The dog days of summer have set in and it's time to update the status of my straw bale garden. You can read about my first attempt here. I've successfully killed half of what I planted and learned some really good lessons along the way. Here's a quick break down of the good, the bad and the ugly. The Ugly of the Straw Bale Garden Although my bales were old, not all of them were fully conditioned. This means the straw wasn't broken down enough. When I started to add water to them, they got really hot. Why did they get hot? Decomposition. In a nutshell your straw bale is carbon, the goal is to break that carbon by "conditioning" it. Conditioning is adding nutrients and water to kick start the decomposition process (microbes eating the straw and changing it's cellular structure) that essentially turns the straw into soil over time. Some of...

Fall weather rolled through this weekend. On the Missouri River, the trout and the bugs responded positively to cooler temps and darker skies. I was out in the tempest swinging a two hander, covered in Simms G4 gear. It was just like fishing in Alaska. Cold wind, rain and rainbows. Instead of dollies though, I had a side of brown trout. Not bad. September prospects are excellent. Anglers can look forward to more little mayflies, increased action on the nymph, aggressive fish to the streamer and cooler days on the water. Want to see how the river is doing? Check out the current river flows here Fish can sometimes be tempted to eat hoppers and big Chubbies on the drift, the twitch and the long strip. Cast to the bank in key spots or run your flies well ahead of the boat. Fly first to the fish for success. It’s kind of like fishing a strik...

Avista Utilities has started drawing down Lake Coeur d'Alene, which will provide some much needed water to the Spokane River. What does that mean for you? Fishing will just continue to get better! Want to see how the river is doing? Check current river flows here Nymphing continues to bring numbers to the net. My friend, Patrick, and I had a very successful morning on Sunday using a size 16 Pheasant Tail dropper fished below a Cheater Belly Stone. Midges, hoppers, caddis, and craneflies will continue to work over the next few weeks. You can also expect to see the reemergence of BWOs. Even I managed to put the nymph rod down long enough to catch a few on dries last weekend! Want to try out some new flies? Check out our fly selection here Streamers will also once again produce results and we just beefed up our selection in the shop. Use a...

When seeking to purchase an electrical fence for your farm or ranch, consider Shakespeare: You must needs, sirs and madams, understand your electrical fencing "audience and purpose." But seriously, all 16th Century lit. references aside knowing what you plan to do with your electrical fence is the first part in deciding what you ultimately need. North 40's first recommendation on learning about fencing set ups? Watch the video below and see Matt get electrocuted... and also get an instructional lesson from Gallagher's own electric fencing expert.   Is your fence permanent or temporary? First things first, this is the realest question to ask for a few reasons. Why? Permanent fences and temporary fences use way different materials. If it's a permanent fence you're after, then you're going to opt for an installation that utilizes wire...

It was a Tuesday afternoon in mid-February, and I was scarcely halfway through a three-hour block of classes, when my phone buzzed impatiently in my pocket. It was a high school buddy of mine, Will Barr, and in an instant, I knew what he’d say if I picked up. As I glanced around the classroom, the professor eyed me suspiciously. I declined the call and sent a hurried text message when the professor looked away. "What’s up? I’m in class." Let’s Go Catch Some Steelhead He replied a minute later. "Let’s go catch some steelhead this weekend, we’ll pack in and fish through Sunday." I needed little convincing. Will was officially a steelhead junkie. He promised the weekend would be filled with a few good days on the water and some long nights around the campfire, nursing lukewarm Keystone Lights. By Friday morning, we’d cleared o...

  While even conventional anglers call the tiger musky a fish of 10,000 casts, the process of hooking a tiger with a fly can be daunting. Growing up in Wisconsin, musky have been a fish of legendary status. I have always had a deep respect for these apex predators. I can recall catching a smaller pike as a child, only to have it taken away by a musky dockside. As he swam away with his new found lunch, I still remember him winking at me as if to say thanks... an image that will be forever engrained in my memory. Ti·ger mus·ky (esox masquinongy x lucius) One of three members of the pike family living in the inland northwest. The other two are grass pickerel and northern pike. Tiger musky are a sterile cross between the northern pike and the true muskellunge. The muskellunge name derives from the Native American Ojibwa word maashkin...

Punta Gorda is one of those places where everything seems to be as it should. Life moves at just the right pace. No one is in a hurry. An Ideal Location Garbutts Fishing Lodge is situated just outside of Punta Gorda, overlooking the sea to the east and Joe Taylor Creek to the west. It is an ideal location to operate a Permit focused lodge, with arguably some of the best Permit flats right out the front door. If Permit fishing is what you seek, Garbutts has it in spades. To read more about Permit fishing check this out. As if the view from the bow of a Panga isn’t satisfying enough, the tapestry of aquatic green and blue flats is electrified by the Belize sun. This all unfolds while the Tropic Air makes its final approach into PG. There is no shuttle or taxi waiting for you upon arrival to PG. Instead, the airport attendant asks where ...

The Spokane River is one of the most beloved rivers in the region. However, like any other large city, Spokane has its share of issues, many of which make their way into the river. Illegal dumping of waste, recreational users and transient populations all contribute to the pollution you'll find along the riverbanks. Fortunately, there are several groups who get together each year to organize the annual Spokane River Cleanup. 2016 will mark the 13th year of the cleanup, which will take place on Saturday, September 17th at 9:00 am. Sign up at http://spokaneriver.net/spokanerivercleanup/ to join me and the hundreds of other volunteers that help with this fun event. Lets do our part to keep the Spokane River beautiful!

By Sam Looper What Fish Will Eat the Spineless Minnow? The Spineless Minnow was designed to target White Bass and Hybrid Bass in my local waters in Middle Tennessee. I grew up fishing a Rebel Crawfish for "redeye" in East TN and I wanted to design a small fly to imitate the wiggle action from the Rebel lure. About the same time, I was tying a lot of Blane Chocklett’s T-Bone for Musky, and I wanted to tie a smaller version for smallmouth bass. Development of the Spineless Minnow Pattern In the first step, when shaping the tubing for the T-Bone and after I had attached the material to the hook, I could see the back half of a small minnow. I immediately found a Flymen 22 mm shank and created the dome shape for the head, and the Spineless Minnow was born. It took a few more months of development and dialing in all the right materials to en...