teamed up with Rob to bring you the RIO's Caviar Midge—it's an absolute beauty of midge dry—ready to school any trout. So, we sat down to chat with Rob in our latest Behind The Fly.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I want to say I am many things, but to be honest, I am an angler. One of my first memories as a child was fishing with my dad when I was around two years old—been fishing with a fly rod for over 40 years. For the past 25 years, I have worked in the fly fish biz as a guide, manufacturers rep, fly shop, and outfitter manager. Currently, I am the Public Waters Access Coordinator for Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. Living in Teton Valley, Idaho, the heart of western trout fishing, I am spoiled with never-ending opportunities to fish for native and wild trout. Add in the long, cold, and snowy winters, modern air travel allows me to go places where I can make my life as difficult as possible while fishing the flats for Permit or swinging flies for Steelhead in the coastal rivers of the PNW. I started tying flies about 30 years ago, with the thought of saving money - damn, was I wrong. While pretty much every fly tied is based on someone else's design, my tying and fly patterns allow me to be creative while solving a perceived problem.
Where did you find your inspiration for the Caviar Midge?
I really like flies that sit low in the water, as I think trout see them as an easy meal. They also have a better silhouette from below. The problem, especially with midges, is that you cannot see them too easily. With the Caviar Midge and the white CDC wing, I can see it from a distance while the fish see the impression of a wing. Another key feature is the shuck made from flash, which, if you watch midges emerge, their nymphal shucks are thin and translucent, and the flash does a great job replicating that.