Where We Live

Berkley Flicker Shad Fishing Lure Review Read more

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... Read more

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... Read more

As we celebrate Earth Day by planting trees in a local area affected by last year's massive wildfire, we are quickly reminded how it has only been seven months since fires were engulfing the Methow valley-Carlton Complex. In July 2014 lightning strikes sparked four wildfires across a rather large area that would very quickly merge into the largest wildfire in Washington State history.  Leaving in its wake 256,108 acres of burnt land and destroying 300 homes. At one point there were over 3,000 firefighters actively working to contain the fire.  The National Guard was even called in to help efforts. I remember riding the bus to work and seeing convoys of military Humvees with Red Cross painted on them, driving through downtown like a parade.  People would, including myself, stare in speechless terror as they start to realize that this f... Read more

Every night before bed, I go through my routine that helps me prepare for the morning. One of these includes making sure my coffee pot goes off by itself at 4:20 am. The smell of brewing coffee helps me mentally prepare to get out of bed, and the anticipation of a good cup of coffee makes thing a bit more enjoyable. Forget the alarm, I set my coffee pot, and if it doesn't go off, I'm not getting out of bed. Luckily, the good folks at Twisp River Suites equipped our rooms with delay set coffee makers AND freshly ground coffee from Blue Star Coffee Roasters. I was set to carry on photographing late into the night and mentally prepared to deal with the consequences in the morning. After meeting up with our group in the morning, I jumped in the far back seat to work on photos on our long car drive to Lewiston. Sam, however, had a different ... Read more

We only had a few minutes on the way back from visiting Coeur d'Alene and Sandpoint Idaho locations this week for breakfast. After an early morning watching the sun come up over Pend O'reille Lake and a coffee on the porch of the Edgewater by City Beach, we cruised east, back to Montana.  BUT we were hungry, and Yelp provided our answer at exit 15 near Coeur d'Alene, ID. Here's another local restaurant you guys should check out if you are in the area. I'm not into finding the quickest and easiest chain to stop and eat at; we've been after the local eats that have big props and respect from locals for a long time now. That's what we strive for in our retail business, and so I find it really interesting to find out more about the culture and immerse myself in it as much as possible in all our markets.  I like the people, the geography, b... Read more

As winter begins to loosen its grip in the northwest, the faint sounds of springs are steadily increasing at all North 40 Outfitters locations. Spring sounds indoors? Yes, spring arrives with the welcoming sounds of baby chicks as we get them settled into their temporary homes. Here's the selection of Nutrena NatureWise feeds we carry online. The peep, peep, peeps will gradually increase over the next few weeks as we reach the peak of Chick Days intermingled with laughter from kids and adults alike. It's a great way to welcome the new growing season, and one that we strive to work hard at, keeping our feathered friends at their best health so they can ultimately make it home to be successful egg layers and meat birds. Chickens have always been part of our culture for as long as I can remember (which is about 20 years). Taking care of c... Read more

After a quick visit to our store in Omak, we headed east to the small town of Twisp. As we drove further into the Methow Valley towards the Cascades, the Okanogan landscape progressively changed from sagebrush laden ground to what resembled East Glacier to a native Montanan. Learn about things to do in Moses Lake, Washington. Shortly after we encountered a bobcat, we arrived in Twisp at dusk in search of our hotel. We were given classic, small town directions (like turn right at the Dairy Queen, left at the pool) and told our hotel was located right behind the local pub. As we neared the end of town, we began questioning whether or not we should flip on the GPS just as the pub sign came into sight. We parked outside the Twisp River Suites and sorted through the waves of gear falling out of the trunk like an over stuffed cupboard. Beh... Read more

In Sandpoint, Idaho, a diner on Cedar Street stands to contrast a world full of superfood filled smoothies and organic breakfast burritos- Bienvenidos a Connie's Cafe. We showed up in Sandpoint late the night before, after embarrassing Google Maps' estimated arrival time by flying up the road from our Mead, Washington store. We "closed it down" at the store with the management team, then headed downtown to Eichardt's Pub and Grill to immerse ourselves as much as we had time for in the local culture of Sandpoint a town we are lucky enough to do business in. Looking for more things to do in Sandpoint? Look no further. When we went to bed, it was to Eichardt's anthem, "No crap on tap," served up by our waiter. One of our great friends from Sandpoint, Calvin Fuller, recommended we meet early, 7 am for breakfast so we could get an early start... Read more

I was privileged to field test a pair of MSR Evo snowshoes last week on an overnight hike to Tiffany Mountain, elevation 8200 in a sub-range at the eastern edge of the North Cascades about 25 linear miles northwest of Omak. I got a ride from Omak and began my walk up the North Fork of Salmon Creek from the mountain hamlet of Conconully. Low clouds and fog which overhung the Okanogan, seemingly for weeks, gave way to sunshine at Conconully, elevation 2300. I changed into a new pair of Merrell snowboots that were on clearance at North 40, and donned the Evo snowshoes at the Tiffany Lake Trail #373 trailhead, elevation 4800, a mile or so beyond Salmon Meadows, at about 2PM. The snow was paltry, maybe two feet, and was very rotten, making for some deep postholing and slow progress. I have snowshoed for about 25 years, usually several times ... Read more

Who own's Morning Light Coffee in Montana? It's an incredible story that begins on the side of a mountain. Read on and find out. Morning Light Coffee began on the side of a mountain outside Helena, Montana in 1988. During a break from logging, Mike Myers asked his friend what he thought about the coffee business. This first conversation on a Thursday afternoon in April was followed by a straight drive through to a specialty coffee roasting convention in San Francisco that weekend. From conception to inception: six weeks and the grand opening held during Helena's Governor's Cup Marathon. There was never any doubt in Mr. Myers' mind that coffee was a good idea, "We were trying to educate people, you know? Raise the standards of coffee in the area." And that's just what Morning Light Coffee did. Jake and I walked into the local coffee shop... Read more

Let's face it- I'm a coffee addict, and, like many people up here in the Northwest, I've become spoiled with the proliferation of small, artisan roasters and coffee houses springing up everywhere. And I mean everywhere some towns up here have populations under 5,000 and you can find the best coffee in 100 miles in those tiny shops. Going out and discovering new coffees, and meeting the people that frequent those shops is one of my favorite things to do hence this blog. Below you will find a list of some of the best places I've had coffee (or had coffee from) in the Northwest.   But before you skim the list there is a bit of a selfish bent to this post, and it's this: I know this list is not exhaustive, and I KNOW there are some coffee shops out there that I need to visit. If you are a coffee shop owner, or you are a frequenter of an... Read more