TRAILS -- A wildfire burning near Mount Adams forced the closure of part of the Pacific Crest Trail late Thursday. The closed segment of the trail is between the Williams Mine Trailhead off Forest Road 23 to the junction of the Divide Trail on the…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- One thing's for sure: Beef is not healthy for wolves. At a public meeting in Colville Thursday night, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Department announced intentions to eliminate the entire Wedge Pack of wolves that have killed or injured at least 15…
BICYCLING -- The Route of the Hiawatha mountain bike trail, with its popular tunnels and trestles near Lookout Pass, will close for the season at 5 p.m. on Sept. 30.
PUBLIC LANDS -- The 350-acre fire on BLM land that prompted a temporary evacuation of Fishtrap Lake Resort recently was fairly well contained with minimal damange, officials say. The photo above shows the edges of the fire burning up to the Farmer Landing trailhead west…
PUBLIC LANDS -- "We were sitting pretty good a couple of weeks ago, but there's been marked increase in field dryness," said Jason Kirchner, Idaho Panhandle National Forest public affairs officer, getting word out that potential for forest fires have changed remarkably in just the…
ENVIRONMENT -- More sobering news related to climate change: Arctic ice melt smashes record set in 2007 As the arctic ice melt ended Sunday, scientists calculated the extent of the melt at 293,000 square miles more than in 2007, which broke the previous record. --…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- At the request of Stevens County ranchers and commissioners, Washington Department of fish and Wildlife officials will present an update on their efforts to deal with gray wolves that have killed or injured at least 15 cattle since mid-July. Some of the…
PADDLING -- The drawdown of Priest Lake to its winter level will begin Oct. 8. The drawdown generally is complete by early November and brings the lake down three feet from a summer elevation of 3,427.64 feet to the winter level of 3,424.64, said Karl…
WILDLIFE -- In case you had any doubts about the elk mating season being in full swing, Montana wildlife photographer Jaime Johnson offers this photographic evidence. Notice I didn't say this is image is proof. After all, hitch-hiking is legal in Montana.
PUBLIC LANDS -- National parks will be waiving entrance fees to celebrate National Public Lands Day on Sept. 29. The Park Service is waiving fees for a total of 17 days in 2012. Offering free admission to national parks and other federal lands has been…
NORDIC SKIING -- The Forest Service has moved a popular skiers cabin at Chief Joseph Pass to the the agency's nationwide rental system and started charging a fee, but officials compromised and lowered the overnight rental rate from $20 to $9 for this season after…
PUBLIC LANDS -- The Dishman Hills Conservancy and REI have a useful way to celebrate National Public Lands Day. On September 29th we look to continue the wonderful efforts that were made on April 22nd (Earth Day) by our 547 volunteers. We will continue the…
CLIMBING – Rock and ice climber Dawn Glanc will discuss her 2010 tour in Montenegro in a free multi-media program TONIGHT (Sept 19) at Mountain Gear, 2002 N. Division. Refreshments start at 6 p.m.; show at 7 p.m. Gifts will be offered to the first…
HUNTING -- Two men, on opposite sides of the world, have been shot by their alleged best friends, reports News.com.au. One man's shooting trip in Utah, US took a surprise turn when he was shot in the buttocks - by his own dog. Meanwhile in…
WILDLIFE CRIMES -- In a major crackdown on alleged illegal wildlife traffickers today, Washington Fish and Wildlife police served 14 search warrants on businesses -- including Walla Walla County restaurants selling illegal elk meat. A SWAT team was called in to arrest one West Side…
PUBLIC LANDS -- Citing extreme fire danger in Eastern Washington, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has just issued emergency restrictions -- including a restrictions on target shooting, smoking and open fires -- for all state wildlife lands. Many of these restrictions already are…
PREDATORS -- WildEarth Guardians will have their day in court in a lawsuit against the National Park Service for not considering reintroduction of wolves into Rocky Mountain National Park as an option for controlling elk numbers. Park officials have been using sharpshooters to thin the…
WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT -- It's one thing to be an anti-government blowhard. It's another thing to be detrimental to Idaho's public resources and the state's very valuable wild elk herds. Good riddance, Rex Rammel. See the story here, and we hope it's the last we hear…
BACKPACKING -- Ultra light, ultra functional and ultra durable -- those are the keys to gear that causes a buzz among through hikers on long-distance trails. One group of hikers most of the way through their month's long, 2,650-mile journey on the Pacific Crest Trail,…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- Even though Washington wolves are still protected by state endangered species rules, Idaho offered a touch of "management" to the Diamond Pack of northeastern Washington over the weekend. A Washington man with an Idaho wolf hunting license killed a wolf on Saturday…
FISHING -- The numbers over the dams tell the story of this year's downsized steelhead run to the Columbia and Snake Rivers. What the numbers don't say is that anglers putting in their time are catching fish, and having a good time doing it. More…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- The Washington Fish and Wildlife Department hasn't had much to report regarding its less than fruitful efforts to curb the cattle killing by gray wolves in the Wedge area of northern Stevens County. The toll is about 15 cattle confirmed killed or…
FOREST FIRES -- The map above from the Wenatchee National Forest shows areas off limits to visitors because of forest fires in the Central Washington area. The closures affect hikes in prime season and hunters out for Washington's early High Buck Hunt that opened Saturday.
BACKPACKING -- After reading my post this morning about fire-related closures affecting hikers in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Stephanie Akker of Kennewick emailed me the photo (above) snapped Saturday from the Colchuck Lake area as she decided to evacuate during the night to safety. I…
HIKING -- Many backpackers with coveted permits for the prime September season in the Enchantment Lakes area of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in northcentral Washington are finding their plans up in smoke. Area includes Eightmile Road, Colchuck, Stuart, Eightmile, Caroline, and Trout lakes, and the…
Rich Landers writes and photographs stories and columns for a wide range of outdoors coverage, including Outdoors feature sections on Sunday and Thursday.
