Field Reports
NATIONAL FORESTS
OHV policy discussed
The Colville National Forest will hold a public work group meeting to discuss policy for off-highway vehicles on the Newport and Sullivan Lake Ranger districts on Wednesday at Pioneer Park Campground in Newport.
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. with a potluck dinner, followed by a facilitated discussion to help officials as they begin revising the overall forest plan. Info: (509) 447-7322.
Rich Landers
NATIONAL FORESTS
Kettle trail cleared
Volunteers from the new Ferry County Chapter of the Backcountry Horsemen have improved the trailhead, cleaned the deadfall and revitalized the Midnight Ridge Trail in the Kettle River Range, according to Keith Wakefield, Colville National Forest recreation ranger.
The trail heads up the west side of the mountains just north of Republic and can be combined with the Kettle Crest Trail and Old Stage Road Trail to form a delightful 10-mile loop.
Huckleberries have already been coming on strong in the Kettle Range and, as Wakefield puts it, “the spring rains have left the wildflowers booming.”
Rich Landers
WILDERNESS
Fish purging studied
The state Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks has suggested poisoning 21 lakes in the Bob Marshall, the Jewel Basin Hiking Area and the Flathead National Forest to rid them of nonnative fish stocked there. The agency fears nonnative fish may trickle down into the native fishery of the South Fork of the Flathead River and breed with westslope cutthroat.
After the poisoning, the agency would stock the lakes with pure westslope cutthroat trout.
Federal officials have conducted a revised and more extensive study of the proposal to purge nonnative fish from alpine lakes in and around the Bob Marshall Wilderness, and expect to release a draft of the plan by early June.
The westslope cutthroat stocking project is being funded by the Bonneville Power Administration as part of a reparation program to compensate for the construction of Hungry Horse Dam. The dam sits near the mouth of the South Fork of the Flathead River.
Because the federal agency is funding the program, it is in charge of conducting the environmental review.
The project was highly controversial when it was first proposed in April 2001, drawing criticism from wilderness advocates, outfitters and guides and many anglers. The state withdrew the proposal, largely to address concerns that were raised and to conduct a more thorough review.
Westslope cutthroat occupy about 9 percent of their historic range in Montana, and the South Fork has one of the strongest remaining populations, said Brian Marotz, the state’s special projects manager for fisheries.
The presence of nonnative rainbow trout and Yellowstone cutthroats has, over decades, led to hybrid trout in many alpine lakes that feed into the South Fork river system. If left unchecked, hybrid fish will eventually dominate the basin, Marotz said.
Associated Press
NATIONAL FORESTS
Hot springs gone
A natural hot springs that has washed off tons of trail dust and soothed the aching muscles of Glacier Peak climbers was demolished by a disastrous rainstorm and flood last fall in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.
Kennedy Hot Springs appears to be buried under a pile of silt, said Ron DeHart, Forest Service spokesman. “A torrent of water came down the west flank of Glacier Peak and just washed it out,” he said. “We couldn’t spot it from a helicopter.”
The White Chuck Trail that leads five miles to the hot springs and climbing approaches is washed out, too, DeHart said.
“You’d have to hike 15 or 16 miles to get in there now, and we’re encouraging people to find other places to go. It’s probably a year or two away before we’ll get the funding and the work done to redo the trails.”
The floods wiped out trails, roads, bridges and entire hillsides. A crew has roughed out a temporary re-route of the Pacific Crest Trail, taking it around the east side of Glacier Peak, he said.
Kennedy Hot Springs was a popular attraction, although it got mixed reviews. The water seeped into a wood-framed rectangular hole big enough for about four friendly people. The water was always brown and the flow was so slow that the water probably was unhealthy with the normal heavy use.
Unsavory people occasionally showed up to drink and cause trouble. But more often, it was the scene of skinny dips to celebrate climbing success.
Rich Landers
TRAILS
REI offers grants
Trail users recently received a $6,100 boost from Recreational Equipment, Inc.
A $3,000 grant was given to the Friends of the Centennial Trail for equipment to be used by Sheriff’s deputy patrols.
A $3,100 grant went to the Backcountry Horsemen of Washington for revising trail maps.
Rich Landers