Page 101 - North 40 Outfitters

After being cooped up in a plane for half of the day, I had the urge to get on a boat and fish no matter the weather. As I was driving by Lake Cocolalla, I noticed the lake was complete glass. That was all the convincing I needed to fish the lake. I launched at around 3:30 pm and fished until 7:15 pm. The weather was always overcast, with off and on showers throughout the evening. The water clarity was strange. The water wasn't muddy, but a dark brown. Hopefully that coloration will clear up soon. The bite started off pretty slow. I'm not sure if it was due to the rain, or the time of day, but it took an hour for it to really pick up. My fly of choice was a #2 Olive Woolly Bugger, and I was fishing with my Rio Hover Line. The Hover line is ideal for this lake. It sinks my fly within that 2 foot range, which seems to be where the trout w...

Multi-colored and articulated, the Kraken is made to catch pike and muskie. Its creator is 15-year-old Kelson Hickman. Kelson won the 1st ever Might Mo Fly Tying Challenge with the Kraken. Want to know how he did it? Check out the video.     Materials Needed to Tie this Fly Chartreuse and Pink Bucktail Chartreuse Plastic Twister Tail Chartreuse 210 Thread 20 mm Shank B10S 1/0 Gamakatsu Stinger Hook Flashabou Pink Legs Fluorescent Pink or Shell Pink 140 Thread Chartreuse or Pink Soft Hackle Chartreuse Chenille Chartreuse and Pink Craft Fur Super Glue or Epoxy Loon Outdoors UV Glue Thick 5/16" Chartreuse Eyes Black Sharpie

Stillwater fishing is continuing to pick up here in the Northwest, and with general lake opener happening next weekend in Washington even more anglers will be getting out to try their luck. Here are six more suggestions that'll hopefully get you into some fish this spring. Start shallow Both fish and aquatic insects aren't particularly fond of cold water, so focus your attention on along the shoreline. More specifically pay attention to where the sunlight is hitting the lake throughout the day. Bugs like chironomids, callibaetis, and damsels will all be more active in these areas throughout the day because of the warmer water temps. The fish know this and now you do too! Go Small Right after ice out all of the insects tend to be small. Chironomids that typically hatch on local lakes early in the season tend to be in the size 16-18 range....

We hear it time and time again when the uninitiated walk through the fly shop.  "Wow, those fly rods are really long.  What do you use those for?"  The short answer is, "Fly fishing with a two handed cast known as a spey cast." At that point, some people wander on, but others are interested in more details. Our Montana Trout Spey Clave was born to provide those details for those who want to know everything they can about spey as it pertains to the trout world.  Two handed casting and longer rods are not just for salmon and steelhead.  The techniques used in spey casting cross over to almost all aspects of fly fishing. In recent years, fly line systems have been developed to provide anglers with the ability to spey cast with their single hand rods.  There are no longer any limits to hold anglers back from taking advantage of spey c...

When I arrived at the lake on Sunday morning there was a fairly stout breeze blowing making the 32 degree air temp feel even colder.  The wind continued to pick up throughout the morning, which made holding my float tube in position very challenging. Along with the challenging weather conditions, water clarity has been an issue on Medical Lake as well lately. Two weeks ago there was about two feet of visibility and as of Sunday there was about five feet. Luckily the fish didn't seem to mind the cloudy water. Medical Lake has ample shore access for those that don't have a boat or float tube, so don't let that deter you from getting out! In fact more guys fishing from the shoreline will have as much success as the guys in boats early in the season. Check out the flies we have online if you need to fill those holes in your box. Size 14 Jo...

All systems go. It’s coming up on mid-April. While the fishing is not always red hot, the conditions are good for the season. The water has eclipsed the magic 42 degree mark. Flows are near normal. Scuds and Sow Bugs are a mainstay as the water rises and they get stirred about. The river bottom is a veritable smorgasbord and many fish literally make their living gobbling the little amphipods and isopods all day long. Tailwater Sows, Rainbow Czech Nymphs, Pink Amex and Mini Mo Czechs fit the bill. Create the perfect spread of nymphs you need to slay. Shop online here. BWO’s are starting to pop. It’s time to fish those #18 and #20 BWO nymphs daily. Whatever flavor you like of Pheasant Tail, JuJu, Radiation, Magic Fly, Hogan’s, Crust Nymph and Little Green Machine should be in favor. If you get on the risers in the afternoon, youâ€...

As I perused our stock of fly rods, I picked up the Echo Trip and thought to myself, " I still have yet to cast this innovative rod." I tend to not take 5+ piece rods seriously because it usually means the rod is cheap, and casts like a wet noddle soaked in butter. I was a little skeptical, but knew Echo wouldn't sell something they didn't 110% believe in. So I took it to the streets..... well, technically I took it to the parking lot grass. Echo Trip Fly Rod Casting Test First thing I like to do when I pick up a new rod is see how far it will throw a line. For this demo, I was using the 9' #5. To my surprise, I was able to consistently hit the 80-85 foot mark, even with a slight breeze in my face. It is definitely a medium fast rod like Echo rates it, so if you are looking for something  extremely quick, this isn't it. However, th...

It’s getting to be that time of year again. People are dusting off their fly rods and airing up rafts all in preparation for their one week float date on the Smith River. With limited access to the stretch between Camp Baker and Eden Bridge there have been few reports yet on what’s happening. It’s sort of a shot in the dark as to what flies and techniques will and will not be working. With warm temps recently, things have been picking up and the fish are eating. I was fortunate enough to get up and fish in the Castle Bar Canyon area. With runoff just kicking in, the river was showing about two to three feet of visibility. It was better than I expected for this time of year. Throughout the day there were small midge hatches, but only a splashy rise every once in a while. I did find one adult Skwala stonefly crawling on a...

No es bueno I just returned from a Tarpon fishing trip to Isla Holbox. Coming back to snow and ten degrees was no es bueno, but I can’t complain about the great time we had. Isla Holbox is at the top of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.  It’s basically a fishing village with a laid back international beach vibe. Pirates and Mayans mingled long ago to develop a unique culture.  Today the island is in the Yum Balm Biosphere Reserve, protecting the flora, fauna and marine life.  The streets are unpaved and vehicles other than bikes and golf carts are only allowed for special uses. Everyone on the trip landed tarpon I was joined by a great party of five anglers from North 40 Fly Shop Great Falls, along with partners from Nebraska and Alaska.  Everyone on the trip landed tarpon along with a mixed bag of barracuda, jacks, snook and snappe...

The lake is completely open, and ready to be fished! Most of the trout are cruising close to shore, looking for perch, nymphs, and washed up worms. The trout that have keyed in on the worms are fat and sassy, while the trout eating nymphs are long and skinny. However, the trout are willing to eat an Olive Baby Gonga, #6 Olive Woolly Bugger, #6 Brown Woolly Bugger, and a #6 Black Balanced Leech.  If you need to stock up on these flies, then this is the spot.  Stripping flies slowly with intermediate line seems to work best. A few fish are rising, but not enough to throw a dry fly. Water clarity is excellent except for inlets, and common runoff drainage. I haven't seen any boats on the water yet, but I'm sure a few fishermen have already made the trip.  Still no word on the bass fishing for this lake, but I am guessing they are sluggis...

I made it out to Amber Lake for a few hours on Sunday morning before having to head back to attend my wife's baby shower that afternoon. Little did my wife and I know that our baby would be born the next day and two weeks ahead of schedule! Anyway, enough about me and lets get back to the report... When Patrick and I arrived at Amber Lake the wind was calm, but that didn't last long with a steady breeze coming out of the west. Fishing was slow until about 9:00 but after that the bite was steady until we got off the water at 11:30. Check out our selection of accessories online here.  We tried a variety of flies and techniques, but chironomids and balanced leeches were the hot ticket. Most of the fish caught were taking flies fished 3-4 feet under the indicator. Water boatmen retrieved with short quick strips will also pick up fish this t...