STATE LANDS -- Drivers have a new option for buying the $30 annual Discover Pass required for acces to all state parks and most state lands. The Department of Licensing is authorized to accept payment of the Discover Pass when renewing vehicle license tabs. The…
WILDLIFE ENCOUNTERS -- “A bear coming at you is way more scary than an avalanche, thunderstorms, crevasses,” said Barry Blanchard, a top Canadian alpinist noted for pushing the standards of highly technical, high-risk alpine climbing in the Canadian Rockies and the Himalayas. But last week…
FISHING WITH KIDS -- Take it from a pro who sees a lot of families fishing: "Tailor your young children’s fishing activities to their interest," said Anton Jones of Darrell and Dad's Family Guide Service out of Chelan. "I’ve got grandkids all over the spectrum.…
A map of the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes that ran in the Sunday paper was inaccurate. Here's the corrected version. Read the story here.
STEELHEAD FISHING -- A couple of tidbits to ponder: STEELHEAD FACTS Idaho's state record steelhead was 30 pounds, 2 ounces and was caught in the Clearwater River in 1973. Idaho is the only inland Western state with ocean-run salmon and steelhead.
It's time for high schoolers to begin thinking about fame, fortune and the great outdoors. The Spokesman-Review once again is joining the Outdoor Writers Association of America in sponsoring a contest for youth outdoor writing. The contest is open to high school students from the…
WATERFOWLING -- Water does not have to be near freezing to kill, it only has to be colder than a person to cause potentially fatal hypothermia. With the waterfowl seasons about to open, Idaho Fish and game officials are urging waterfowl hunters who hunt from…
GREAT OUTDOOR STORIES -- Here's latest update from Erin Bolster, the wrangler who rode her horse to the rescue of a boy being charged by a grizzly bear: The David Letterman Show has postponed her appearance until Oct. 11 so they can bring her hero-horse,…
WILDLIFE – Montana wildlife officials say another pneumonia outbreak has killed several bighorn sheep in the Skalkaho area in western Montana. Officials tell the Missoulian that two dead sheep recently died from severe cases of pneumonia, and that a third sheep had been dead too…
What: Learn the basics and how to tie six flies in two nights. When: 6 p.m. -9 p.m., Oct. 10-11. Where: Silver Bow Fly Shop. 13210 E Indiana Ave. Instructor: Angela Morgan. Cost: $75; pre-register, space limited. Contact: Silver Bow Fly Shop, 924-9998.
MOUNTAIN ROADS -- The North Cascades Highway from Winthrop, Wash., west to Marblemount is a great scenic attraction that keeps getting better, according to this Seattle Times story. Now's a great time to gander at LIberty Bell Mountain.
TRAILS -- Join local nordic skiers to clear brush from Mount Spokane cross-country ski trails in work parties set for Oct. 2 and Oct. 15, starting at 9 a.m. at Selkirk Lodge. Wear appropriate clothing; bring a lunch and water. Details: Art Bookstrom, 368-3119 days,…
SHELLFISHING -- Fewer razor clams will be available for harvest this season on the Washington Coast beaches, according to Washington Fish and Wildlife Department pre-season surveys. The decline, said state coastal shellfish manager Dan Ayres, is due to the natural cycle of razor clam populations.…
HUNTING -- Years ago, before Jim Ebel had retired as manager of the Colville Fish Hatchery, I wrote a story about his unnerving encounter with a cougar. He was putting up a tree stand before the archery deer season when a cougar came in below…
RAIL TRAILS – The popular Route of the Hiawatha Trail rail trail near Lookout Pass is scheduled to close for the season on Sunday, (Oct. 2).
WILDLIFE ENCOUNTERS -- It's worth emphasizing that an Idaho archer was able to end a grizzly attack on his bowhunting partner on Saturday by using pepper spray, an essential that should be on the pack straps of every hunters in grizzly country. The elk hunter…
ENDANGERED– Washington’s pending Wolf Conservation and Management Plan will be the focus of another special state Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting Oct. 6 in Olympia. The discussion will center on the interaction of wolves with livestock and ungulates. Public comment will be accepted. The special…
UPLAND BIRD HUNTING -- Hunters chilled at the thought of what the cool, rainy spring was doing to nesting pheasants and quail in June. Indeed, the hatch isn't anything to crow about, but it's not as bad as hunters may have feared, at least in…
HUNTING -- The time a nonresident takes to plan a Montana hunting trip is worth more than the high cost of the out-of-state tag. Read on for some steps and resources to consider.`
STEELHEAD FISHING -- Fishing for hatchery steelhead opens Wednesday (Sept. 28) on the upper Columbia River above Rock Island Dam, and on the Wenatchee, Icicle, Entiat, Methow, and Okanogan rivers, the , the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife says. Salmon fishing will also reopen…
CONSERVATION -- “Wild Night For Wilderness" – a community celebration of the great outdoors, is being organized into an evening of music, slides and updates on the Selkirk and Cabinet mountains starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 30, at Evans Brother’s Coffee in Sandpoint.…
ENDANGERED SPECIES – The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will kill two wolves from the Imnaha wolf pack, including the collared alpha male, after they were blamed for a livestock kill in Eastern Oregon. The department tracked an adult male wolf with a GPS…
CLIMBING -- Some of the year's top climbing short-films are coming to Spokane in a film tour -- REEL ROCK VI. Watch the trailer.. The show is a screaming deal -- it's free! But you must think ahead or get left out. The films will…
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- It wasn’t a ghost Nels Houghton first saw while jogging in the early morning near his Billings, Mont. Last weekend he returned and stalked to within 75 yards of the rare deer as it walked warily across a hillside, reports Brett French,…
FISHERIES -- Asian bighead carp have become a big pain in the rear for fisheries managers and boaters in the Great Lakes region. To get a sense of the danger they pose to boaters, check out this video of flying carp on the Illinois River.…
Rich Landers writes and photographs stories and columns for a wide range of outdoors coverage, including Outdoors feature sections on Sunday and Thursday.
