Page 15 - North 40 Outfitters

The Cheech Leech was designed by Clark Pierce.  Clark goes by the name “Cheech” and is half of the duo known as Fly Fish Food. Clark says the Cheech Leech is hands down his favorite streamer pattern.  It has been a good seller in our fly shops and has become a favorite streamer among many anglers. Like most flies, the Cheech Leech has evolved over time.  In its current rendition, it is a very fishy critter.  We get our Cheech Leeches from the Fulling Mill Fly Tying Company. A bigger fish is always better. Check out streamer patterns here. The Cheech Leech comes in an array of fishy colors.  We offer it in black, black/red, fall, Halloween and tan. It is an articulated baitfish style streamer approximately 4.5” long that pushes water and swims with a tantalizing action.  No...

By Darron McDougal Is your Backyard Practice Yielding Deadly Bowhunting Accuracy? If not, Incorporate These Tips. Two spike bulls — clueless to my existence — ambled by 25 yards away as I hunkered in knee-high sagebrush. They’d seemingly appeared out of thin air. Both paused briefly to browse, then my peripheral vision suddenly picked up movement to my left. It was a third bull elk. The handsome 5x5 wasn’t a monster, but a fine public-land bull and one I’d be thrilled to take. He took a trail farther out than the spikes had, and with the sparse cover, I didn’t dare attempt to range the bull. Once he was broadside, I slowly drew my bow. The spikes caught the movement and bolted. The 5x5 locked up the brakes and stared holes through me. Though I probably had several seconds to spare, I perceived it as a now-or-never opportunity...

There are two distinct camps of pet owner: the cat person and the dog person. Finding common ground between these two species of people is- well, there are many analogies I could make here, some relevant some not so relevant. If you can think of analogies, please, put them in the comments and start them like this: "Finding common ground between cat people and dog people is like..." But back to this article, the original question was, "What should I buy in preparation for homing a new kitten?" Well, when getting ready to receive any new pet or animal into your home, you should be ready for some changes. If you're a new pet owner, there will probably be more changes to your home and life than to a person who is adding to an existing family of pets. So, when buying or adopting any type of pet you will need some basic items: food, a pet bow...

By Zach Bowhay For years one of my favorite summer past times has been placing trail cams in the high country in either areas I hunt or that I have always been interested in hunting. I don’t place them to target specific animals, rather to just see what is in the area if anything. Due to the fact I am placing them more as a way to get out in the woods and look at the overall animal populations in certain areas I try and target high traffic areas where I intend to hunt. Over the years through much trial and error I have tried many different camera locations and although most will produce at least some photos of animals, I have narrowed down the types of places l like to put out my cameras. Following are a few types of locations where I have found success and if you try them I would almost bet you would have the same results. 1. Sole Wa...

With daytime temperatures in the mid to upper 90s, it is easy to think of the cool days of the fall fishery. I have always felt that the feeding trout in the fall are more hard-hitting fighters than in the springtime. For now, though there is some great fishing for our area smallmouth bass. Current Conditions Bonaparte Lake - This is one of the few lakes in the area that has not gotten to warm yet. It continues to produce nice smallmouth bass up to three pounds. Early morning popper action is having some good results. In and around the weedy areas is a good place for tempting some lurking bass. After 11:00 am I would switch to a streamer pattern. Start in close to the weed line and move out into a little deeper water with your streamer. If trout is your game, start off with a streamer in 10 feet of water then move out into 20 feet, ma...

This time of year, when people ask what flies to fish, I like to ask them what flies they like to fish.  This is the time of year I call fun-fly season.  Almost everything is in play.  Tiny mayflies, big mayflies, caddis, stoneflies, ants, hoppers, beetles, and moths.  Recently, I put on a big dry fly in a color I’d never fished before.  It worked.  It was fun. Current Conditions Missouri River below Holter Dam - The water here is in the 5K realm and the fishing is excellent for the season.  That does not always translate to easy, but the opportunities at rising fish are there.  If you enjoy the trico game, it’s going strong.  If you like fishing a hopper dropper rig, it’s coming into season. On the nymphing side, it’s been really steady river wide.  The water is also low enough for wading and quick enough to fish the ...

Fishing is steady and we are holding in our summertime lull. Flows on most rivers have just about bottomed out or will be in the next few weeks. Days are getting shorter again, and hopefully, some cool nights here and there will keep trout fishing alive. Bass fishing in the area still remains great, along with the Hexagenia mayfly hatch on Lake Pend Oreille. Pike reports are still coming through out of LPO in the sloughs and bays. Fun abounds in the Sandpoint/Panhandle Area. Current Conditions Lake Pend Oreille - Boat traffic is still here and will continue throughout the hot days coming. Early morning and evening bass fishing has been good to moderate, but if you try deeper, you may be surprised. Check out the evening and nighttime Hex hatch. Smallmouth will chase Hex nymphs to the surface and then feed on them at night. For pike, Den...

We are in full-blown summer mode now.  We have consistently warmer temperatures but not as hot as years past for this time.  It has been a blessing with the past storms and rain we have received.  But it is now time to strategize on time of day and picking the right spots. Overall, fishing has been solid.  Water on all of the rivers continues to drop as no real precipitation has come.  Weekdays are going to be far less busy and quite the opposite on the weekends.  Lots of folks are out enjoying the streams from fishermen and women to tubers galore.  A good option in this heat in the middle of the day -cool drinks, a dip in the river with some friends, and it’s all good.  Current Conditions Coeur d'Alene River  - The fishing has still been solid.  You just need to c...

By Fred Telleen Fishing big flies for trout is popular for good reason. That’s because there are an abundance of large streamer patterns being tied by creative anglers these days, and there is a new understanding that trout are, indeed, predators, and the largest ones mostly eat fish. While fly fishing may have started with the goal of presenting diminutive little mayfly dries to surface feeding trout, the sport has broadened to include representations of anything a fish might eat, sculpins, mice, voles and birds included. To increase your odds of catching a trophy sized trout, fishing big streamer flies is a step in the right direction. It is said that a trout will eat prey up to 1/3 their own length. That means a 16-inch trout will easily track down a 5-inch fly. A 24-inch trout will look at a 6-8-inch streamer as a quality f...

The Columbia River is many things to many people—a hydroelectric powerhouse, one of North America's mightiest waterways, a historic highway, a Native homeland, a geologic marvel, a salmon nursery. It is a key element in history books, the subject of rollicking songs, namesake of a dozen geographic sites such as the Columbia Gorge. It binds the Northwest, cleaves its mountains, waters its lands. It also provides one of the most compelling outdoor adventures in the Northwest, a waterborne journey from past to present and back again. Green Douglas firs where the waters cut through Down her wild mountains and canyons she flew So sang Woody Guthrie in a famous 1941 song, Roll on Columbia. "To the oceans so blue... " the song continues, and this morning, floating its longest free-flowing US stretch, the 56-mile Hanford Reach, that's exactly ...

Hot summer weather is here and stream flows are falling.  So far, water temperatures remain favorable, but if you fish in the evening, land fish quickly and keep them in the water. Terrestrials will soon be in play as the heat dries out the grasses and they don’t have so much cover to hide in.  To get you ready, we’ve got the Morrish Hopper on sale as our fly of the week.  Stock up now. Current Conditions Missouri River below Holter Dam - The Missouri River is still above 6K and that’s great news with the hot weather.  More water means cooler water and the fish remain happy and feeding.  As we move toward August, transitions are happening.  For the dry fly gang, pmds are still out, but they will be fading as the tiny tricos take center stage. Morning sessions with the pmd spinner and female trico duns are where it’s at cu...