Outdoors

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson named three people to the state Fish and Wildlife Commission late Monday afternoon, reappointing two commissioners and bringing on one newcomer.

Washington’s wolf numbers shrank slightly last year for the first time in 16 years.

Washington lawmakers advanced a bill Saturday that would raise hunting and fishing fees.

BILLINGS – Employing a certified industrial hygienist while constructing an RV campground seems like it could raise a red flag or two. But that’s what the Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks is proposing in its plans to add 16 RV sites with electric hookups on top of an old gun range at Makoshika State Park, just outside Glendive in eastern Montana.

MINNEAPOLIS – In August 2023, Gordon and Jennifer Fothergill were at the Itasca County Fair in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, when Jennifer’s phone rang.

The wallets of hunters and anglers would take a hit under a bill moving through the Washington Legislature.

BILLINGS – As the state of Montana’s lawsuit over Yellowstone National Park’s bison management plan creeps forward in court, 260 animals have been shipped to slaughter so far this winter and another 86 quarantined for possible live transfer to tribes.

LEWISTON – With a few deft moves, Ray Rhimer twists a length of .32-gauge stainless steel wire at his home office in the Clarkston Heights.

PORTLAND – Crater Lake is famous for its incredible views from the towering lip of the volcanic caldera, but some visitors are there to get a closer look at the deepest lake in the U.S.

Fly fishing

Years ago, I read Wallace Stegner’s “Angle of Repose” and had a romanticized glimpse of miner’s life in the West. I was left in awe at the hardship humans went through in the pursuit of better things or just a full belly. While my Subaru sputtered over Colorado mountain passes at 70 mph, I couldn’t help but think about how we ever got up here on horses, in wagons, on foot.

Anglers fishing at Lake Coeur d’Alene and its chain lakes may be asked to answer a few questions starting this spring.

A new trailhead and parking lot are coming for one of Spokane’s most popular trails.

Until last month, only one climber had stood atop all 100 of the peaks on the list, and had done so across three decades.

The fishery in Lake Spokane has been changing over the past few decades, and each change presents a trade-off.

Washington’s top wildlife official has signed off on a broad suite of rules to limit the spread of chronic wasting disease, including statewide bans on feeding and baiting deer, elk and moose.

Fly fishing

In the small corner room of an assisted living facility, a man sat in a chair softly playing guitar, and five women surrounded another, beckoning her to let go.

A belted kingfisher swoops into frame near Fernan Lake in this recent photo by Gavin Rolwes.