FISHING -- It's official. A change that restores catch-and-release fishing in the lower Grande Ronde River through December is being posted by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to correct a misunderstanding and misprint in the 2015-2016 Sport Fishing Rules pamphlet. See details on...
HABITAT -- Conditions reports are starting to come out of closed areas burned by 2015 wildfires, and the news isn't all bad by any means if you're a hunter or other sort of wildlife enthusiast. While some areas burned hot and erosion will be a...
FISHERIES -- Idaho's endangered run of sockeye salmon run upstream 900 miles inland,gaining 6,000 feet of elevation on the way to spawn hear the Sawtooth Mountains. They're determined fish, but they've had a tough summer in a year of warmer than normal water and record-low...
TRAILS – A new 8-mile loop trail planned near Fishtrap Lake by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is the target of a National Public Lands Day volunteer effort on Sept. 26 to get the job started. The Spokane Mountaineers and Washington Trails Association have...
WILDERNESS -- As the Roundtable on the Crown of the Continent kicked off at the University of Montana campus in Missoula this week, a trio of runners left to begin a 500-mile, three week "high traverse" run through the Crown of the Continent. The...
FISHING -- The huge fall chinook run into the Columbia River is even better than originally forecast, experts say. No wonder fishing is picking up big-time upstream above McNary Dam and into the Hanford Reach. Here's the latest update and factoids on this year's salmon…
FISHING -- The second-ever fishing season for coho in Idaho will end Friday, Sept. 18, at midnight in the mainstem Clearwater, Middle Fork Clearwater and North Fork Clearwater rivers. Based on fish counts and tag detections at Columbia River dams, the estimated number of adult…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- A Palouse farmer who chased down and killed a wolf in a crop field on Oct. 12, 2014, has been given what wolf advocates are calling a sweet deal by Whitman County prosecutor Denis Tracy. According to the Capital Press, Jonathan Rasmussen,...
WILDLIFE -- White-tailed deer in the Spokane region are dying, perhaps by the hundreds, in an outbreak of a drought-related viral disease called bluetongue, Washington wildlife officials say. As of Monday, Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists in Spokane had compiled 50 reports of more...
TRAILS -- The Spokane River Cleanup is likely to attract hundreds of volunteers to pick up trash from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday and relieve the stream that flows through our city from tons of trash. Evergreen East, a mountain-biking organization, is taking the...
BICYCLING -- The 8th annual SpokeFest starting from downtown Spokane on Sunday was another huge success on the progression of cycling as a mainstream activity around the area, with 1,650 riders pedaling the 50-mile, 21-mile, 9-mile or 1-mile courses. But SpokeFest is just the beginning...
PUBLIC LANDS -- A proposal to purchase 9,123 acres for wildlife habitat along the Columbia River in Douglas County will be considered by the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission on Friday during its meeting in Spokane. The two-day meeting agenda also calls for the commission…
TRAILS -- Whether you travel by foot, horse, mountain bike, skis, snowmobile, motorcycle, ATV or 4-wheel drive, it's time to voice your opinion on managing trails and trail development on Washington's state lands. The Department of Natural Resources has worked up a draft policy for…
FISHING -- Last week I reported the fishing for fall chinook was picking up on the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River. That was an understatement. The number of anglers and the numbers of salmon harvested in the Hanford Reach sport fishery set records last…
RIVERS -- A fundraiser for an important Spokane River watchdog is set for Friday, Sept. 18, and even if you don't like martinis, the olives are GREAT. Dirty Martinis for Clean Water is an annual enjoyable evening to benefit the Spokane Riverkeeper, which is based…
HIKING -- The first day of autumn 2015 is Sept. 23, but fall colors already are brightening the mountain landscapes. However, a close-up look on Sunday near Stevens Lakes up from Mullan, Idaho, was like crunching through a dry bowl of corn flakes. It's been…
PUBLIC LANDS -- The Panhandle Forest Collaborative, which brings together a spectrum of public interest groups to discuss national forest planning, has set a meeting for Wednesday, Sept. 16, 1 p.m.-4:30 p.m. at the Bonner County Administration Building, 2nd Floor, 1500 Highway 2 in Sandpoint....
HIKING -- The popular trail to the summit of Scotchman Peak north of Clark Fork has been temporarily closed because of recent incidents with aggressive mountain goats, the Idaho Panhandle National Forests says today in a media release. This is no surprise to groups that...
FISHING -- Drought related fishing restrictions imposed in July will be lifted or changed on Sept. 16 for many Eastern Washington streams including the Spokane and Kettle rivers, Washington Fish and Wildlife officials have announced. Today's announcement follows last week's revision to emergency rules in...
HUNTING -- Hunters are aware of their contributions to conservation and local economies, but the general public is not. To help generate more understanding, a group of about 50 local and regional leaders representing sporting organizations, chambers of commerce, small businesses and retailers gathered in…
WILDLIFE -- A Montana grizzly bear that had been trapped, collared for research and released northwest of Noxon has wandered to the Coeur d’Alene River area north of Interstate 90 where Idaho wildlife officials say they’ll attempt to trap it again. Like many bears trying...
FISHING -- The 5,928 adult summer chinook kept from the lower Columbia mainstem sport fishery this year is the largest catch since at least 1965, reports Joe Hymer, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife salmon expert in Vancouver. The previous record was 5,160 adults caught...
WILDFIRES -- More land on the 1.1-million acre Colville National Forest is being reopened from wildfire-related closures, including the Salmo-Priest Wilderness. Another are was reopened on Wednesday as fire and firefighting activity decreased. The map above is up to day showing the remaining closures. The…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- Wolves in the range of the Teanaway Pack, which is pushing the western edge of wolf recovery in Washington, is confirmed to be involved in a second attack on livestock. Following are the details just posted from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife…
WILDFIRES -- Inland Empire Paper Co. and Potlatch Corp. have reopened a combined 908,000 acres that have been closed to public access since early July because of wildfire danger. Both companies announced the re-openings Wednesday. Both companies charge a fee and require vehicles to have...
Rich Landers writes and photographs stories and columns for a wide range of outdoors coverage, including Outdoors feature sections on Sunday and Thursday.
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