What should you do when you want to get rid of bees (wasps) for good? Let's look at this question a little closer "how do you get rid of bees?" This could be a loaded question for anyone not really into bees- like we obviously are at North 40 Outfitters. If you are INTO bees (then you need to check out our beekeeping supplies online), you know there are many honeybees you'd never want to get rid of because they are amazing gold producing, garden enhancing little pieces of sunlight- but if you are NOT into bees, they can all appear to be the same kind of buzzing, stinger wielding pests. The Bee Break Down If the "bees" you are seeing around your house/property are of the glossy variety- that means you are now proudly cohabitate with a wasp species. That's not good. Wasps are predators and eat other insects. That means they like meat. The ...

The first part of this blog is from episode 8 of Ask North 40- then, like in all of our subsequent write ups, we went a little further than the question- and in this case- we went a lot further. This is a blue print for getting the most eggs out of your new layers this year. Follow it, and prosper. To some people this could be a loaded question- when it comes to chickens, like politics, there are camps that are righteously defended. The Black Australorp, while being the "true" reigning queen of laying (clocking in at 1 egg a day for a year) however, she may not lay as many eggs as some prized Rhode Island Reds or Black/Red Stars. If your Rhode Island Red is fed, grazed and raised right, with correct light, water and supplements (and, of course, a whole lotta these chickens treats) chances are she will lay more often and in higher qualit...

With the weather feeling like the onset of Spring, I knew it would be a great day to hit the river, and do some fly fishing. The temperature was in the mid 40s, the skies were partly cloudy, and the water was crystal clear. Not bad for the last day of February. Flows were around 20,000 cfs and midges were in the air. This has been the best midge hatch I have seen yet this year. Although conditions were awesome, fishing was tough. I tried everything from swinging woolly buggers to nymphing #18 red and grey midge patterns. At the end of the day, I had landed one 15" cutthroat and lost one other. This just goes to show that even the perfect conditions sometimes don't produce fish. I would expect BWO's to start popping sometime over the next few weeks, and that is always a great sign for some awesome dry fly action!

The deep freeze is over and our area steelhead are becoming more active. This year’s season got started with a bang. We saw an increase of anglers on the Methow River. From what I was able to piece together, it comes down to two reasons as to why this had occurred. The first was the closure of some of the Puget Sound River. This brought a higher influx of anglers from the west side of the state than we normally see. The other reason was that the Wenatchee River did not open. From what I was told, this was because they did not have enough fish to warrant an opening. So, those factors sent a little more pressure to the Methow. Opening day for me was great. I had plans of staying out all day, but following the rules, once I caught two hatchery marked fish, I had to end my day. From talking to other anglers on the river, they were having s...

Every March, the Yakima River calls cabin-fevered fly fisherman to its banks to fish its most revered hatch: the Skwalla Stonefly. This blue-ribbon Valhalla for fly fishing has one of the strongest early spring fisheries in the northwest. Hungry trout in these warming waters (look for 42-45 degrees) come unglued as this little (size 10) olive-bodied stonefly makes for shore. A simple Pat's Stone under an indicator is all you need to get it done. Trailing a lil' tungsten beaded nymph or a smaller dark stonefly wet can double your pleasure. Of course, who doesn't freak when you're throwing dry flies in March? And the Skwalla stones don't disappoint all you fish freaks. An Olive Chubby Chuck #10 or X-Stimulator gets 'er done, but as this hatch progresses and those 'stoner' trout sober up, you may have to whip out the 'trick flies'. I like t...

Lewiston, ID: Approximately 12 hours from my archery elk camp in Montana. It's the grand opening of our store in Lewiston, ID. Everyone is excited, customers are buzzing about our giant store and the expanded selection of Farm, Ranch and what seems like everything else you could ever need, including a Salted Nut Roll... I had no idea I was about to discover the Darn Tough Hiker sock. The sock Drew is wearing in the photo is the first sock in this extensive list...see what kind of socks you can discover here. At, the time I was excited for the opening of our Lewiston store... but not just for the new store. It's mid-September and my phone is blowing up with texts and pictures from my buddies in the field. My mantra for the weekend, "Stay focused on Lewiston, your week of hunting will be better if you leave here knowing you didn't daydrea...

It’s the end of February, but it’s been feeling more like April. 73 degrees was the official high in Great Falls last Friday. Really nice, but a bit unsettling. I sure hope we get some heavy mountain snows and spring rains in later this year. Who knows what the future will bring, but if you are waiting for some magical date in the future to begin your open water fishing season, you are missing out on some of the great opportunities available right now. A sustained cold snap could cause some re-icing on the lakes and slow the bite on the river, but it will only be temporary. I’m already hearing complaints about how busy the Mo is up around Craig. The fishing is good from the Dam all the way to Cascade and beyond, so don’t be afraid to spread out. Late winter fishing on the Missouri River is can be exceptionally good as I found out...

The late winter grab was savage. It was pure power, bucking, thrashing and running away at a breakneck pace. The cheering section was having a heyday dropping pearls of wisdom as the massive buck jumped not once, twice, or even three times, but five times before it cleared the water. In the rush of the moment, I was brought back to the picture hanging above my fly tying desk: It’s a picture I will be eternally grateful to have. Father and son on their first steelhead trip together, holding success in their hands with grins as wide as they could possibly make. The cold crisp morning was classic and my dad hooked up right away in the first run. It was the first time that I had seen in person what a steelhead can do. I knew there was a solid possibility that my time wouldn’t come on this trip. Our guide worked his tail off to make it h...

Last Thursday, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game had a public meeting at the Ponderay Event Center for any interested fisherman concerned about the current state of Lake Pend O'reille. It was an extremely informative gathering that allowed the public to stay updated with projects Fish and Game are conducting on the lake. The IDFG touched on important topics like effects of lake trout suppression, species numbers, kokanee spawning habitat improvement, and invasive species. It was difficult for me to absorb all of the information simply because there was tons of it being presented with each new slide from the slideshow. Here are the facts that I took away from this informative meeting. Improvements in the Fishery and Harvest Numbers In 2014, 200,000 hours were spent fishing on Lake Pend O'reille by all anglers with a resulting 236,419 ...