Rainier visitor center closes after 42 years
The Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitor Center, named after Washington Congressman and Senator Henry “Scoop” Jackson, has run its course after 42 years.
The old saucer-shaped center closed for good last week as a new $22 million visitor center takes over at Paradise.
“There was a lot of ink about it when it opened,” Loren Lane, retired park ranger from Chehalis said of the old center, which was built for $1.6 million.
But at 60,000 square feet of very open spaces, it was “the poster child for energy consumption,” said Park superintendent Dave Uberuaga.
“For me, the new building keeps us in touch with the alpine style, the Cascadia style of architecture,” said Lane. “It’s also going to make it easier to maintain in the winter.”
Lee Taylor, chief of interpretation at the park, said the old center grew on him despite his initial impression that it was “hideous.”
“It has a genuine ‘60s vibe with its orange vinyl couches and bizarre spatial layout,” he said. “Certainly it is one of a kind in its clunky quirkiness.”
The idea of replacing the center gained speed in 1996 when an engineering team estimated it would cost $10 to $11 million to bring the building up to code.
Tacoma News-Tribune
FISHING
Mack Days start on Flathead
The 2008 Fall Mack Days fishing derby on Flathead Lake began Saturday and runs through Nov. 16.
The derby is sponsored by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and sanctioned by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks to help keep the lake’s mackinaw in check.
Many anglers are more than happy to help out, as they fish for fun and cash prizes totaling about $90,000.
Preregister online: www.mackdays.com .
Info: (406) 883-2888 ex. 7294 or ex. 7282.
Rich Landers
RECREATION
REI give grants to area groups
Five local groups have each been given $5,000 for projects supported by Recreational Equipment, Inc.
•Inland Northwest Trails Coalition, for developing the Fish Lake rail trail.
•Sierra Club Inner City Outings, to promote appreciation for and protection of the natural environment through wilderness adventures and environmental education.
•Bicycle Alliance of Washington, to present the second annual Bike to Work Spokane in May, 2009.
• The Lands Council, to continue collaborative volunteer restoration projects on 115 acres of riparian area along the Spokane River and Hangman Creek.
•YMCA/Camp Reed, for the Teen Leadership Development Retreat, a five- day camping experience and work project.
Rich Landers
STATE PARKS
Idaho halts online reservations
The Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation has temporarily halted online reservations for campsites, cabins and yurts, because of customer complaints about the reservation system.
Agency officials said they expect to restore online reservation services in spring or early summer of 2009.
Meantime, the agency will handle reservations up to nine months in advance by telephone at (208) 630-5050.
Details are on the agency’s web site: www.parksandrecreation. idaho.gov.
WILDLIFE
Deer disease pops up again
Wildlife officials in eastern Washington and north-central Idaho have confirmed that whitetail deer in some areas are suffering from an outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease, also known as EHD.
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists said last week that as many as 150 to 200 whitetail deer may have died from the disease along the Touchet River in Washington between Touchet and Waitsburg.
In Idaho, a small outbreak has been reported between Moscow and Troy, said Jay Crenshaw, regional wildlife manager for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game at Lewiston.
“Chances are if we are seeing something going on there, and it is confirmed as EHD, it is occurring in other places,” Crenshaw said.
The viral disease is spread by biting gnats. It occurs throughout the country and typically pops up every two or three years once it enters a region. The disease cannot be transmitted to humans and rarely affects other species.
Officials from both departments recommend hunters not shoot animals that are obviously suffering from EHD or any disease. Early symptoms of the disease include lethargic or disoriented behavior.
Lewiston Tribune
PUBLIC LANDS
Hanford Reach plan enacted
The possibility of more public access and more hunting areas are features of the new management plan enacted last week by the Hanford Reach National Monument.
Two years in the making, the plan will guide the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service actions on central Washington monument for the next 15 years.
The plan allows for:
•Opening additional lands to public access pending lifting of Department of Energy safety and security zones.
•Opening an additional 10,680 acres to some form of hunting (67,117 acres total).
•Treating 13,000 acres annually for invasive species.
•Restoring 5,100 acres of habitat annually.
•Developing up to 15 new interpretive sites and up to 100 miles of trails.
•Working with partners to develop new boat launches in the Vernita Bridge and Ringold Fish Hatchery areas.
•Working with equestrians to assess needs for trails and facilities and limiting horseback use to roads and trails.
•Keeping the Saddle Mountain Road open, using seasonal closures if necessary to protect specific resources.
Rich Landers
HUNTING
Tough love for poachers
Judges in Montana and Idaho recently doled out stiff sentences for notable poachers.
In Idaho, Russell Mee of Pocatello has lost his hunting, trapping and fishing privileges for life for poaching at least three deer and dumping two of them near his property when he suspected he was being investigated by Idaho Fish and Game officials.
He was charged with illegally killing and wasting deer in Power County. District Court Judge Peter McDermott sentenced him to 45 days in jail and 10 years probation, in addition to ordering him to pay more than $21,000 in fines. If convicted again of similar charges, he would serve out the rest of his original 10-year sentence.
In Montana, Lynn Nelson, 51, of Hamilton was sentenced to 30 days in after pleading guilty to failing to get permission to hunt big game on a Darby-area ranch last year. Nelson will also pay a $1,035 fine and lose his hunting privileges for six months.
Ravalli County Justice Jim Bailey handed down the sentence after Nelson appeared in his courtroom for the second time in two years for committing the same offense on the same piece of private property.
Staff and wire reports
HUNTING
Volunteers wanted for cougar group
Washington hunters interested in assisting the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife with public-safety cougar removals have until Oct. 17 to apply for special permits.
Permit applicants must have a state big-game hunting license, with cougar as a species option, and must own cougar-tracking dogs.
State wildlife biologists have determined that a total of up to seven cougars should be removed from three specific areas of the state, based on safety concerns raised by the public in 2007. All three areas are in western Washington.
Rich Landers