By Sam Wike North 40 Fly Shop: In The Beginning Some of our Great Falls friends might remember when we first started carrying a little bit of fly fishing stuff. I was in high school, Paul Considine, who is now our buyer worked in the store part time as well. I can’t remember who took the phone call, but somehow, Dad and I got in touch with the daughter of the previous owner of Shadow Cast Outfitters, which was the fly shop in Great Falls, Montana prior to Boyd Wolverton’s Fly Shop. Anyhow, she had a basement loaded with inventory she didn’t know what she was going to do with, and asked if we could consider buying it. Although I loved fly fishing at the time, and didn’t realize it then, I was a beginner in business and fishing. I talked Dad in to letting us purchase the inventory from the basement, and he let us know we had bette...

Changes in the digestive efficiency of the older horses require specific nutritional needs. As the digestive system ages, the ability to digest and absorb nutrients is more of a challenge than in earlier years--plus it's even harder for older horses to chew their food, which is step one in the digestive process for most mammals.   Most feed stores will have a wide range of options for older horses, so let's brush up on a couple mainstays that you need to be aware of when making your initial selection. Check out this extensive piece we did on selecting feed here. When you have an older horse, mare or gelding, there are some key factors you want to look at when making your selection of feeds: probiotics/prebiotics, fiber and more complex nutrients like amino acids/vitamins. Hoof care, while not immediately tied to selecting a feed, c...

My friends tell me that bow hunting is the fly fishing of hunting. I can see the analogy, but to me bow hunting occurs at exactly the same time when B-run steelhead eat swung flies in Idaho. I've been interested in it a long time, and I like hunting, I just don't like hunting enough to let it take me off a river in the fall for any extended amount of time. Now that I am a father, a husband, have a small manufacturing side business and have a very full time job where missing it is much worse than playing hooky- which makes my days on the river more limited. It seems like a terrible time to add archery to my list of pursuits. However, with another baby on the way in early summer, this year I decided to throw rational thought out the window and just do whatever I can fit in to 365 24 hour windows. I got a bow. And we got archery selections ...

The Missouri River has been making anglers happy for weeks now. Nymphing is strong. Swinging streamers is still producing fish, but warming waters are also getting the fish primed for the chase. The water below Holter Dam is 39ish right now. It’s been hitting 41 degrees further downstream. Fish metabolism is beginning to crank up. If you want to fish the big streamer, they are working. White steamers have been great. Olive streamers have been great. If in doubt, fish Olive over White. Don’t be afraid to throw a big articulated job. Fish are hungry right now. Jake was getting them to eat his white streamer. Every kid and his dog was out enjoying the river this past weekend. It was really nice out there. I saw people in shorts and sandals. Of course, it’s snowed this week, but that’s to be expected during a Montana Spring. We will ...

Mountain Hardwear is a great company with a selection of gear that's ready to take on the craziest of adventures. They've got gear and equipment for everything from skiing to hiking to mountain climbing to camping. And all of it is top notch. They put their best into everything they make to provide the best gear out there for all you crazy adventurers. But that's not all that they do. While they are a top-line outdoor gear company, Mountain Hardwear is also very involved with the community. They support and are a part of a number of outdoor associations to better the communities they serve, seeking to help everyone from the climber to the nature lover. Just to name a few of their associations, they support the US Forest Service, donate to the American Alpine Club (AAC) as well as fund one of their explore grant, and are a member of the A...

That's right: Farmstock is free to vendors. It's our way of helping to build a better community and saying thank you. It's been mentioned before, but it's important to mention again. Farmstock is about giving our customers a place to "come full circle with us." Perhaps you bought chicks in the spring and found yourself with too many eggs (is there such a thing?), or perhaps you got a little overzealous with the number of tomato plants your put in the garden. Maybe you bought some horse shoes or used rope for a crafting project and made one too many wreaths. Where can you sell your wares or produce to like-minded people? Farmstock was our solution! So what is Farmstock? Chances are you've been to at least one farmer's market in your life. Last year at North 40, we hosted our version of the farmer's market, called Farmstock- we're doing...

Struggling to climb the stairs or jumping on or off the couch? Has he been sluggish and not active during the day? You've probably noticed these things about him, but haven't paid much attention to it until he physically can't climb the stairs or jump onto the couch anymore. It's time to admit it: Otis is overweight. You don't know how it happened, but you suppose, over time, the constant feeding and lack of exercise probably has something to do with it. Otis was a good boy, always wagging his tail and happy to see you, so you might have been slipping him that extra treat or two as well. And before you knew it, Otis went from that happy little puppy to that large ball of fluff that can't get off the couch. Now, what do you do? Do you just let it be? Starve him? Drag him around for "exercise"? To be perfectly honest, you have no idea wher...

Thumbing through some old fish pictures, I found myself wondering: what was it like back in the good, old days? When were the good, old days? How bad were the rivers when they were at their worst? When did they start to shape up again? So, I began to do some research, and after a while, I found what shaped up to be a little history lesson on the Westslope Cutthroat Trout (WCT) in our area. 1858: Captain Mullen describes Lake Coeur d’Alene as a noble sheet of water filled with an abundance of delicious salmon trout a.k.a. westslope cutthroat trout. (Ellis 1932) 1885: The Bunker Hill Strike occurs, and very soon, the large abundance of cutthroat trout from Lake Coeur d’Alene is being harvested and transported to the mining camps to help feed the influx of miners. Late 1800's: A severe mine pollution totally takes out the South Fork ...

Fishpond Thunderhead Large Submersible Duffel has the world's most technical and watertight construction as an insurance policy for your valuable gear in the most demanding environments around the world. This bag has one job: to keep you high and dry with confidence no matter where your travels take you. Watch the video below to learn more or purchase the Fishpond Thunderhead Duffel Bag here.