Page 34 - North 40 Outfitters

Clearwater River (ID) The current flow is 4,630 cfs at Spaulding. The Clearwater is still dropping and has had some spikes in water temperatures. Currently, they sit at 43 degrees as of 13:00 on 11/27/18. We have been told that some fish have been caught since last week. Yet, it is still slow fishing for us here at the shop. Best to get out and go fishing while you can before IDFG closes the fishing on December 7th. For more information on the closure, you can call the shop or go to https://idfg.idaho.gov/press/fish-and-game-commission-suspends-steelhead-fishing-due-threatened-lawsuit. Snake River (WA) The current flow is 14,300 cfs at Anatone. The water temperatures have been hovering in the 44 to 45-degree window. With the Snake being such a vast river, the water that the fish hold in is not as deep as some folks would think. If you ar...

Omak Lake (WA) It’s that time of the year when the weather doesn’t know how to make up its mind. Outside of when the wind decides to pick up a little more than it needs to, the weather we are having is not having a negative effect at the lake. I’m not going to tell you that the catch rate is high, but you can still have a good time going after enough Lahontan cutthroats to make it worth your while. Both Nicholson Beach and Cowpie Beach are producing with Cowpie beach being just a little more productive. If you are using a larger boat on the east side of the lake, go in close to the rocky outcroppings as well as the rock faces. These are good places to work. From the beach, cast out to where the bottom drops off. The depths there should be in and around 10 to 12 feet. Right now, it seems balanced leeches and bloodworms under an indi...

Clark Fork River (ID) The flows on the Clark Fork below Cabinet Gorge have been better in the past week. Generally, they are ranging between 4,000 and 18,000 cfs and drawn out overnight and into the mornings. Midges are popping, but bug activity has been minimal. It’s a nymph game now, so get out your favorite subsurface flies and midges. Stripping streamers such as a #4 kreelex in bronze/gold will turn heads and give you the potential of hooking something big. Swinging patterns such as a TFP copperhead or TFP boomslang will bring some nice trout to the net. Bead head soft hackles in dark colors and peacock bodies have worked out well for me. Also, standard nymphing rigs will catch fish as well. Pat’s rubber legs and DB stones are some of my favorites. Good luck and have fun! Lake Pend Oreille The big lake has bottomed out and temper...

Coeur d'Alene River Bundle up, kids!  Later this week looks very cold.  Daytime highs will be in the mid-30s, barely over freezing.  This is not ideal Coeur d'Alene river conditions.  I'd consider taking some time to fill your fly boxes or taking the kids to see the new Grinch movie.  If you decide to brave the weather and go fishing up the CdA, use tandem small nymph rigs in the slower pools and tailouts.  A streamer near the bottom at near dead drift will possibly get a look or two.  Take some hand warmers and good gloves with you, you’re going to need them. St. Joe River Burrrrrrr! This is a big maybe here folks.  It will be slow at best.  Nymphing with small bead heads or San Juan worms will find a fish or two but it will be very slow.  The St. Joe was so great this year, now’s the time when we dream of those ...

Lightweight and built for speed, Irish Setter VaprTrek Boots make you feel like you’re wearing your favorite pair of tennis shoes. Built for performance, the VaprTrek is engineered for endurance and durability without adding bulk to your feet. Watch the video below to learn more.   Good morning North 40 Outfitters customers. My name is Corey Bona and I’m with Irish Setter boots in the Red Wing shoe company.   The product I’m going to showcase today is our iconic Irish Setter VaprTrek. This is the light and fast mobile hunter’s boot who goes all day and is going to ultimately want something that has that tennis shoe fit and feel.   This boot utilizes our Red Wing leather or SP foot tanned leather. It’s going to have a synthetic upper which is a lot lighter than a full grain leather would be for that weight red...

Dried rice, burger and red sweet pepper for an unstuffed pepper meal. If you want to be healthy and well-fueled while hiking, hunting, fishing, backpacking or even snowmobiling or skiing, you should consider dehydrating foods and vacuum sealing them into your own custom meals. Dehydrating food is easy. Order online here. Know you what you’re eating One of the greatest benefits of dehydrating foods and creating your own meals is knowing exactly what’s in the food. This is particularly important for anyone with food allergies or other intolerances because suffering a reaction is the last thing anyone wants when they are miles up the trail and help is a far away. Chef Glenn Mcallister, author of Recipes for Adventure: Healthy, Hearty & Homemade Backpacking Recipes, as well as the voice of backpackingchef.com, believes these customiz...

By Gunnar Brammer Any time anglers talk about bass fishing immediately one can think of a fish-eat-fish world, and luckily, fish only come in a few basic shapes and sizes. These shapes and sizes are what I use to govern most of my fly choices relative to the predators I’m fishing for – where a musky may love the broad head and wide pectoral fins of a sucker imitation, the high and tight silhouette of a big bluegill is equally appealing to a double-digit largemouth bass! High and Tight Silhouettes vs. Tubular Among the forage fish of the world, it seems most can be separated into two outlying categories (with of course some wiggle room in between); a high and tight silhouette, where the forage is laterally compressed, resulting in it being taller than it is wide. The other is a tubular or cigar-shaped profile, where the forage has a p...

Made for power and performance on the job site, the Milwaukee M18 Chainsaw is designed to cut through tough hardwoods and save on gas. Able to make 150 cuts per charge, the M18 features a 16-inch Oregon bar and chain and is fully interchangeable with the M18 system. Watch the video below to learn more.      This is the new Milwaukee M18 Chainsaw featuring a 16 in Oregon bar, comes standard with our new 12-amp hour M18 battery. Off this battery, you can get up to 150 cuts on it. What’s great about the Milwaukee system is they can run off our new 12-volt battery. They can also run off our original compact battery, fully interchangeable with the entire M18 system.

How many times do you walk into a fly shop and wonder, which flies are the best choice for your upcoming day of fishing.  Often times anglers are scouring the bins looking for which ones are close to empty, indicating that these may be the “hot fly” in that area.  After some conversations with our friends at Umpqua Feather Merchants, we were sent a list of the top 10 selling flies, nationwide, for all fly shops.  If you are an angler looking to up your game, it would probably be a good idea to stock up on these flies and make them staples in your fly box. Sparkle Wing RS2 A variation of the original RS2, but with a little bit of flash that can make all the difference. This is a must-have for western tail-water fisheries.  This fly ads some sparkle to the tail and the wing. -Size Range: #18-#22 -Colors: Black, Gray, Olive, Pur...

Coeur d'Alene River Fishing is getting quite a bit slower.  The colder temperatures are prolonged throughout the day now and will make our finned pals more lethargic. But, the sunny weather has been awesome and if you have had a chance to take advantage of it, good on you.  It has been such a stellar fall and hopefully, we can get a repeat of this season for next year.  There are still some opportunities out there, mostly from here on out will be a nymphing game, but there might be some spotty dry fly action.  Tandem small bead head nymph rigs in the pools and the tail outs of runs is where I'd concentrate.  Streamer fishing might produce a few fish too.  Smaller streamers close to the bottom and slowly presented should turn a fish or two.  I really like a tungsten bead head, red brassie this time of year.  There are lots of mid...

Missouri River It’s all about the weather.  When the wind and the temperature hold to a reasonable level, the fishing is pretty good.  The prospects for the coming week should be ideal for late fall angling.  Happy Holidays! Swing Season Water temperatures have fallen quickly this past week and unless you are right below the dam, you can expect morning water to be chilly.  If you want to get an early start, fish high and near the dam.  Water temperatures there will remain consistent, so the fish are more active at early light.  Further downstream, you will want to get a later start, or you can simply move downstream in the afternoon. Grab a handful of leeches in a variety of colors and get your swing on.  This is a great time to be on the Missouri River with a two-handed rod.  Micro intruders, little Clouser minnows and baby sc...

Omak Lake (WA) With the weather changing like it is, fishing has slowed down a little. That’s not to say fishing is bad, it's just a little slower now.  For most of the open water in the area, this time of the year we can't expect to be hooking into mid-double-digit numbers of fish. But hey, at least we can get out and fish and that’s always a good thing! You might have to knock a little ice off the guides but that's okay. With the slower action, I would suggest going with an indicator set up on at least your 6-weight rod. For what flies to use, I would go with #14 black/red or all red chironomids, or black, purple, or olive balanced leeches. If the wind is calm, make sure to put a little action into your set up to get those cutts attention. Hope to see you out there! Rufus Woods (WA) It might be slower now but that doesn’t me...