WATER SOURCES -- Snow is piling up in the mountains, and last year's big early thaw that ravaged the snowpack for water needed by fish, boaters and other uses isn't in the forecast -- so far. See the second photo to remember how grimly low…
WILDLIFE HABITAT -- An agreement between an elk conservation group, the state and a land developer has permanently protected and opened access to 297 acres of riparian habitat in southwest Washington at the foot of Mount St. Helens. The property includes the northern shoreline of...
PUBLIC LANDS -- Well, the message in the photo above is one way to look at wilderness. But I suspect this billboard may not tell the whole story.
OUTCATCH – Our future would be brighter if a 401(k) had stock, bond or fund options as sound as the annual Beginners Fly Fishing School presented by the Spokane Fly Fishers. There is perhaps no surer investment in meeting lifelong needs for happiness and recreational…
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- An online birding activity sponsored by Cornell Lab of Ornithology is offering a deal to bird watchers interested in learning more about their feathered friends. Sign up online for Project FeederWatch by Feb. 29 for $18 (includes this year and next year)...
PUBLIC LANDS -- Spokane County may acquire a section of land in the Glenrose area overlooking the City of Spokane resulting from action taken Tuesday in Olympia. The Washington Board of Natural Resources authorized the state Department of Natural Resources to transfer a 160-acre parcel…
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- Conservationists filed a federal lawsuit in Oregon on today that challenges the authority of a federal government program to kill wolves in the state, the Associated Press reports. The lawsuit targets the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services program, which controls the...
FISHING -- Starting Thursday, fishing for hatchery steelhead will open in the Icicle River and expand to an additional section of the Wenatchee River above Leavenworth. According to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, areas that will open to fishing for steelhead one hour…
WILDLIFE -- A central Idaho homeowners association is taking steps to eliminate a poisonous plant that has been killing elk in the area. The Idaho Mountain Express reports that the Valley Club Owners Association in Hailey has prohibited the planting of yews. The exotic shrubs…
FISHING -- A permanent public easement along 2 miles of Silver Creek has been acquired by Idaho Fish and Game, providing access to some of the best fishing opportunities on the fabled creek. The easement is through private property owned by the Nick Purdy family…
HIKING -- Dodging the permit season for hiking up and camping in the popular above-treeline portion of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness will be much more difficult starting this year. The Wenatchee River Ranger District is expanding its limited entry, overnight permit season for the Enchantment...
FISHING -- Given adequate flows, trout can handle a warm spell, researchers say. Montana researchers' trout study finds streamflow trumps temperature Researchers at the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center in West Glacier in Montana examined the findings of 42 trout ecology studies from all over…
CRITTERS – Fish and game management in Idaho is funded mostly by hunting and fishing license fees. That leaves most nongame programs at the mercy of voluntary contributions by wildlife enthusiasts. Two easy ways to help fund programs for critters ranging from bluebirds to wolverines...
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- An Animal Tracking class taught by wilderness and wildlife expert Brian Baxter is set for Saturday, Feb. 6, near Sandpoint. The one-day class is scheduled for 9 a.m. starting at the North Idaho College at Sandpoint parking lot. Preregistration is required through...
RIVERS -- For the safety of river users, the Spokane River beneath the Sullivan Road Bridges was closed to river traffic today and will remain closed until further notice, the City of Spokane Valley says. Increased water flow has caused the river to rise, reducing…
FIREARMS -- Guns and shooting are like bread and butter to Idaho's economy, according to a survey. Idaho, Montana ranked in Top 5 for being gun-industry dependent A study done by the financial website, WalletHub.com examined states on a number of gun-related factors, including firearms…
FISHERIES -- Today in Olympia, the House Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on a resolution: Concerning the reintroduction of salmon and steelhead above blocked areas of the Columbia river. Tribes have proposed that fish passage above dams such as Grand Coulee…
FISHING -- The stats are compiled: Indeed, Ringold-area steelhead fishing was slow in January, but the fishing on that stretchof the Columbia should pick up in February, biologists say. Paul Hoffarth, Washington Fish and Wildlife Department fisheries biologist in the Tri-Cities posted this report on…
FISHING -- The 2016 Fly Fishing Film Tour will screen all or portions of nine films TONIGHT at the Bing Crosby Theater in Spokane and again on MONDAY in Moscow, Idaho. Tickets are still available for the Spokane show for $17 online. If you're from…
CAMPING – The Many Glacier Campground in Glacier National Park, an exception to the normal national campsite booking system, is opening for reservations this week. Reservations for most federal campgrounds, cabins and lookouts can be made up to six months in advance recreation.gov, which means...
WILDLIFE -- The Colville Tribe has released 52 pronghorns on the reservation -- a wildlife re-introduction that would be much more difficult and expensive for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. The tribe obtained the pronghorns from a January roundup in Nevada and released...
HUNTING -- As the Idaho Fish and Game Commission considers offering five additional big-game auction tags to raise money for wildlife management, the Panhandle Region has scheduled a meeting for the public to visit with an area commissioner as input is gathered. Commissioner Brad Corkill…
FISHERIES – Angling groups asked Washington lawmakers to enact restrictions on suction dredge mining in state waters during a legislative hearing in Olympia last week. Prospectors using suction dredges vacuum the bed of a stream, river, lake or shoreline and process the material through a…
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- Even though it's far out in the Pacific, even far out there from the main Hawaiian Islands, it's still cool to know that the first Laysan albatross chick of the season has hatched on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. As seen on...
WILDLIFE WATCHING -- The 18th annual Great Backyard Bird Count will be conducted across the continent Feb. 12-15. Getting involved is almost as easy as looking out your window. GBBC participants count birds anywhere for as little or as long as they wish during the…
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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