Becky Kramer

Toppling trees at Riverside State Park is helping create a healthier forest of native ponderosa pines. The thinning project is also providing work experience for 50 inmates from Airway Heights Corrections Center while producing winter firewood for low-income families.

PRIEST LAKE, Idaho – Protecting habitat for woodland caribou has cost North Idaho’s economy $26 million, with winter tourism in the resort area of Priest Lake taking the biggest hit, according to a study commissioned by the Idaho State Snowmobile Association. The study calculated economic impacts back to 2005, when court-ordered trail grooming restrictions were put into place to keep a new generation of high-powered snowmobiles out of alpine forests and meadows favored by endangered caribou. It’s the second study released this summer seeking to measure the cost to local businesses of protecting caribou.

The Sand Creek Byway’s anticipated opening date isn’t until June 29, but some impatient drivers and pedestrians are slipping behind barriers and orange construction cones to try out U.S. Highway 95’s $110 million shortcut around Sandpoint’s historic downtown. “It’s almost done; it looks done, but it’s still an active construction site,” said Barbara Babic, an Idaho Department of Transportation spokeswoman.

WALLACE – The closed Lucky Friday Mine will begin rehiring workers in July and should return to a full workforce by the end of the year, said Phil Baker, Hecla Mining Co.’s chief executive officer. More than 110 of the Lucky Friday’s 250 workers lost their jobs when federal inspectors closed the mine’s main shaft in January following a series of accidents at the underground silver mine.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu brought his message of social justice and equality to Gonzaga University’s graduation ceremony Sunday, urging students to dream dreams that could change the world. Tutu, a central figure in South Africa’s fight against apartheid, has scaled back public appearances in recent years, but said he accepted Gonzaga’s invitation because he remains inspired by the idealism of the young.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu brought his message of social justice and equality to Gonzaga University’s graduation ceremony Sunday, urging graduates to dream dreams that would change the world.

For four decades, truckloads of logs rolling out of the woods were Bob Boeh’s primary interest in the Idaho Panhandle National Forests. No surprise since his employer, Idaho Forest Group, depends on federal timber sales to help keep five sawmills churning out 2-by-4s.

The Coeur d’Alene Tribe is in negotiations with a private landowner about buying 100 acres surrounding Old Mission State Park at Cataldo, Idaho. The acreage includes an old cemetery with the graves of Jesuit priests, trails to the Coeur d’Alene River and about 1,300 feet of waterfront.

Two men were plucked from Hayden Lake this morning after the small float plane they were aboard flipped while landing on the lake.