Chironomid Frenchie
Cheech - March 3, 2018
Preface (by CF): So we've been fishing this Frenchie variation pattern almost religiously for the past couple of chironomid seasons on our local stillwaters. In two words: It slays.
Now we wouldn't expect less from the fishy mind of Lance Egan, but this pattern almost borders on creepily effective. Due to the need for getting this submitted to Umpqua for an upcoming new catalog release, we couldn't let the cat out of the bag until now, but we've seen this pattern get a LOT of usage amongst a few fellow anglers and it's pretty much the same response in terms of how well it fishes.
By now you know me as a pretty fanatical chironomid guy. And not to say I don't fish my other patterns, but let's say I've got a few rows in my chironomid box that is 100% Silver Lancers. Side note: Cheech came up with that codename for it and we actually call it that. Chironomid Frenchie is what you'll see it named with Umpqua most likely, but around here, it's the "Silver Lancer" (or Gold Lancer, or White Lancer as the case may be).
So here's a Lance's take on the pattern:
Many river anglers who are familiar with Euro style nymphing have come across a popular pheasant tail nymph variation called a "Frenchie" If not, check out our video!
The Frenchie has been a staple for me on rivers for more than a decade. Why wouldn't it work well in lakes??? It does! I've adapted the bead and wire colors, removed the tail (chironomids don't have tails) and added sparkle emerger yarn for gills. Otherwise, the fish grabbing materials from the river frenchie are still utilized. This is my go-to chironomid and is my best producing stillwater pattern when fishing with a midge tip line or below an indicator. Try the Chironomid Frenchie, I'm confident it will produce for you.
