Page 137 - North 40 Outfitters

As the bow of the sled pushed on to the riverbank, I was beginning to wonder what exactly I had gotten myself into here. It had been months since I had ascended any considerable incline; and even those weren't littered with loose slides of basalt. River bottoms and finned game had consumed me. I had been scoping the riverside bluffs for some time, and while I had always realized the magnitude, never had I come to know it first-hand. Nearing halfway on the initial climb was the first flush of birds. With the sun directly in my eyes, I had just enough visual on the birds to shoulder my gun and rapidly squeeze off both barrels. No birds fell, which is about what I expected. I watched them coast to the next ridge and touchdown, mentally logging their location for the decent. Seconds later, three shots rang through the canyon from the next ...

The TFP Cripple was created because Missouri River fish tend to eat dead, crippled, and rusty PMD’s much better than bright yellow duns. The problem with a lot of the cripples that we had in the bins, even the CDC variations, was that they tended to be way overdressed and when fished among a bunch of naturals didn’t even look remotely convincing. So, we came up with this cripple to have a low profile, be sparse, still float, and be visible. We have antron added to the tail, ice dub in front and deer hair on the crippled wing. At first we thought the deer hair would over power the fly, but after using a lot of different wing materials, if you actually watch the fly on the water--it is the least overpowering of any material as long as you use the deer sparsely on the fly. The deer hair also repels water and floats much better than many ...

Finalizing the details for a trip always leaves me with a sense of relief...and panic at the same time. The relief comes when booking a seat on a 737 bound for Christmas Island is successful. Especially after spending 4 hours trying to get the last seat, knowing at any moment it could be snatched up from under neath you. Panic. Thoughts of gear begin to enter my head. Do I have enough flies, do I have the right line, do I have the right rods, reels, leaders, clothing,... the list goes on and on! Sunscreen, bug spray... I keep thinking of more stuff. I begin to wander around the fly shop putting stuff into a basket. Luckily we have everything for the local angler traveling to warm destinations during the winter months. I even found sunscreen, bug spray, 80lb fluorocarbon, and a new buff. The only way to calm myself is to begin tying fl...

Fishing on the Coeur d'Alene river yesterday was absolutely stunning to say the least. With all of our recent snow our local rivers have become saturated with beauty. Several feet of the white stuff, have painted a picture too beautiful for words. Temperatures in the mid 20's for highs make for cold fingertips and frozen guides on your rod, but like my grandpa used to say, "there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing." There is definitely no need to get up early to get to the river. The fishing started picking up around noon and continued to fish well until around 3 pm. Small may fly nymphs such as the UV2 and Hogan's Military mayfly worked the best.  Believe it or not, I was also able to get some dry fly action around 1 o'clock on Kellers Rocky Mountain Mints size 18. I noticed some fish rising in some slack water ...

I wanted to test these socks in a real atmosphere to see if they could live up anywhere close to their name "40 below." Not sure how many of you guys have been in 40 below ZERO weather but that's pretty cold. In fact, that's so cold that I did not get to test these socks down to that level, but I did get to test them in relatively cold working conditions at about ZERO degrees. In this test we were insulating an old shed, outside of town, at night, on the coldest night of the year from about 6PM to a little after 10PM. So- my point here is that it was cold. It's important to keep your feet warm in the winter. Warm feet keep your feet dexterous, and actually improves the ability for your immune system to function properly and fight of flus. The 40 Below socks are warm, and have 49% wool content, the best natural fiber for warmth, odor, and...

If you've spent a lot of time in the NW or standing around campfires you may have come across the game "Nails," also known as Stump. If you haven't, it is a really fun and easy to play game that tests your skills with a hammer. Here's what you need to play the Game of Nails A fairly straight cut section of tree stump that can be stood up to a height above your knees and below your waist. Typically two log sections stacked on top each other is just right. A hammer. (Need a hammer?) Nails (4-5 inches tall are best) Nails can come loose so make sure to wear safety glasses or eye protection. Some amount of light, so you can see the hammer. The Object of the Game Each person gets a nail. Lightly tap your nail into the stump so that it stands upright. When it's your turn, you try to hit your opponents nails into the stump. Your opponent is ...

We have actually been tying the crust nymph for a long time. After analyzing how slender mayfly bodies are in the Missouri, we started to slender up the bodies of our nymphs. We wanted the Crust Nymph to have quite a bit of articulation in the body so we used a turkey biot upside-down, so the curls of the biot create segmentation in the body. One problem with using turkey biots as the body is they aren’t very sturdy. You can buy this fly from us online right here. They crack fairly easily. We wanted the fly to last a long time, so we added wire to each curl of the biot. This solidifies the body a lot. Even if the biots do crack a little bit you can just snip it off and the fly stays together. There is a tiny bit of flash on this fly underneath the wing case with ice dub. With the yellow on the PMD and the brown olive on the BWO. We use...

Its midwinter and while there will be fishable days in the next several months, for many fly fishers, the focus will be on fly tying.  Winter is a great time to reflect on the past and plan strategy for the future.  Where will you fish?  What flies will you need?  What tweaks do you want to make to your favorite patterns?  How many will you need? Josh has been busy for several months building up his streamer boxes.  With as many materials as he’s been purchasing, I figured he must be building a respectable collection.  So one day, I asked Josh to bring in his streamer box when it was finished to his satisfaction.  I was curious to see what he’d been crafting. Turns out Josh was not satisfied until he had nine boxes filled up with various color schemes.  I don’t care who you are, that’s a pretty awesome collection.  Jos...

North 40 Fly Shop reviews the new OPST Commando Head and Lazar running line. OPST Commando + Lazar Running Line... A Match made for the Swing It was a pleasure to fish with the new OPST Commando Head and Lazar running line during a recent outing. I took my 7 weight to a section of the CDA river that I remembered having had trouble casting heavy streamers from the  bank due to the  bushes behind me. I started at the top of this run and two-stepped my way down. My first cast was a little quick, as I was anticipating the shorter stroke, and I blew my anchor point. My  second cast left me with nothing but smiles, launching my tungsten streamer to the far bank. Thinking it might have been a fluke,  I stripped in the laser line, which had a great feel, through my fingers. As the running line piled up around my legs, it opened up on the wa...

At our annual North 40 Fly Shop Summit, held in Twisp, WA,  we got a chance to try out some different 2-handed rods. Beulah Onyx Spey Rod Review FRED: I’ve recently had a chance to cast two of the Beulah Onyx Spey rods.  I could spout a bunch of technical jargon, but in short, they rock.  At 13’ 1", the Onyx 6wt was the longest rod in the group.  It’s so light in the hand, you don’t feel the added length.  For me, the 6131 fires line like no other 6 weight I have cast.  They are also very handsome with a maple burl reel seat and custom looking grip.  I’m expecting delivery of my own Onyx 6136 very soon. KEITH: I wasn’t able to put  a lot of time in with this rod but found it to perform well above some of the others. It can throw the line with little effort...

I've been carrying a gun around the mountains long enough now to remember and follow the "expert advice" to wear two pairs of socks inside my elk hunting boots for comfort and to prevent blisters. So, when I was introduced to Smart Wool (merino wool) several years ago, I had two immediate reactions. Darn Tough Socks: $20 for Socks?! First, I couldn't believe how comfortable they were and second, I couldn't believe the price tag! Who in their right mind would pay $20 for a pair of socks? After just one trip wearing them, I couldn't believe I'd survived this long without them and gladly budgeted "sock money" into my annual hunting/backpacking account. Want to know why these socks are so expensive? Besides the price (which I grudgingly came to accept), the only complaint I had was a lack of durability, manifesting with heels that would routi...

Who doesn't love a good recycled craft project? Being that we are in the "age of wasting things," I know I love to find things around my house to reuse and create something new with. Like any rancher or avid horse lover, you probably have a stack of battered ropes laying around in the barn. Don't have any laying around? No worries! You can buy them here. And now the fun starts what else could a used rope be good for? Well Gretchen and I came up with a few funky ideas today, so here are a couple fun wreaths to feature around your home using upcycled old ropes. Recipe for Upcycled rope SUCCESS: Used Rope (if you don't have one laying around, purchase one for $10 here!) Hot glue sticks Hot glue gun Heavy gauge wire Thin gauge wire Decorative elements (We just pulled ours from the fly shop supplies- you could do that, or just round up your ...