By Paul Beel, from Frankenfly.com I want to begin by saying that I am excited to be writing a column for North 40 Fly Shop! With my primary focus being fly tying, I have known for years what a great and knowledgeable staff they have and how they keep their fingers on the pulse of the fly tying world. New Materials Announcements for Streamer Junkies With that said, I thought I would mention a few materials and a fly that have been on fire in popularity lately. If you're a streamer junkie, this is a good time to be alive! Two new threads have recently been released, both in the size of 140 Denier: Danville 140 and Veevus Power Thread being the two offerings. I've tied with both and they are, indisputably, quality threads. Previously, I have consistently used UTC 140 and I was accustomed to the stretch it featured. Neither the Danville or V...

In the last couple years, gluten free and grain free diets have grown in popularity within the general public. These new diets originated for those with celiac disease, intolerance to glutens in general, or allergies to wheat. Somewhere down the line, it made its way into mainstream dieting and has remained popular. With this trend has come with a similar diet plan for man's best friend. Some might not be aware of it yet, but there is now grain free dog food available. Those who have seen the now available pet diet may ask themselves if it is right for their furry friend. Depending on the source, you may be inclined to believe that your dog should be on a grain free diet, perhaps mirroring your own choice to go grain or gluten free yourself. Just because you are on or need to be on a grain free diet doesn't mean your dog should be. Those...

March 1st is a date many Washington anglers circle on their calendar because it marks the start of fishing season on numerous lakes east of the Cascade Range. The first week of this season hasn’t disappointed with several good reports coming from our customers. Even I have been fortunate enough to get out with some friends and enjoy some early season success. If you’re a seasoned lake angler, you probably already know where to go. If not, grab your current fishing regs and look for those March 1st openers. Some personal favorites of mine include Amber, Medical, Lenice/Nunnally, and Lenore. Chironomids, damselfly nymphs, micro buggers, water boatmen, and streamers should be part of your arsenal this month. Don’t forget the dries either, because you never know when that first big hatch will come off. Water temps are hovering in the l...

Overview: The Clearwater River holds many of its spring spawning fish all winter long, making fishing opportunities available during good weather. Luckily, Lewiston, ID, is warmer that most of the rest of Idaho during the winter months. Warm winds blow out of the south west called Chinooks. These winds rip up through the Columbia Basin and push into Lewiston during the winter. During these times, even a slight raise in water temperature and flow move fish into new water. These are the key times to focus on fishing the Clearwater during the winter and early spring. If the weather remains cold, the fish tend to get a little stale resting in the same water for long periods of time. As winter turns into spring, there are a lot of fish that push up the snake and into the Clearwater. While these fish aren’t fresh from the ocean, they are sti...

At some point or another, you may have to place something in the back for your truck that, unfortunately, is longer that your truck bed. Usually, you try to strap it down and pray it doesn't fall off. While this can work, the person driving behind you might not be so confident in your tie down skills. Thankfully, there's a way to extend your truck bed for those awkward length items. And better yet, you can do it yourself. Make your Truck an Extended Bed w/ Erickson Big Bed Extender First off- my automotive skills are glaringly lacking, so when this project came down the pipeline, I said, "WHAAAAAAAAAATT. Vehicles?" Let's say if my life was a video game- my car skills are Level Zero. Here's a Father's Day project you might fight interesting... the Ranchero Rebuild. But that's doesn't even matter when it comes to the Erickson Big Bed Exten...

Having a brand goes beyond the name. A brand reflexes the values, the passions, the integrity, and more importantly, the people involved with the brand, from the owner to the consumer. A brand should be synonymous with what it stands for as much if not more so than the product or service that they provide. We ourselves went through a change of name, from Big R to North 40 Outfitters, and try our best to maintain and improve our brand. However, this article isn't about us; it's about at brand that we are proud to be associated with, even if we are only a small part of a bigger whole. Mountain Hardwear is more than what their name suggests, though they live up to that name pretty darn well. With a line of products that is designed to endure the craziest of adventures, that really isn't that surprising. But that is the point right there, I ...

While animal health companies are riddled with hundreds of stats about how much healthier, heavier, and better your cattle herds will be using their product... so we asked Zoetis to prove it, and to our surprise they took us up on it. Next step was to bring on Vic Anderson and get him to go all Zoetis in 2016 on his cattle ranch on the Smith River in Montana. No real science here... this is just a real life, cattle rancher's experiment doing what Zoetis recommends for cattle health and productivity. And so begins North 40 Outfitter's Anderson Experiment... Money Talks Trying to get a rancher to spend more money can be, well, difficult at times. You combine that with the fact that if a rancher has had success in the past using his current methods and you are in for an uphill battle come time to try and get him to try something new. "...

This is a N40 Original production featuring the winners from our N40 Coops competition. We had many amazing entries last year, and this film brings you the top two coops from Montana, Washington and Idaho--we aren't saying you should be envious, but some of these coops were out of this world... and for the chicken farmer, no matter the scale, we hope this video can inspire you to be creative, be unique and try something new.     When it comes to raising chickens, we know its not just the brood lights and chick starter kits that you bring your new chicks home to--it's about the attention to detail, the love and the foundation you lay for your chickens that will set them up for a full life in your flock. Whether or not you are a veteran chicken farmers, or someone just thinking about getting into the lifestyle, please feel free ...

Background on the New Sage Pulse Sage built the new Pulse series fly rods with their proven Graphite IIIe Technology. The Graphite IIIe is touted to be strong, light and to deliver a connected feel though the casting stroke. The Pulse series was designed as an all-round "workhorse" lineup. Previously, the Sage XP family was a popular premium series built upon graphite IIIe. Back when the XP came out, I thought it was the best. Later, when the Z Axis replaced it with Generation 5 graphite, I thought it was even better. More recently, when the One arrived with Konnetic technology, I was stoked. As you can probably tell, I’m a Sage fan. That said, I am always willing to try any rod. I cast and fish every rod I can get my hands on. This past season, the Winston Nexus became our number one selling rod at a similar price point to the new Pul...