Dan working with Brian Burbridge and Mark Ottman on his “C” Bucker Certification
Dan evaluating at the Stanley Sawyer Workshop
BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) has announced its plans to begin soil testing underneath the historic Rainbow Bridge on Highway 55, to collect data for future construction plans for a new bridge.
According to ITD, the bridge has been standing since 1933 and no longer meets current highway safety standards. Environmental and design planning began last spring, but ITD will begin drilling in 18 locations around the existing bridge this June to collect samples.
“Prior to the drilling, ITD will remove trees and vegetation near each drilling location to allow a helicopter to safely lower equipment,” officials said. “The ground will be re-seeded after drilling. Results will be used for designing the bridge foundation, supports and retaining walls along State Highway 55.”
The Idaho Transportation Department said the project would also decide the future of the existing bridge, adding ITD wanted the process to be as transparent as possible.
“Public input will be a key consideration in the final recommendation for the new bridge and the existing bridge,” ITD’s Dan Gorley said.
Sampling will last throughout June, and ITD said drivers should expect 15-minute delays as officials will be drilling. However, work will stop for the weekend at 12 p.m. each Friday.
Construction of the new bridge is expected to start in 2027 or 2028, ITD stated.
Forest Service News Release
Boise National Forest
Contact: Mike Williamson, Public Affairs Officer, 208-373-4105, michael.williamson@usda.gov
Forest Service’s Sage Hen Road Temporarily Closed for Repairs
BOISE, Idaho, May 30, 2024 – The Boise National Forest will temporarily close Road 626, also known as Sage Hen Road, beginning June 3 at 7 a.m. through June 7 at 6 p.m. to allow for construction crews to replace culverts and install road stabilization structures. The closure will begin at the intersection with Forest Road 644, located about 1.5 miles west of Smiths Ferry and extend 16 miles to the intersection with Forest Road 653 about nine miles north of Ola.
This closure is part of a larger road improvement effort that will extend into the fall and to other nearby National Forest System roads in 2025. While no other closures are expected this year, the public may experience temporary delays throughout the summer as crews complete road resurfacing and other improvements.
“We understand this closure will be an inconvenience to those visiting the Sage Hen Reservoir area,” says Boise National Forest Engineering Staff Officer Brett Barry. “By closing the road for five days and allowing the contractor to complete the needed work, we avoid having staged closures stretched out over several weeks.”
During this road closure the Sage Hen Reservoir area can be accessed via Forest Road 653 beginning 13 miles north of Ola at the Third Fork Guard Station, easterly to Forest Road 609, then southward to the reservoir.
For more information contact the Emmett Ranger District at 208-365-7000
By Mindy Gould on Tuesday, May 28th, 2024
HARNEY COUNTY (Released by the Burns Interagency Fire Zone)-‘Tis the season! Effective last Friday, May 24, 2024, on all BLM-administered public lands in Oregon and Washington, the following are PROHIBITED:
Discharging or using fireworks or pyrotechnic devices. Discharging or using combustible or explosive composition or chemical devices, including but not limited to exploding targets. Discharging or using tracer, explosive, or incendiary ammunition. Discharging steel component (core or jacket) ammunition, except a person with a valid state hunting license actively engaged in the legal take/pursuit of Game/Non-Game species in accordance with the current hunting seasons. Releasing or causing to be released any sky lanterns, airborne paper lanterns, aerial luminaries and/or fire balloons. Shooting at any metallic object, including but not limited to using metal targets for target shooting.
Nearly 90% of wildfires are human-caused. Follow these restrictions and help keep our public lands and surrounding communities safe!
Those who violate the restrictions can be fined up to $1,000 and/or receive a prison term of up to one year. In addition, those found responsible for starting wildland fires on federal lands can be billed for the cost of fire suppression.
Local questions, contact your local dispatch center for more information.
The Latest News on Idaho’s Public Lands
Our work reviewing project proposals and permits—both exhaustive and sometimes exhausting—pays off in big ways.
The Idaho Board of Environmental Quality recently issued a decision invalidating Perpetua Resources’ air pollution permit for the proposed Stibnite Gold Mine. The Board found that Perpetua Resources and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) failed to follow regulations designed to protect people from arsenic-laden dust. The decision remands Perpetua’s air pollution permit, sending it back to the administrative hearing officer to reconsider ways to better control arsenic emissions and reduce cancer risks from the proposed mine.
In response to another protest by ICL and our partners, a Hearing Officer with the Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR) also established minimum stream flows to Perpetua’s water withdrawals that are more protective of fisheries.
Finally, if you care about the four million-acre Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest in north central Idaho, then you’ll be interested to learn about the status of the Forest Service’s efforts to revise the Land Management Plan.
ICL participated in a three-day administrative hearing to voice objections to the agency’s near-final new plan, arguing that it would harm wildlife, wildlands, and wild rivers by increasing off-road vehicle and snow machine access while shrinking the boundaries of the proposed Great Burn Wilderness Area. The Forest Service has also preliminarily stated that the North and South Fork Clearwater Rivers are not “suitable” for protection under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. It is unclear how the Forest Service will respond to the objections of ICL and other conservation groups, but a written response is due to be published sometime in June. Until then, stay tuned!
Comment period is open until June 5 for the Draft Environmental Assessment (DEA) affecting the future of Travel Management in the East Fork South Fork (EFSF) Salmon River portion of the Krassel Ranger District, Payette National Forest.
Proposals in the Draft range from no-change in motorized access, to adding up to about 26 miles of public road and trail access beyond the current inventory.
The Forest will issue a final Decision Notice and implement the plan estimated October 2024. The Decision will guide how motorized access is managed to this portion of the Forest going forward. No losses are expected, but gains are possible depending on the Forest’s final Decision.
Learn more about the Draft plan here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/payette/?project=60889
Comment submission form here: https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public//CommentInput?Project=60889
(Attaching a DOC or PDF of your comments is recommended; else, type or paste text into the form fields provided.)
The Forest presently manages motorized access in the EFSF area under the 2007 Payette Travel Management FEIS, the 2008 McCall/Krassel and 2010 Big Creek Yellow Pine TMP Records of Decision, and the 2024 Motor Vehicle Use Map. A 2017 settlement to a lawsuit which challenged the 2007/2008/2010 TMPs requires this Plan to be completed. (Two of three Plans total required by the settlement were previously Decided and are in the process of being implemented: Big Creek and South Fork RAMPs.)
IDPR has submitted its commentary based on the themes summarized below. Additional requests are based on routes which stakeholders have for many years been asking the Forest to implement.
- IDPR Supports Alternative D, plus proposed modifications:
- Re-open Sugar Creek Road 51883 as a Trail for 70” and under OHVs (closed ~2016)
- Re-open Crater Lake Road as a Trail for 70” and under OHVs (closed ~2016)
- Re-open Parks Peak Trails 069 and 074 to 2-wheeled OHVs as-proposed in Alt D, and also re-open connecting Rainbow Ridge Trail 070 to create a loop (each closed ~2000)
- Give greater consideration for the economic survival of the Yellow Pine community, which recreation visitation will ensure
Please inform fellow recreationists of this public process.
Hi everyone,
A big thank you to those who were able to join us for Monday’s SCNF Pre-Season Partner meeting. I know it’s a busy time of year for this group. Attached are meeting notes, which have also been uploaded to the SCNF External Partner Folder in Box. A reminder, this folder also contains some general safety documents, Risk Assessments, our Grants Calendar, etc. If any of you have trouble with this link, let me know and I’ll make sure to get you access.
If you have any questions, go-backs, or other things you wanted to talk about that we didn’t get to, don’t hesitate to reach out. We hope each of your organizations has a safe and memorable season and look forward to connecting with some of you in the field this year! SCNF PreSeason Partner Meeting Notes 5.6.2024
Descending into the ancient volcano feels like being swallowed by a monster. I set up camp in the mouth of the beast, surrounded by 200-foot cliffs—and am immediately overwhelmed with peace and quiet. But the tranquility in the crater bottom belies a violent past: Two-thousand years ago, molten rock gushed from these cracks in the earth, while ferocious explosions from thousand-foot-high cinder cones sent car-size boulders hurtling through the air. A quick foray from my campsite, 3.8 miles deep in Craters of the Moon National Monument, reveals evidence of this rocky past. Cylindrical cavities mark the spots where trees were entombed in flowing lava before rotting away, leaving their hollow forms in the hardened rock. Jagged chasms exist where ancient tunnels of lava formed and collapsed. A weekend of exploring these geologic wonders only fuels my curiosity—and ensures that I’ll be back soon. Link to story
Anna Daly writes: Craters of the Moon National Monument hit a big milestone this month – turning 100 years old.
On May 2nd, 1924, the more than 1,100 square mile area of volcanic formations and lava fields in Central Idaho’s Snake River Plain was designated a national monument by President Calvin Coolidge.
This fall, deer hunters will follow new testing rules for chronic wasting disease management.
The new mandatory testing requirements apply to several hunting units in Central Idaho near U.S. 95/ Highway 55 south of Grangeville. Testing helps prevent the spread of CWD and it will let hunters know if the meat is safe to eat.
In March, the Fish and Game Commission made several changes, including:
- Adding Unit 18 to the CWD Management Zone. Now the zones include Units 14 and 18. Unit 15 was removed. If you are hunting in the zones listed above, there are special rules to follow found here.
- Testing of whitetail deer and mule hunted in Units 23,24, and 32A is now mandatory—whole carcasses can still be removed from those units.
- There is no longer a testing requirement for mule and white-tailed deer, elk, and moose harvested in Unit 15 and moose and elk in Unit 14.
According to Fish and Game, CWD was first discovered in Idaho in 2021. The fatal disease affects deer, elk, and moose. Symptoms of CWD in wildlife include excessive salivation, trouble swallowing, and excessive thirst. It stays indefinitely in the environment.
No moose has tested positive and only two elk. Wildlife managers are not as concerned about those animals at this point.
“If ignored, CWD will infect new areas, cause more sick animals, and eventually result in fewer deer, the Fish and Game news release said. “Although elk and moose are less susceptible, CWD will also spread to them.”
If you see smoke in the air to the northeast of Boise – it doesn’t mean forest fire season has gotten an early start.
Instead, forest managers are set to do a pair of prescribed burns. The idea is to “reduce the risk of future catastrophic wildfires to nearby communities and natural resources,” Boise National Forest managers said.
First, Crews will set fire to 173 acres in the Mores Creek area, about four miles east of Idaho City along Rabbit Creek Rd. on Tuesday.
Next, they’ll tackle an area eight miles southwest of Idaho City, near the intersection of Grimes and Clear Creeks. This time, they’ll burn 250 acres starting May 1.
In both cases, the burn operation will take one to two days, with another week or so where they monitor and make sure it doesn’t get out of hand.
Boise National Forest folks say they try to pick times where the smoke won’t have a major impact — and also note that the dates could change if conditions warrant.
(Photo: Courtesy National Park Service)
Watch Video
Good morning, Attached is the R4 Saw Accident/ Near Miss Review from 2020-2023. There were 25 incidents reported, with 15 of those incidents resulting in injury. This review was modeled after the Lessons Learned Center 2004-2019 Tree Felling Accident Analysis. It is understood that this review does not capture all incidents and near misses, only the incidents that were voluntarily submitted using the R4 Saw Accident and Near Miss Reporting Form. This form is available for use by all agency, partner, and volunteer sawyers. The intent of these reviews is to help facilitate conversation during training and chainsaw refreshers regarding topics where sawyers are getting injured or having near misses. Thanks for sharing and please reach out if you have any questions.
Region 4 Saw Accident_Near Miss Review 2020-2023
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Wilderness Fuels Module Assistant Crew Leader – Sierra Institute Wilderness Fuels Module Sawyer Crew Member – Sierra Institute Wilderness Fuels Module Crew Member Medic – Sierra Institute Stewardship and Outreach Manager – New Mexico Wild Wilderness Ranger – New Mexico Wild Nancy Morton Wilderness Intern – New Mexico Wild Trail Crew Member – Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers Wilderness Trail Crew Members (waitlist) – Friends of Nevada Wilderness |
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ABOUT THE DESIGN: Indigenous artist Thomas “Breeze” Marcus designed the logo in collaboration with the Sierra Club. Breeze was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona on the Salt River Pima- Maricopa Reservation, just east of Scottsdale. In an overarching sense, his designs are reminiscent of his Akimel and Tohono O’odham cultural heritage—these Native Southwestern tribes are historically known for creating beautifully coil-woven baskets that feature interlocking geometric designs.
All are welcome to use this graphic in your outreach and celebrations around the 60th Anniversary this year. Images are available here:
Wilderness 60 logo (color with text)
Wilderness 60 logo (color without text)
Wilderness 60 logo B&W (without text)
Wilderness 60 logo grayscale (without text)
Wilderness 60 Webpage
Looking for a place to stay up to date on all of the exciting events happening around the many wilderness milestones this year? Wilderness Connect has you covered – their Wilderness 60 webpage is live! This is the place to share information, messaging, communication materials, and event details related to the 60th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act.
2024 Northern Rockies WSI Sessions
2024 Northern Rockies Wilderness Skills Institute Application
The 2024 Northern Rockies Wilderness Skills Institute will be held from May 20 – 24, 2024. It will start at 11am PT on Monday and conclude at 12pm PT on Friday. All participants are expected to sign up for the entire week. COST: There is no cost to attend. FOOD: On your own – no food provided. Participants will handle their own meals. Cooking facilities may be provided – more information will be provided ahead of the event.
As of April 28, the Grandview Travel Management Plan process has been STOPPED and will be reset, starting the process over sometime in the future!
All, Please see the final version of the Doyle Mountain Trail Proposal attached.
If you would like to support this proposal (or some version thereof) just mention your support for the “Doyle Mountain Trail System” from ICL and company in your own individual comments (due Monday).
Here is a link to the Grand View Travel Management Plan on the BLM ePlanning website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/73197
To make submitting comments easier, here is a link to ICL’s take action: https://takeaction.idahoconservation.org/fmCRkTb
Thanks, all, and have a great weekend.
John Robison / Public Lands Director / Idaho Conservation League
PO Box 844, Boise, ID 83701
Mobile phone 208-345-6933 x 213 • fax 208.344.0344
Riggins man dies after tree falls on him in Idaho County
Local authorities responded to a call of an unconscious man being transported to Riggins, where he later died.
Author: KTVB Staff
Updated: 12:24 PM MDT March 26, 2024
RIGGINS, Idaho — Just before 1 a.m. on March 20, Idaho County Dispatch received a call regarding a 28-year-old man who was hit by a tree while cutting firewood, according to a news release from Idaho County Sheriff’s Office.
The call they received informed dispatch that there was an unconscious man with a pulse being driven to Riggins.
The man, Tyrel Walker, of Riggins, was up on the Big Salmon in the Allison Creek area when the incident happened, and was transported to Riggins to meet the ambulance. The ambulance met the man and his colleagues on Main Street in Riggins, and Life Flight was dispatched, while Riggins Ambulance performed life saving measures.
At roughly 1:11 a.m. Riggins Ambulance informed dispatch that life saving measures would be stopped, and Life Flight was canceled.
Idaho County Deputies and Idaho County Coroner responded, and investigated the situation later that day. The incident happened six miles up French Creek Road. It appeared to investigators that Walker had chopped down a tree, then was hit by another tree, striking him in the head.
Officials say Walker’s injuries were consistent with that of someone being hit by a tree.
58,209 views May 14, 2013
Dr. Donner discusses some key general tips for SAM splint use, and demonstrates a sugar tong splint for wrist and forearm injuries. Includes discussion on structural bends, fitting and molding technique, immobilization with sling, supination, and pronation. MedWild provides wilderness medicine, wilderness survival, and search and rescue instructional videos on a variety of topics: high altitude illness, traveler’s diarrhea, shoulder dislocation and reduction, shelter building, bushcraft, space blankets, hypothermia, medical kits, survival kits, frostbite, snake bites, fire craft, ropes and knots, orthopedic injuries and sam splints, cold water immersion and more.
Instructor: Howard Donner, MD Co-Author “Field Guide to Wilderness Medicine” Served as a physician for Denali National Park, Himalayan Rescue Association, and the 1998 NOVA Everest expedition. Served as a medical operations consultant for NASA for over 5 years. Whitewater rafting guide, commercial pilot, and certified flight instructor.
Recommended Audience: Outdoor enthusiasts and health care professionals including physicians, nurses, search and rescue teams, EMT, paramedics, ski patrol, corpsman, guides, instructors, wilderness first responders, and anyone else interested in educational and “how to” videos on wilderness emergency medicine, search and rescue, expedition medicine, backcountry first aid, wilderness survival training, and military medicine. Dr. Donner’s draws on his extensive backcountry and travel experience to highlight key signs, symptoms, treatments, and improvised techniques and skills.
More from MedWild: Complete Video Library: 
/ medwildvideos 
/ medwildvideos 
/ medwildvideos MedWild videos featured at: www.wilderness-medicine.com
READ Full List: Due Dates for Chapters
Region #1 – North of the Salmon River
Region #4 – South of the Salmon River
Be a “Professional Beginner”
Always be learning, always striving to approach the process with the wide openness of someone starting fresh and fighting the natural tendencies to Narrow one’s mind and calcify one’s conceptual model.
New Information should be welcomed despite its demands for flexibility and ongoing adaptation. With this approach, learning is also exhilarating, a journey of endless discovery and self-Improvement!
Listen
READ Complete report: 2023 YEAR IN REVIEW
2023 Garmin inReach® SOS Year in Review
From hikers on daytrips to drivers on road trips, the inReach SOS data from 2023 shows that inReach devices are an important tool for adventurers and commuters alike. In 2023 the largest percentage of SOS incidents came from hikers and backpackers, but the biggest increase resulted from driving-related situations. Read on for a look at the statistical breakdown.
Since 2011, Garmin inReach satellite technology1 has helped individuals stay in touch globally, send and receive messages outside of cellphone service areas, navigate routes, track and share journeys and, when necessary, trigger an interactive SOS message to the Garmin Response℠ emergency response coordination center. Many individuals’ lives have been changed from the help they received after triggering an SOS message on their inReach device.
With 100% global Iridium® satellite network coverage, an SOS can be triggered globally. The locations of SOS incidents speak to the power of the Iridium satellite network, the intel of inReach technology and the Garmin Response team’s ability to make timely connections with emergency resources all over the world.
Garmin Response is a leader in 24/7 emergency monitoring and incident response coordination services. Using a proprietary emergency monitoring platform that connects to a global database of first responders and emergency services, the dedicated team of skilled emergency response coordinators serves more than 200 countries and territories and supports more than 210 languages.
Just this year, dispatch responses varied from local police and ambulance services on major interstate highways to highly technical helicopter rescues on the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest. Responses all over the world — from New Zealand to Norway to Argentina to Canada — were coordinated for plane crashes, grizzly bear encounters, sinking sailboats, skiers in avalanches, stranded divers, injured climbers and many more.
The largest percentage of SOS triggers this year came from adventurers who were out hiking or backpacking. The next highest number of SOS triggers came from driving and motorcycling incidents. This emphasizes the importance of having an inReach on hand for everyday “just in case” situations, such as witnessing or being involved in a motor vehicle accident, experiencing mechanical issues outside of cellphone service or encountering adverse weather while driving.
In 2023, we saw the biggest increases in driving-related SOS incidents, followed by climbing/mountaineering and fishing. Other common activities include boating, snowmobiling, camping, hunting, skiing/snowboarding, off-roading and more. READ MORE
What’s Different About inReach Technology?
Staying connected, informed and safe — regardless of geographical location — has become an essential and expected part of our lives. So what makes inReach® satellite communicators stand out? Below are some of the top reasons why it’s advantageous to keep a device with inReach technology active and available1.
Connection to the Only Satellite Network with Global Coverage
The Iridium® satellite network, the world’s largest commercial satellite constellation, is the system that allows inReach devices to work globally. Its low orbit satellites enable inReach satellite communicators to relay messages, provide weather forecasts, navigate and trigger SOS alerts — even when you and your device are well out of range of cellular coverage. Plus, the multidirectional, purpose-built antennas in inReach devices help ensure a prompt connection, which is especially important in an emergency when every second counts.
Interactive SOS
With an inReach device and an active subscription, you can trigger an SOS message and connect directly to the Garmin ResponseSM team. When an SOS alert is received, team members pinpoint the incident location. Then, via two-way messaging, team members gather information from the user, coordinate the rescue response and connect with emergency contacts.
Internal Emergency Monitoring
A unique part of the inReach experience is that SOS activations are managed by Garmin’s in-house emergency monitoring team and incident response coordination center, Garmin Response. Operating since 2007, Garmin Response is staffed by trained professionals. They use proprietary emergency handling software to manage each SOS alert and work with a private global database of local first responders. The Garmin Response team has handled more than 10,000 inReach SOS alerts.
Did you feel yesterday morning’s earthquake?
According to the United States Geological Survey, there were several. The first one, and the strongest, hit at 10:25 a.m. and had a magnitude of 4.9. It registered about six miles North of Smiths Ferry with light shaking reported in the Treasure Valley.
USGS recorded an aftershock of 2.7 magnitude at 10:45 a.m. about five miles Northwest of Smiths Ferry. Another aftershock of 2.8 magnitude about three miles Northwest of Smiths Ferry was recorded at noon.
The Idaho Transportation Department said there was rockfall in the roadway near where the earthquakes occurred but there is no indication of damage. To be sure, ITD said its crews are assessing roads, culverts, and bridges, including Rainbow Bridge, in the area.
“In the event of any damage resulting from the earthquake, ITD will provide prompt notification to the public,” ITD said in a news release. “ITD wants to reassure the community that every measure is being taken to assess and address potential safety risks from this earthquake, demonstrating our unwavering dedication to maintaining a secure transportation network for all.”
Monday’s quakes occurred in the Western Idaho Seismic Zone, which lies between Boise and McCall. The zone includes active faults such as the Long Valley fault zone and the Squaw Creek fault.
Below that, will be a series of five bills we are asking you, hunters, anglers and public land advocates of Idaho, to help IWF defeat.
From potentially increasing poaching, reducing already deficient protections from chronic wasting disease, continued encroachment of the legislature on our wildlife management agency’s autonomy, trading once-inn-a-lifetime tags for wolves, we struggled to think of a sportsman in our state that wouldn’t be negatively impacted if these came to pass.
IWF respects that our subscribers have different interests, and work hard to serve you with the information most important to you.
