Page 151 - North 40 Outfitters

Today a gentleman walked into the fly shop and said, "What’s a good fly for trout?"  It’s a very simple question that we hear time and time again.  We can pick one of several hundred flies we have to sell. They are all good in the right place at the right time.  That’s why we have them.  Rick likes to say they are all guaranteed on the end of his line. The challenge to the fly fisher is to learn the when and where.  The simplest answer to the question is all of them, some of the time.  Summertime Flies: Choosing A Trout Fly We can help narrow the search with some basic information on when and where anglers are fishing.  The more information anglers share with us about their fishing situations, the better we can diagnose their fly needs. As we move into early summer and caddis become prevalent, a good fly for trout is the cadd...

The dearest thing about fishing is watching a child light up the first time the feel the tug of a fish at the end of a line. This epitomizes the truest portion of which all fishermen are in pursuit of, only more innocent without the convolution and baggage many of us older anglers drag to the water.  For the child every fish is the catch of a lifetime, as later recounts of the day’s events describe. After all good fishing stories shouldn’t be limited by age, and the most entertaining of such come with overactive imaginations God Bless the youth. Thus the impetus for the North 40 "#passiton" program taking the youth of our respective communities and finding ways to impart all aspects of fly fishing into their impressionable being, creating a base of working imagination, conservation, wondrous hope, and simple joy. Heck at the end wit...

First Family Activity this Father's Day? Prairie Dog Hunting. Last month I took my daughter, Lauren, out to our friend's ranch to shoot prairie dogs.  The morning started off perfect with a few clouds and very little wind.  She was shooting my new Savage 17 HMR, while I was alternating between my .223 and .22-250; we were racking up the kills between the two of us. Early in the afternoon, the clouds rolled in and the wind picked up, which was creating problems with the light bullets, and also sending the prairie dogs for the cover of their holes.  So we decided to take my chocolate lab, Justice, for a walk up the mountain and look for a few "shed" elk antlers. Want another great activity for Father's Day? We left the truck in the prairie dog town and headed toward the base of the mountains, which is typically a good transit...

The boat landings have filled with trailers. Caddis are starting to show. Hints of summer on the Mo... As always, there are plenty of fish to go around. Fish in the fast, skinny slicks? Yep. Piles of them. Fish in the deep hydraulics? Yeah. And everywhere in between too. That being said, if I had to describe the fishing on the Missouri right now with one word, I would choose TEMPERAMENTAL. My two days on the water this week felt like entirely different seasons. One thing is for certain, they are very gettable. As always, the standbys are getting the job done. Low water baetis, Smiths BWO emerger, Little greens, flashback biots, indigo child, green hornets, and plenty of others too. Baetis, March Browns, Caddis emergers down and across are all potentially deadly. Pay attention the the weather. Not for your comfort on the water, but for in...

At 6:30 am we were out the door in Sandpoint, ID, and after a night of fishing, eating, and shenanigans with the awesome people that live in Noho, #idahome we were in need of... coffee and bacon.  I repeat; we were NOT looking for lettuce wrapped, spinach filled, egg white burritos; coffee and bacon. Only a few breakfast hot spots open up early enough for us in Sandpoint, one being Connie's, and a few others but this morning we were headed to the Hoot Owl. Not that it matters, but the Hoot Owl Cafe's background is a bit fuzzy. The building has been there since 1942 and was previously a drive-in... so I'll say a rough, 30-40 years. You won't find it online, but that's the info I gathered, plus I'd driven by a hundred times--and this morning, we entered "the owl." I'd have been really happy with coffee and bacon BUT good luck slimming you...

The quality of fishing on the Missouri is very high right now.  The water is low, clear, buggy and fishy.  I was guiding on Tuesday and Wednesday this week.  Between the days, I covered the river from Wolf Creek to Prewett.  There are lots of bugs all the way through.  BWO’s are the most prolific in #18s and #20s.  The Green Machine is hard to beat, but lots of flies will get it done.  I’m fond of JuJu Baetis, Flashback Biot Nymphs, Split Case BWO’s and occasionally the Rainbow Warrior.  CDC Biot Emergers can get really hot during the peak of the daily hatch. There are plenty of March Browns out there.  This makes fishing a #14 Parachute Adams or Purple Haze / Purple Rooster a good option.  Drop your nymph off the back or fish a Low Water Baetis or CDC Cripple Pattern if you find a pod of risers.  If you’ve got a good...

Lot’s happening in the Great Falls Fly Fishing Community this week. Molly Semenik will be the speaking at the Missouri River Fly Fishers club meeting tonight at the Giant Springs FWP Building starting at 7:30 P.M. Molly has been a popular featured speaker and casting instructor for us in the past. Tomorrow, we’ve got the Montana Fishing Film Festival to kick off the weekend. Prior to the films, the re will be a free Mini Casting Workshop hosted by Magnetic Montana and Montana Fishing Film Festival. Time: 5:00 pm to 5:30 pm at 201 3rd St NW, Great Falls, MT 59404 (Behind Staybridge Suites) The films will be at the Do Bar (1800 3rd St NW, Great Falls, MT 59404) starting at 7:30pm. Doors open at 6:30pm and the tickets are only $10. There will be some gear giveaways. You can get tickets ahead of time at North 40 or buy them at the door. J...

As beginning beekeepers, I imagine you all have many questions and concerns. One thing I have come across is this: you can only read and watch so much--you need to get out and "do!" In hopes to give you all a great head start into the bee game, we're going through the process ourselves with some of our local Great Falls, Montana customers: I'm fascinated by what bees can accomplish. This fascination drove me to a point where I said, "I want to have bees." Now I'm to the point where I want to catch wild bees. After a lot of research this winter, I found out that saying is really true: you can only learn so much from reading. So after exhausting my data plan searching bee videos on YouTube and browsing various beekeeping websites, I had to talk to a human about this new adventure I was planning to undertake. Long story short running out ...

The challenged series flies are one of my favorite crippled emerger patterns.  These can be tied for any type of mayfly.  Most common used are BWO's, Green Drakes, Grey Drakes, March Browns, PMD's, and Mahoganies.  By simply changing the color of the dubbing, rib, and size, you can tie several different variations of this fly. When fishing this fly, add your fly floatant to the front of the fly, near the eye of the hook, only. This will allow the fly to sit vertical in the water.  When this fly is sitting correctly, 3/4 of the fly will be under water, making it an easy target for hungry trout. This is, hands down, my favorite go to dry fly for picky fish on any river during a PMD or BWO hatch. Grab the materials you need to tie this fly from your local shop or order them from us online here.

Fishing is a sport of superstition. Personally, I am not superstitious, but in the words of Michael Scott, "I'm a little 'stitious." I have seen too many odd days on the water to not be a little "stitious." Below is a list of myths/superstitions I have personally found to be debunked. If you disagree, please, take it up with me on our Facebook page right here. Post to our page with this headline: "THIS MYTH IS TRUE..." and we'll get back to you within 24 hours with either a concession or grounds for further argumentation. Let the debunking commence. Myth #1 [FALSE]: Fishing with a Bigger fly means Catching Bigger Fish Every month I see a group of fishermen come into the shop with one man that appears to be the most "knowledgeable." As the "expert," walks the group through the fly bins, he explains, "If you fish a big fly, you will catch b...

Involving your kids in your fishing adventures from the beginning is a great way to get them in touch with the outdoors and set them on a course to enjoy fishing for a lifetime. Cutter is doing that right now. It looks like Cutter has his hands and waders full. Fishing with kids will likely change the way you approach the water and the fish. It may not be the best opportunity for fly fishing greatness, but the quality family time is priceless. Word is some fish were caught. Nice work boys. Sam Wike started the North 40 Fly Shop, so it’s only natural that he take his son out on the water early. He was in the shop yesterday morning talking about kid carrying solutions. Looks like he found the right carrier to include Jackson in the game. Somewhere I’ve got an old photo of my wife holding a 50# King Salmon. Back in 1994, my cell phone...

I’m going to let you in on a little secret. With our low and clear water, a big old Thingamabobber or Air Lock indicator is not going to go undetected by our piscatorial adversaries. They will simply laugh, close their mouths and let your stuff drift past. Then they will go back to chomping all the delicate morsels drifting their way. If you are fishing from a boat and drifting the deeper water, fine. You can bobber away and still get into fish. If however, you are wading the juicy skinny runs and riffled water where many fish are feeding right now, you need to lighten your presentation. This chunky brown ignored my JuJu Baetis dropper and ate the #14 Hi Vis Parachute. I’m ok with that. I’d prefer they eat the indicator fly all day long. Depending on water depth and velocity, run your dropper from 8" to 36". 18" was perfect for th...