WINTER SPORTS -- Although weekly avalanche advisories won't begin until Dec. 17, Forests Service hydrologists with the Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center issued an advisory this afternoon warning snow travelers of unstable snow conditions likely to last at least for a day or two. Read on…
SNOWMOBILING -- The snowmobiling closure in the woodland caribou recovery zone along the crest of the Selkirk Mountains will be enforced this winter, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said in a press release issued this afternoon.A free map of legal snowmobiling trails is available…
SNOWCAT SKIING -- A North Idaho snowcat skiing operation has be issued a temporary permit to continue operating their backcountry ski business out of Cataldo, the owners told S-R reporter Becky Kramer Tuesday.Peak Adventures, as the company has for years, soon will take advantage of…
NORDIC SKIING -- Fourth of July Pass cross-country ski trails should be in shape for skiing by the end of this week, according to Geoff Harvey of the Panhandle Nordic Club.Forest Service crews were out clearing blowdowns off the trails Monday and a groomer should…
FISHING -- The Spokane area's two winter fishing trout lakes open on Wednesday. The fish are there, but the conditions are iffy.The waters are Fourth of July Lake just south of Sprague and Hog Canyon Lake off I-90's Fishtrap exit.Fourth of July's east end has…
Rex Rammell, Idaho Falls, is under investigation in the illegal killing of an elk following a confrontation with an Idaho Fish and Game conservation officer. The officer was patrolling the Tex Creek Wildlife Management Area east of Idaho Falls late this morning where a late…
WINTER SPORTS -- The cross-country ski trails in the Methow Valley near Winthrop are finally getting a good coating of snow, and new trails are opening to skiers.The Washington Transportation Department has closed the North Cascades Highway because of heavy snow expected from this new…
WATERFOWL -- Ice-up has ushered the trumpeter swans out of Turnbull National Wildlife refuge to where ever they go during winter.Solo, the geriatric patriarch of his growing trumpeter family, departed the refuge with his mate and this year's crop of five cygnets during Thanksgiving week,…
WILDLIFE -- Early Sunday morning, Ken Mondal of Spokane took advantage of the fresh powder and for a snowshoe hikeup the East Ridge of Iller Creek to Big Rocks, an excellent public natural area west of the Dishman-Mica Road.Coming around a switchback on the new…
WILDLIFE -- Wisconsin whitetails apparently are willing to challenge any bull elk that come wandering into their turf during the rut.In an early November battle, a whitetail buck fought to the death with a 640-pound concrete elk lawn ornament. Both critters suffered serious damage.The La…
WILDLIFE -- Karen Calisterio, 52, the North Idaho woman involved in a wolf encounter near her Tensed home and featured in my column today has posted on the Facebook page of Idaho For Wildlife, a group that's been critical of wolf management in Idaho. This…
FISHING -- Washington and Oregon on Tuesday closed the final remnants of commercial smelt season in the Columbia River, ending a century-long fishery that once tallied its harvest in the millions of pounds, according to Al Thomas of the Vancouver Columbian.The National Marine Fisheries Service…
WILDLIFE -- I'm posting this anonymously received photo showing a ménage à trois of white-tailed deer purely in the interest of natural science.Perhaps it demonstrates the natural intensity of the rut, or it's just two bucks with an unnatural tendency to make love rather than…
WILDLIFE -- A North Idaho woman said she was confronted by at least four wolves as she walked alone up her rural driveway between Tensed and Plummer at dusk on Saturday.Karen Calisterio, 52, was trudging up the snow-plugged lane when she saw two dogs about…
SKIING -- "Wasted" is the most common term I'm hearing from downhill skiers as they wind down their holiday weekend begining to the 2010-2011 ski season.The powder was knee deep and light as instant mashed potatoes before adding water at most resort in the region.…
WILDLIFE -- Fresh snow. Critters on the move. This is a perfect day for tracking.The porcupine in the ravine behind the house is no longer moving in the dark undetected.
FISHING -- Jesse Clark and his son, John Clark, just opened a new fly fishing shop in the Riverwalk building at1003 E. Trent. Westslope Fly Shop is located next to Northern Lights Brewery."We are pretty proud of the store we designed and built all of…
FISHING – Restrictions on use of lead fishing tackle at 13 lakes with nesting loons will be considered by the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission when it meets Dec. 2-4 in Olympia.The lead issue is on the agenda for Dec. 4.Studies have shown that loons…
WILDLIFE -- A cougar was seen around 9 p.m. Wednesday night chasing a deer across Government Way near Mukogawa-Fort Wright Institute in Spokane.The large, healthy looking cougar was in hot pursuit of the deer when a vehicle interrupted the chase. The cougar leaped about 20…
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- The annual gathering of bald eagles in the Wolf Lodge Bay area of Lake Coeur d'Alene is underway. S-R staffers saw four at Higgens Point as they drove by on I-90 today. Dozens more probably went unnoticed. The numbers will build, usually…
NORDIC SKIING -- Cross-country skiers aren’t being left out in the cold as early snowfall covers trails and allows downhill ski resorts to open. Here’s the latest report:Mount Spokane: The temperature was minus 10 degrees this morning when the state park rangers show up at…
FISHING -- When a pod of killer whales zeroes in on the same school of fish as the British Columbia sportfishing fleet, it's a head-to-head competition to see who's the best fisherman.This video has been going around for a while, but it's cool to watch.…
WILDLIFE -- The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Tuesday reversed a ruling that allowed the federal government to kill sea lions that prey on salmon below the Columbia River’s Bonneville Dam. The sea lions are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection…
SKIING -- As ski areas scramble to respond to the sudden onslaught of winter and more than a foot of fresh powder, some are revising their previously annouced schedules.49 Degrees North and Lookout Pass will reopen on Thursday.Mt. Spokane and Silver Mountain will open Friday.Schweitzer…
WILDLIFE -- A breeding bird density map for the greater sage-grouse released today by the Department of Interior could be a step in controling development to help keep the prairie bird off the Endangered Species list.The map identifies important areas having high density occurrences of…
