Lake Pend Oreille Reports on the lake are increasing. Water temperature reports vary where you’re at on the lake, but safe to say, most are between 40 and 45 degrees. Some pike action has been reported on gear, so you could probably find some pike with the fly along weed edges and dropoffs. Bass action is still tough for the fly. Trout may be found cruising edges and cobble flats. Mysis shrimp are a popular forage for trout, so try some flies imitating those. Stripping streamers will produce fish too if you know where to look. As the weather gets nicer, and the water temperature rises, expect better fly fishing opportunities to show up. Clark Fork River (ID) Hatches have been slow, and the water is still cold. We’re definitely seeing some increased bug action compared to last month. Look at tossing a #16-18 bwo or adams if you see...

Ponds and Reservoirs The ice is out or mostly out on all area waters and fishing season is fully underway.  Balanced leeches are the hottest selling fly again this spring, along with a variety of buggers and colorful nymphs.  If you don’t have a boat, now is the best time of the year for shoreside success. Creeks and Smaller Rivers There have been some good windows to fish of late.  Cooler weather has slowed runoff and created some great opportunities this past week.  With warming temperatures toward the weekend, runoff will probably kick up again, but should not keep you from fishing.  Streamers like the flash n’ grab have been deadly -so have rubber leg nymphs like the copper bead peacock 20 incher. Missouri River The water is already up and well above where most wade anglers like it to be.  There are places to wade and place...

I have a super soft spot in my heart for springs on the Clark Fork River.  When conditions are right, I wouldn't rather be anywhere else. It could be that the Clark Fork has bigger fish on average than the other rivers. Or, it could also be that they fight much harder too. Plus, the diversity in species is great. There is nothing like a 20-plus inch dime-bright rainbow busting out of the water and screaming out line down river.  I really don't mind the occasional treat of a big hook-jawed brown either or a gorgeous native westslope cutthroat.  I even love the gigantic whitefish we catch there too, they’ll put up darn near just as good of a fight as some of the other fish in the river. Dry flies and big rainbows? Read our guide to the lower Clark Fork here. What I want to go through is the fantastic variety of the critical flies we ...

We’ll just state the obvious. Fishing for walleye is just plain fun. Thrilling and fast-paced, catching walleye means an angler has to be quick-thinking when it comes to fishing this predator. That’s why we asked walleye expert, Dale Gilbert, to share his extensive walleye knowledge with us. A walleye master, Dale, has fished walleye from Arkansas to Canada and Michigan to Montana, and he doesn’t disappoint. Trolling with crankbaits is a good time. In this link, walleye expert, Dale Gilbert, explains his setup and a technique that he uses to make sure lures are tuned.  Video Transcription How to Troll with Crankbaits Hey, folks, this is Dale Gilbert here, fishing over here on Noxon Reservoir in Montana, and it's April. Going to do a little trolling for crank baits. Yesterday, I had a pr...

The Best Buttermilk Pancakes Obviously, I am always writing about food. So what's it take? What's it take to make the best coffee and the best buttermilk pancakes in the Northwestern US and plate it all rustic? It takes a little local knowledge and some great food products we stock at your local 40 namely, Wheat Montana Buttermilk Pancake mix, butter pecan syrup and one of our locally roasted coffees. The local knowledge is how to plate it all rustic. The clay jars you see pictured here are all made in Hinsdale, Montana at Klind Pottery. What makes these the best pancakes and coffee in the Northwest? Let us, ladies and gentleman, begin first with the mixture de pancake. Watch this video provided by Wheat Montana which will explain what sets this buttermilk mix ahead of your general pancake mixes.  You will see that this wheat is grown...

Catching Permit It was do or die. If Jim, my fellow angler, and I were going to catch a permit on this trip, it had to be today. In my mind, I was mentally prepared, nothing else mattered except for good chances, good casts, and focus. Jim and I were happy to see Darrell and Francisco on the boat as they pulled up to the dock. These guys are some incredible permit guides. Darrell seemed quiet this morning, almost as if he was in his own head, focusing on the day ahead. I like to see that sort of dedication in a guide. Want to book a guide with confidence? Here's how. We loaded up and then took off from the dock and started the day. The hunt was on. We buzzed a few spots searching for fish. Darrell was standing on the wheel, steering with his feet, getting a high angle to spot fish. Our first spot was not what Darrell expected. We moved s...

EZ Bloodworm This is a simple and easy to tie blood worm pattern. If you spend much time fishing lakes, you will need to have a few of these in your box. I carry a few in sizes 12 to 18. I also like to have them in a few different shades of red, from dark to light. This is an unweighted design, so it will take a few minutes to get down to depth, depending on how deep you choose to fish it. I have also used them in the area rivers under an indicator and done quite well with them. Material List: Hook: Tiemco TMC 2312 Terrestrials & Caddis Dry Fly Hook Body: Wapsi UTC Ultra Thread - Red - 70 Denier Special Detailing: Black Permanent Marker Finish: Loon UV Clear Fly Finish FLow UV Curing Light: Loon UV Power Light  Video Transcription Intro to the EZ Bloodworm Hi. Keith here from North 40 Fly Shop. If you do a lot of still water fi...

Coeur d'Alene River Up, up, up and away!  Hate to say it guys and gals, the Coeur d'Alene River is blown out for a while.  It’s hard to say for how long.  The Northwest River report is saying that it will come down in a week and a half to possible fishing levels.  This can all change with the weather though.  So, stay tuned and we will keep you posted on what is going on.  Maybe it’s time to get out bass and pike fishing or on a trout lake? St. Joe River Same here folks, she's a goner. Keep tying some flies, maybe go out and try for a spring turkey or bear? Event We have our dry fly seminar coming up on the 17th.  It's $25.00 at the door, and we’ll go over gear, techniques, flies, etc.  It’s a great way to learn about our favorite way to fish on local waters.  It starts at 10:30 a.m. and goes until 12:30. We look forwa...

Omak Lake (WA) From what I'm seeing, the fish movement seems to be a couple of weeks behind the normal time frame. The water temperature seems to be a big contributing factor in this. The latest temperature reading was taken right around 39-40 degrees. I’m still not seeing any of the pods of Lahontan cutthroats cruising the shallows yet. That said, I have seen a couple here and there, so maybe things will start picking up. The good news is, fish are being caught for those hitting the lake in the morning and evening. As I’ve stated before, and yes, it’s starting to sound like a broken record, you’ll want to fish the drop offs starting at the 10-foot depth and deeper. Keller’s she demon bugger, Empie’s deadly shiner, and Carton’s gulpin sculpin will fit the bill for minnows and sculpin patterns. For leech patterns, I w...