Field Reports
BICYCLING
Daytrip 157 miles
Missoula organizers of a 157-mile Montana bicycle tour that takes place in just one day, circumnavigating the Pioneer Range, have watched it become a significant fund-raiser for young cancer patients.
The third annual RATPOD – short for Ride Around the Pioneers in One Day – is set for June 26.
Some Missoula physicians who are cyclists launched the ride in 2002 with the idea of raising money for Camp Mak-A-Dream east of Drummond.
RATPOD’s profile got a boost because the tour takes place in southwestern Montana’s scenic Big Hole Valley, where Levi Leipheimer of Butte likes to cycle. Leipheimer finished eighth in the 2002 Tour de France.
Last year 170 cyclists participated in RATPOD and raised more than $66,000 for the camp. Organizers hope for at least 250 cyclists this year.
The $70 entry fee for RATPOD includes a pasta dinner the night before the ride at the start in Dillon, and a barbecue when it’s over.
Riders travel clockwise to cover the steepest part of the route first. People not up to the 157-mile challenge are welcome to participate in teams of up to four people, each riding a portion of the route. Info: RATPOD: http://www.ratpod.org.
The Missoulian
FISHING
Glacier backs off
Alaska’s Hubbard Glacier, which had been surging by as much as 12 feet a day, has retreated and is no longer threatening Alaska’s Situk River – at least for now, the U.S. Forest Service said.
Spokesman Ray Massey said the glacier, which last month had advanced to within 640 feet of Gilbert Point at the northwest edge of Russell Fiord, has backed off and is now more than 800 feet away.
Yakutat residents fear if the glacier seals off Russell Fiord, creating a lake, the lake eventually would spill over into the Situk River drainage and flood valuable fishing habitat, hurting Yakutat’s economy.
Associated Press
FOREST RECREATION
Potlach hires patrols
Outdoor enthusiasts can continue to visit Potlatch Corp.’s 670,000 acres of timberland in North Idaho, but they must adhere to a new company policy that says tread lightly.
The Spokane-based company has hired patrols to watch the woods and gauge how many people travel there.
“We are going to start managing, I think, in a very positive way,” said Stephen H. Smith, resource manager in Lewiston.
In the past, the company has allowed people to hike, hunt, pick berries, camp, fish and ride off-highway vehicles on its land. But there has not been much formal oversight.
The new guidelines include respecting road closures, staying out of sensitive streamside areas and obeying state and federal laws.
“It’s not acceptable any longer not to manage public use,” Smith said.
The patrols’ main work thus far has been attempting to stop mud-bogging near the Palouse River, said Shelly Tschida, who owns Quality Services, the company doing patrols for Potlatch as well as for Inland Empire Paper Company lands in the Spokane and Coeur d’Alene region.
Mud-bogging is driving through muddy meadows or roads with four-wheel-drive vehicles.
Associated Press
PREDATORS
Whales attack whales
A California whale-watching trip on Monterey Bay ran into some unexpected drama on Mother’s Day, when a group of six killer whales attacked an 8-ton gray whale calf.
Some of the orcas took turns ramming their heads into the calf while others leapt on top of it, trying to drown it. Meanwhile, the calf’s mother tried to shield it, rolling like a log and lifting her 20-foot baby on her back.
“It’s the greatest predation event on Earth,” said Richard Ternullo, co-owner of Monterey Bay Whale Watch, who watched the attack May 9. “It’s 100 tons of whales crashing together.”
Similar attacks have taken place throughout the spring as killer whales lay in wait for gray whales as they cross the bay, which is considered by naturalists to be the riskiest stretch of the whales’ 6,000-mile migration from the Baja peninsula to Alaska.
To the relief of the whale watchers, the calf’s mother was able to lead her injured baby to safety in shallow coastal waters, where the orcas do not go.
Other gray whales have not been as fortunate this season. About 15 calves lost their lives to killer whales this spring in 22 separate attacks.
Scientists believe this year has been particularly bloody because of a larger than normal number of gray whale calves born over the winter are heading north.
Associated Press
FISHING
Bald is documentable
Bald is a hair color in Montana.
Montana’s Web site lists “bald” as an option when applying online for a fishing license.
“It’s always been there, but before when you applied for a license at a sporting goods store, the person filling out the license just checked the appropriate box,” said Rich Olsen, general manager of the state’s site, Discovering Montana.
The Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks doesn’t keep track of how many people admit to being folliclely challenged, said Neal Whitney, one of the agency’s computer specialists.
Associated Press
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