WINTERSPORTS -- Warm weather, rain and a lack of snow have forced Mt. Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park to suspend operations this week while crews on snowcats try to move enough existing snow to reopen runs by the weekend. Read the story here.
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- The first confirmed report of grizzly bear activity this year in Yellowstone occurred on Monday, as a grizzly bear that had emerged from its den was observed scavenging on a bison carcass in the central portion of the park, the Billings Gazette...
HUNTING -- Sportsmen recently bid $50,000 to $200,000 for elk hunting packages offered by seven states to raise money for wildlife habitat conservation. The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation raised a total of $655,000 for fish and wildlife agencies in Arizona, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada,...
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- Nine members have been added to the committee that advises the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife on wolf recovery and management. Their appointments, for two-year terms that run through 2016, bring the Wolf Advisory Group’s membership to 18. Jim Unsworth, who...
TRAILS -- Trails users on the South Hill Bluff today found a live ponderosa pine crudely hacked down by someone using an ax. The apparent vandalism is below 37th and High Drive. A lot of people have chipped in to create the trail system and...
FISHING -- The first spring chinook of 2015 was recorded passing over Bonneville Dam on Sunday, Feb. 8. We're a few months away from "Game on!" but this is a wake up call for Columbia River anglers. Much more surprising was last week's passage of…
FISHING -- Save for the periods of high, off-color water, the winter steelheading in Idaho's Clearwater River has been outstanding, says state Fish and Game Department regional fisheries manager Joe DuPont. Catch rates have been as low as five hours per fish, which is considered...
HUNTING -- Applications for Idaho spring black bear hunts must be filed by Feb. 15 and spring turkey controlled hunt applications must be in by March 1. Other Idaho spring dates to note: April 1 -- Leftover controlled hunt tags for spring turkey and bear…
HUNTING -- Surveys conducted this winter showed a substantial increase in elk calf-cow ratios for elk in portions of North Idaho as the region's elk seem to be digging out of six-year slump. Up to just a few years ago, the Panhandle Region was among…
STEWARDSHIP -- Picking up after ourselves and our dogs is an ethic that needs some reinforcement, according to outdoor enthusiasts hitting the region's rivers and trails last week during the big thaw. As snow recedes we're reminded that some people are litterbugs, and other people...
FISHERIES — Federal officials have adjusted their approach to reducing the large colony of double-crested cormorants in the Columbia River estuary because the large black seabirds eat too many young salmon and steelhead. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is now proposing to shoot fewer…
Rich Landers writes and photographs stories and columns for a wide range of outdoors coverage, including Outdoors feature sections on Sunday and Thursday.
