If you got out in the clouds and cool wet weather the past week or so, you likely enjoyed something special. BWO’s and enough March Browns were rolling to put the fish in a happy dry fly eating mood. Yesterday, I floated from the Dearborn to Prewit. Right away, it was obvious we were facing catastrophic cloud failure. This is a condition that I was occasionally faced with in Alaska. After a week of overcast, precipitation and epic fishing, the clouds would leave. We humans tend to rejoice. Fish do not. Fish are wet. They love water. Water falling from gray skies makes them happy. So instead of hunting heads, we nymphed, all day long. It was not my first choice, but it was productive. We focused our attention in the deeper waters and ignored the tapering inside turns and skinny water flats. JuJu Baetis, Green Machines, Radiation Baetis,...

In Episode 13 of AskNorth40, we were asked a question about where Simms clothing came from as some shirts say Bozeman, MT while others say Buy Local. To answer this question, we facetimed Michael White from Simms Fishing about where their products are manufactured. The answer to this question became twofold as Michael addressed Simms manufacturing production as well as their ideology behind the Buy Local shirts.   Simms Factory Tour in Bozeman, Montana As a manufacturer, Simms Fishing has been located in Bozeman, MT, since 1993 when the current owner, K.C. Walsh, acquired the company and relocated it from Jackson, Wyoming. Since then, the company has had a partnership with W.L. Gore & Associates (makers of GORE-TEX® fabric) to develop the breathable, GORE-TEX® Waders that Simms is known for. In 2012, Bozeman became the permane...

The Lamiglas NWSS (Northwest Steelhead Salmon Series) was made by the North 40 crew to mimic the higher end Ti1000 Lamiglas rods, while maintaining a lower price point. Check out our selection of Lamiglas fishing rods online here. Features of the Lamiglas NWSS Fishing Rods We started with a black, G200 series blank, and accented the lower guides with red wraps. The rod features a sanded blank that is left uncoated by resins. This allows the rod to be much lighter in the hand and creates less hand fatigue after long days on the water drifting or casting. The rod also features several extra guides making it a 14 eye rod, in the casting/level wind version. This allows the rod to bend true when placed in a downrigger or fighting a fish. The rod has a traditional cork grip with a composite reel seat similar to the G200. Lamiglas NWSS Spinnin...

Prepping Soil for an Annual Bed The best time to begin amending your soil for an annual bed is the fall BEFORE planting that bed. During this time you add compost, mulch, fertilizer and other vitamins and nutrients that may have been depleted during the growing season... and you make sure you have all the necessary tools to be successful. This will allow all of your soil amendments to "cook," or breakdown over the winter and become more bio-available during the next growing season.   If you are prepping your bed the spring before planting, you will need to add organic material, compost especially in order to replace the nutrients the plants drew up in the year previous. There are many forms of soil amendments from fertilizers to bone meal available at the store, however these won't do you any good unless you are aware of your soil's ...

GROUND RODS EXPLAINED In the above clip, North 40 Outfitters Purchasing Manager, Jesse Ova, talks about ground rods, but why do they matter in the scheme of things? There are three integral components when considering electric fence as an option for your livestock: energizer, wire, and grounding. It is recommended that you utilize three ground rods when building a fence for livestock. Here's the review we did of the S17 by Gallagher--check it out and see if it will work for you. Why? The ground rods are the "antenna" that pick up and deliver the electricity being used to effectively keep your animal penned in the more rods used, the more efficient the fence will be, and the more power the circuit delivers to the offending animal. If you don't use enough ground rods in your fence, your bull will walk right through it. Grounding is one of...

When considering electric fencing you need to buy for your smaller acreage area, you will need to examine a couple of things. How many strands of electric wire are you running? Are you fencing animals in an area where they will be prone to putting pressure on the fence? Are you running any traditional fencing along with your electric wire? These questions will dictate the type of energizer you will need for each set up. Jesse breaks the down the ratio of Joules needed to charge per single strand of wire in this AskNorth40 question.   What Type of Charger for your Electric Fence? When looking for the best type of charger for an electric fence on smaller acres we are going to need to look at stored energy, or Joules, and how that relates to your fencing area. When selecting a solar electric charger, you will have options from .1 J, .1...

What Grapes are Suitable to Grow in Montana? Grapes. Besides the apple, there isn't a much more historically charged fruit. Grapes have been cultivated for over 8,000 years. The rise and fall of the Egypt- the rise and fall of Rome- through all of these governments, one thing remained constant: people were growing, refining and experimenting with grapes. And man's fascination with grapes has never abated nor slowed. In the Northwest, man has steadily been hybridizing and breeding new strains of grapes that are cold tolerant, and which have the ability to survive our cold winters here in Montana. First, let's cover what grapes will/will not grow in USDA Zone 4 (Great Falls, Montana), and you can order your gardening tools here. Montana's Cold Hardy Grape Varieties If you're like a lot of gardeners or people looking to get into gardening ...

For episode 12 of #AskNorth40, we were asked, what is the best grass seed for the region? While there is a general answer, depending on the situation or your lawn, you may need to adjust to a different seed for your situation. Lawn Grass: Kentucky Bluegrass This is what is considered the best lawn grass seed for the northwest region. It is a cool season grass, meaning it does its best growing during the fall, winter and spring months when there are cooler temperatures. While it does well during the cooler months, it does not have a great tolerance to hot temperatures, which is why it requires more upkeep during the summer months. When properly maintained, Kentucky Bluegrass will give you an excellent lawn that's soft, a nice dark green and will last longer. However, this seed requires a bit more maintenance than others and while it is ...