Go see the North Fork Championship, plus a high country condition report

A kayaker cuts hard-left to go around the gate behind the rock near the top of Jake's. (Courtesy Canoe/Kayak) 

Hi all,

Many of the best kayakers from around the world are coming to Idaho this week to compete in the North Fork Championship on the mighty North Fork of the Payette River. KTVB-TV reported that 180 athletes from 18 countries will compete for the $5,000 top prize.

I highly recommend that you go watch the main event on Saturday! It starts at 1 p.m. on Jacob's Ladder, one of the most challenging sections of gnarly Class 5 whitewater in North America. These paddlers will be not only surviving the churning whitewater, but also running gates in the middle of Jake's, and that's when things can get interesting!

Take a look:



(Video courtesy Outside mag)

Jacob's Ladder is located about half-way from Banks to Smith's Ferry on one of those rare places in the north-bound lanes where there's a passing lane on a long uphill. That's the spot! Find a place to pull over on the shoulder, or bring a bike and find a better place to park and hang out when the race is over.

I find it totally invigorating just watching the expert kayakers trying to navigate the big and bold features on the North Fork at an incredibly fast speed. The whitewater is ferocious! It seems to eat people until they emerge on the other side of the wave or hole and keep on paddling. It's just totally impressive!

On Thursday night, June 13, they're showing a series of whitewater films at the Egyptian Theater. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. Raffle items will be given away from NRS, Immersion Research, Astral, Dagger Kayak, Werner paddles, GoPro's, and many others. I'm sure the footage will be amazing! 

Speaking of rivers, you might have noticed that river-boating season is upon us! Time to dust off the kayaks, rafts, SUPs, etc., and go paddling! 

The North Fork of the Payette River was running just under 3,000 cfs at Banks on Thursday, so the rapids on the Cabarton section of the North Fork would be really fun right now. There'd be plenty of current to SUP the North Fork from Cascade to Cabarton, and the South Fork and Main Payette are rocking as well! Now that it's getting hot, it's time to hit the rivers! The Salmon River was running 31,000 cfs at Whitebird on Thursday. That'd make for a big ride in Riggins! Here's a link to all Idaho river flows.  

Need info. on Payette River flat-water and whitewater trips? See my guide, Paddling the Payette, which has details descriptions and maps to 24 day trips on the Payette River. 
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Tuesday evening in Ponderosa State Park at the top of the Huckleberry Trail.

Osprey Point in Ponderosa State Park is my happy place, overlooking Payette Lake. 

High-country condition report: I spent a few days in McCall this week, and it's absolutely gorgeous in Long Valley right now, with tall green grass flowing in the breeze, flowers popping, and the snow receding in the mountain tops. 

I checked with the Boise, Payette and Sawtooth national forests to get an idea on snow level. I'm hearing snow levels are generally in the 7,000-8,000 range, but in the north slopes and shadows, it would be much lower than that.

• Low-elevation trails in the McCall area are all in great shape right now, and ripe for the plucking. This includes trails at Ponderosa State Park, Payette Rim Trail, Jug Mountain Ranch and Tamarack. The North Valley Trail is in perfect condition, too. 
• Brundage Mountain is opening this weekend. There's too much snow at the summit to allow top-to-bottom mountain biking. People will be able to ride both directions on bike trails from the base area, in the meantime. There's a Father's Day Brunch on Sunday. See web site for details. 
• Some tidbits from the Sawtooth NRA: 
• Alice Lake-Toxaway Loop is snowed in. 
• 4th of July Trailhead is snowed in. 
• Iron Creek trail may be clear to Alpine Lake, but not Sawtooth. 
• You can't get to Bridal Veil Falls from Stanley Lake because of a high water creek crossing. 
• Mosquitoes are reportedly numerous. 

•  Tidbits from the Payette National Forest - The county plowed the road to Burgdorf, Secesh Meadows and Warren, so that should be open. Lick Creek Summit is still snow-bound. Most high lakes may be snow-bound. Little-used camp sites and campgrounds on the South Fork Salmon River are recommended ... they are lower-elevation.
• I didn't get any intel from the Boise National Forest, so you might check with a ranger district if you're heading that way. 

Steve talks about his weekly outdoor tip with Ken Bass and Deb Coursen Smith on 94.9 FM The River at approximately 7:40 a.m. on Fridays. 

A great Idaho bucket list item -- Float the Salmon River from Headwaters to the Sea

Karoline Woodhead runs Big Mallard on the Main Salmon River of No Return 

Hi all,

Jeff Hennessy, one of the river guides

My outdoor tip this week is about Floating the Salmon River from Headwaters to the Sea. It's a 900-mile journey to the Pacific Ocean near Astoria, OR, and 425-mile trip from Smiley Creek Lodge to Lewiston.

Some friends of mine did the whole enchilada last summer. I wrote up their trip in an article for the Statesman Outdoors and Lewiston Tribune Outdoors.

Follow those links to read all about it! Pretty impressive! Thirty days on the river is pretty great therapy for just about anyone!

On Saturday, Wendy and I are off to ride Cycle Oregon in NE Oregon for a week of road riding with about 2,000 other roadies. Seven days and 383 miles, including some quality time in the Wallowas. Starts and finishes in Baker, OR. Should be fun! I'll tell you all about my trip after I get back ...

- SS

Hanging out in camp on a sandy beach ... one of my favorite parts of a river trip. 

Bob Beckwith, trip leader, went all the way
from Smiley Creek to the Pacific Ocean

Try floating the Lower Salmon River, a perfect trip for kids, SUPs and everyone!

Plan on lots of beach time on the Lower Salmon 

My son Drew loves camping on the Salmon River in the summer. Huck likes it too! 

Hi all,

Every year, we private boaters put in applications to get a permit to run the Middle Fork of the Salmon or the Main Salmon River, maybe even Hells Canyon or the Selway, but this year, my friends and I came up empty.

Last year, I was invited on two Middle Fork trips in July, so I wasn't really looking to do a Middle Fork trip this year. I was quite satisfied to go on a Lower Salmon River with a number of good friends from Boise, some new friends from Coeur d'Alene and new friends from California.

The Lower Salmon is a great option when you come up empty on the permits. There is only a self-issue permit required from the BLM, so really all you need to do is plan a trip with friends who have their own boats (or go with an outfitter). The Lower Salmon features many of the same amenities that you'd experience on the Main Salmon, River of No Return -- beautiful huge white sandy beaches, fun rapids, peace and quiet, and then great Dutch oven meals and desserts, bocce ball, volleyball or just sitting in the shade and reading a book.

When our kids were little, they actually liked the Lower Salmon more than the Main Salmon because of the beaches. They played in the sand for hours by the river's edge, making elaborate sand castles or whatever, and they'd take turns burying each other in the sand above the river.

Whitehouse Bar ... one of the most popular camps on the Lower Salmon. 

This year, we launched on the Lower Salmon at Hammer Creek near Whitebird on July 10th, a Monday. I must say, I love how much easier the logistics are in doing the Lower Salmon. You can leave Boise early in the morning, and put on the river the same day. To reach the Main Salmon at Corn Creek, it's a huge all-day drive to sleep at the put-in the night before. We left Boise at 7 a.m., and I was blowing up my boat at 10:30 a.m. at the Hammer Creek boat launch, and I couldn't believe it, there was no one there! 

Apparently people were worried about Slide Rapids, which is a very dangerous and formidable rapids above 20,000 cubic feet per second flow. (It gets bigger with flow). The day we launched, it was about 17,500 cfs and dropping. The summer season had begun, and we were on the leading edge! That meant we got to snag all of our favorite campsites along the way -- really premium camp sites with big beaches and perfect swimming holes. With temperatures in the 90s and warming to 100 by the end of the trip, we swam a lot. Maybe 50 cold-plunges a day ... I don't know I lost track.

Thick pork chops for dinner from Jeff Hennessy

We had four rafts in our group, two people paddling inflatable kayaks, and two people paddling Stand Up Paddle Boards. At 17,000 cfs, the rapids and the swirly nature of the rapids below the main drops made it impossible for the guys paddling SUPs to make it through without falling at the end, but who cares? They get a nice cool-off swim, climb back on their boards and keep paddling.

The higher flow also meant that we were on the river for a few hours each day, and we'd be at our next campsite by noon, creating the feeling like it's almost a layover day with all afternoon to do whatever you want. It was so cool to have the whole canyon to ourselves! Definitely not the typical experience in July, when it is usually quite popular, and it's best to get on the water early to snag your favorite campsite.

We scouted Snow Hole Rapids, but it wasn't that big of a deal at the higher flow ... the rocks were all submerged underwater and the middle chute was the place to go. The SUPs took a pass on that rapids, but one of our crew members, Kirk Keogh had quite a rodeo in the IK in Snow Hole ... you could see his feet kick up as he hit the hole, but he continued to ride the hole in his boat until it finally capsized and spit him out. That was the high point of Kirk's trip, doing such a great job of riding the hole.

Jeff, Dave and Butch ... the kitchen crew for Night #2 

On our last day, we ran Slide, in Blue Canyon, the last of four distinct canyons, and it was still a factor. We rowed up to it, and we could see a series of standing waves. The first one wasn't that big, but the second one had a big collapsing crown, and you had to hit it perfectly square with as much momentum as possible. Our first boat through made it fine, and I ran second, and it felt like we were climbing a skyscraper on that second wave, it swallowed the full length of our 16-foot boat, and we hovered on the precipice for a split-second as I pushing on the oars as hard as I could. We popped over the top finally and made it through for a thrilling ride. A solo boat party was watching us in the eddy, but unfortunately, they didn't get any pictures.

Below Slide, you run a few rapids and you arrive at the confluence with the Snake River in Hells Canyon. We often will meet a jet boat at the confluence to take us back to Pittsburg Landing. But this year, we went about 3 miles downriver and camped in Hells Canyon for our last night, giving us plenty of time to de-rig our boats at our leisure until the jet boat came to pick us up the next morning. The jet boat shuttle saves time, but it is kind of expensive ... I think it was about $1350 for our group. We feel it's worth it to reduce the drive time home. But you can float down to Heller Bar and then you'll be driving home from Lewiston. Either way works!

Anyway, consider a Lower Salmon trip sometime to enjoy a week of river bliss. Once you do that, you'll keep coming back again and again.
- SS

General deer season opens Saturday; Try to squeeze in a fall cast-and-blast float trip

Hunting season is upon us! General deer season opens on Saturday statewide.
Scott Smay is pictured here on the edge of the Frank Church Wilderness. 

Put bright colors on your dogs if you take them in the woods
during hunting season. 

Rick Gerrard enjoys catching fish while soaking in the grandeur of Hells Canyon. 

Steve hauls in a fall chinook while Huck inspects the prize. 

Black bears scout for berries in the hackberry trees in Hells Canyon.

South Fork Snake River in summer mode ... 

Wendy on a side hike on the Middle Fork in October ...
We had the whole river canyon to ourselves for a week! 

Hi all,

Well, the endless summer in Idaho is coming to a close as the days get shorter, the temperatures drop more steeply at night, and the calendar clicks into October. Fall general rifle hunting seasons also are kicking in on Saturday, Oct. 10th, with the opening of general deer season in many parts of Idaho, and general rifle elk season will follow close behind on Oct. 15 (McCall unit) or Oct. 25 (Weiser unit) or Nov. 1st (Boise unit). See the Idaho Fish and Game regulations for details.

Summer-like weather in the afternoons in October can be marvelous, however, so it's tempting to continue your fall hiking, biking, backpacking, and mountain-climbing trips amid the throngs of hunters. Be smart and wear hunter orange and put some bright colors on your puppies to protect yourself.

I'd also recommend trying to squeeze in a late-season float trip on the Lower Salmon River, Middle Fork Salmon, Main Salmon or Hells Canyon to fish and hunt chukars, if you're so inclined. This has been an annual tradition for me since the late 1980s, and it's always a great time. In Hells Canyon last weekend, the fish were biting big-time, and there were lots of chukars running around on the Oregon and Idaho sides of the river. We caught tons of small-mouth bass and rainbow trout and four members of our group caught a big fall chinook salmon.

In a matter of days, the steelhead will be running stronger up the Salmon River and Snake River, so you could add these beautiful ocean-going fish to the list of fish you might catch. If you have people in your group who carry big-time fish tackle for sturgeon, that'd be another potential prize to pursue.

From the standpoint of trip logistics, it's easiest to put together a Lower Salmon or Hells Canyon trip in SW Idaho. For those who live near Stanley, Salmon or Idaho Falls, a Main Salmon trip would be easier to pull off, but it also would take more days to do the 80-mile trip. The South Fork Snake River is another great fall trip near Idaho  Falls, where you can fly fish for trout and maybe find a grouse in the woods above camp.

Here are some basics on the fall river trips:

• Hells Canyon - Put in a Hells Canyon Dam and float to Pittsburg Landing, a distance of about 35 miles. This trip is easily doable in three or four days. Take as much time as possible. Only self-issue permits are required, available at the web site. Shuttles can be arranged through Scotty's gas station in Pine, Oregon for $160 cash. They do a marvelous job! 
• Lower Salmon Canyon - Float from Hammer Creek to Heller Bar or arrange for a jet boat shuttle to Pittsburg Landing from the mouth of the Salmon. It's almost 50 miles from Hammer Creek to the mouth of the Salmon, and the river is running very low (3,500 cfs), so allow for plenty of time to do your float. Fishing is limited to small-mouth bass and steelhead in this section. 
• Salmon River near Riggins - If you don't have time to do a longer trip, you could put in at Carey Creek or Vinegar Creek and float down to Riggins while fishing for steelhead and hunting chukars. 
• Middle Fork Salmon - Arrange a fly-in to Indian Creek or Middle Fork Lodge area and float the Middle Fork in October. Pick up a river permit on recreation.gov. I've done solo one-boat trip on the Middle Fork in October with Wendy, and also smaller group trips. Fly fishing for cutthroat trout really turns on in the sunny afternoons. Also can hunt chukars. Here's a previous blog post on a late-season Middle Fork trip. Keep an eye out for black bears! A floater got attacked in the last week by a hungry bear! We saw six black bears on our trip in Hells Canyon.   
• South Fork Snake River - Put in at Palisades Dam for the long version of the float or at Swan Valley and float to the takeout at Heise. The South Fork Lodge in Swan Valley does shuttles.  Check with the experts on what kinds of flies the fish are taking. The cuts on the South Fork get fished very hard by a steady stream of outfitters every day. By this time of year, it's more locals than outfitters. Here's a blog post I did on the South Fork two years ago. The South Fork is also good for seeing moose and bald eagles.   

Have fun and enjoy the fall!
- SS

Capitalize on early snowmelt! Hit the rivers early, plan more trips in the mountains

Staircase isn't going to get huge this year, but the runoff is happening now! 

South Fork Boise is expected to turn on after Memorial Day weekend.

The Cabarton run won't have boatable flows until 2nd week of June ...  

Black Creek Rapids on the Salmon River. The Salmon is peaking early this year ... 

Hi all,

Unseasonably warm weather this spring is melting the mountain snowpack earlier than normal, which means that the higher-elevation backcountry trails will be opening up sooner than normal, and our whitewater rivers will peak sooner than normal ... in fact, some of them are peaking right now!

You've heard farmers talk about how everything is early this year -- early snowmelt, early planting, the onset of irrigation season, etc., etc. Everything is about a month ahead of normal. The same is true in the mountains. I was struck how quickly the snow was melting in the upper story of the mountains when I was up in Cascade and McCall last week. The snow level was about 7,000 feet.

Morels! Yum yum! 

And in case, you haven't heard, it's morel-picking season, too! All of the rain in the forecast in the coming weeks should prolong the morel season.

So this week's outdoor tip is a reminder that the early snowmelt offers an opportunity to squeeze in more camping, hiking, biking, backpacking, whitewater or flatwater boating trips than you might be able to do otherwise. Maximize on outdoor fun!



For river floaters, it's important to get out there and enjoy the rivers right now! Here are the latest conditions and forecasts:

• Payette River - The South Fork is running about 2,000 cubic feet per second, with a 500 cfs bump from the Deadwood River. Good flows for the South Fork Canyon and Staircase section. The Middle Fork has already peaked, and it's at a great level right now for SUPs, IKs, small rafts, canoes and kayaks. Main Payette is 3,500 cfs at Banks, the equivalent of a typical summer flow. The North Fork Payette is running low right now, but it's expected to come up to 1,300 cfs or more by the mid-June. 
• South Fork Boise River - The Bureau of Reclamation will ramp up the South Fork to 1,600-1,700 cfs after Memorial Day weekend.  
• Salmon River - The Salmon is running about 25,000 cfs at Whitebird. It's probably not going to get much bigger unless it really rains hard in the next couple of weeks. The National Weather Service does predict an above-average chance of wet weather in the next 10-14 days. 
• Middle Fork Salmon River - It's running at 4 feet at the moment, and expected to climb toward 5 feet next week, if they get more rain. The Middle Fork is expected to hit 2 feet on the gauge by mid-July. August trips will be rocky and low.  
• Lochsa River - Recent wet weather brought the Lochsa up to 5+ feet on the gauge. Go get it while you can! There isn't much snow left in the Selway high country. 

See the USGS Idaho River Flows web site for all of the rivers statewide.  

Camping - Car-camping in the North Fork of the Boise River areas near Idaho City and in the Middle Fork of the Boise River areas is doable anytime. The Boise National Forest will be opening campgrounds in those areas next week prior to Memorial Day weekend. 

Car-camping in the Middle Fork Payette River area or in the Stolle Meadows area near Cascade is all free of snow and available for dispersed, self-support camping. Check with the Forest Service on full-service campgrounds. 

Most of the Lake Cascade State Park campgrounds are open now. Camping areas in Ponderosa State Park are still closed. Lower-elevation sites like Three Island Crossing and Bruneau Dunes State Park are great for spring camping, and day use sites like Eagle Island State Park and Thousand Springs are great places to visit, too!  

See the Idaho Statesman's roundup on campground openings, etc., from their camping guide published today. 

Nearby Forest Service trailheads - Lower-elevation trails are open now, such as Cottonwood Creek trail near Arrowrock Reservoir, Station Creek trail near Garden Valley, the One Spoon trail near Crouch, and the Eagle's Nest Trail near Cascade. Check with the local ranger district offices to check on trail conditions before you go.

In the Wood River Valley, the Croy Creek trails near Hailey are open, Greenhorn-Mahoney Loop is open, Adams Gulch trails are open, and higher-elevation trails are still closed. See the Blaine County Summer Trails Link for more information. Most trails in the Sawtooth Valley are still closed but there are a few exceptions near Redfish Lake.

In the McCall area, I've heard that the Bear Basin Trails, Payette Rim Trail and the Jug Mountain Trails are open. Trails in Ponderosa State Park are open as well. Higher-elevation trails are still closed by snow.

Looking ahead to June, you might want to plan some backpacking trips in the high country ... things should be melted out by then, and you can get a jump on your summer season!  

Have fun!
- SS 

Here's a way to beat the heat and avoid the smoke: Cool off in the Salmon River

Jim Lafferty runs Split Rock Rapids between the two big mollars 

Putting on the sunscreen to start the river day ... Blackadar Camp 

My boys Drew and Quinn love the Salmon River ...
Quinn's friend Dakota is in the background ... 

Dakota and Quinn found a great cliff-jumping rock
at Swimming Hole campsite. 

Sun tarps help create shade next to the water's edge ... 

Shade is premium on a hot afternoon on the Salmon River. This is California Bar. 

If you're lucky, you might see some bighorn sheep!  

Black Creek Rapids ... left-hand run was smooth but steep 

Buckskin Bill's little castle 

Hi all, 

We just returned from a 7-day trip on the famed Main Salmon - River of No Return section in Central Idaho. I heartily recommend cooling off in the Salmon River this summer to beat the heat and to avoid the smoke from wildfires burning in the Garden Valley area and elsewhere in the region.  

Who go? The Main Salmon is arguably one of the best family wilderness whitewater vacations in America. And it's located right here in our home state in Central Idaho. You camp on spacious beaches with lots of shade afforded by tall stately ponderosa pine trees. You get to play on the river during the day, and then you can set up the volleyball net on the beach, play bocce ball, hang out and enjoy the scenery, and more. Plus, there's hot springs, history, and Buckskin Bill's, where you can buy fresh ice cream for your kids.

River trips are one of the cushiest forms of camping you can imagine. Instead of hauling all of your food and clothes on your back such as in backpacking, the raft carries all the weight. You can bring iced coolers with just about any food items you want, plus you can carry plenty of favorite beverages for the kids and adults.

As you're enjoying the float trip during the week, the members of your floating party bond and get to know each other on a much more personal basis. You will make lifelong friends on the river. And you will fall in love with the river canyon. 

The Main Salmon is best suited for families and intermediate boaters because the rapids are not as hard to navigate as they are on more technically challenging rivers. Follow an experienced boater down the river, and you'll learn a ton. But once you learn how to run a boat, you'll want one of your own. 

For the do-it-yourself boating community, the hardest part of getting on the Main Salmon River is drawing a permit. A friend of ours drew a permit for our group for this year's trip. You could still score a permit for this summer by picking up a cancelation on recreation.gov. Check the site several times a day for the best results. 

The second way to book a river trip is to go with an outfitter. Idaho is blessed with a multitude of quality outfitters. As longtime businesses operated on Idaho's best rivers, the outfitters receive an allocation of permits for their trips. So you don't need to draw a permit to go with them. You just have to pay the trip fee, which is usually about $1,500 per person. Go to the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association web site, and shop for an outfitted river trip. 

Another option is to float the Lower Salmon River below Whitebird to Hells Canyon. This section of river is a great trip for kids and families, and nothing more than a self-issue permit is needed. This is a 4- or 5-day trip, depending on how fast you want to go.

A trip on the Salmon River - River of No Return should be on the bucket list of every outdoorsy Idahoan. If you haven't done that yet, look for opportunities to experience this trip-of-a-lifetime. 
- SS

It's getting hot - time to break out the paddling gear and float your favorite Idaho Rivers

South Fork Canyon "hang on!" 

North Fork Payette River, Class 5 section 

Mixmaster, Main Payette 

Go Left Rapids, Main Payette 

Main Payette, Bennett Rock Rapids  

Hi all,

The mercury is rising as if it's late June, even though it's early May. Temperatures are supposed to be in the mid-80s on Saturday and hit 90 on Sunday. Time to break out the paddling gear and go boating - either flatwater touring or whitewater kayaking or rafting.

I was up on the Payette River on Wednesday, and the water is coming up fast. The main Payette was running 4,350 cfs today (Thursday), the South Fork "Staircase" section 2,400+ cfs, the South Fork "Canyon" 1,620 cfs, the North Fork 1,140 at Banks, and the Middle Fork Tie Creek section 800+ cfs.

That's plenty of water for a good time on any those Payette River sections, plus Cabarton south of Cascade, or one could run the Upper Payette from Grand Jean down to Kirkham Hot Springs. I'm planning on taking some soccer kids on the Main Payette on Sunday afternoon.

If you've got your own gear, you know the drill! Gather up some friends, gear up and go.

If not, you can rent paddling gear from Idaho River Sports, Alpenglow Mountainsport or Boise Army Navy in Boise, or you can book a paddle-boat trip with an outfitter -- both Cascade Raft and Kayak and Bear Valley Outfitters are ready to roll.

Make sure you wear a life jacket
on the Payette River. 

If you rent the gear, and don't know the Payette River very well, consider buying my trusty guidebook, "Paddling the Payette," which provides a detailed guide to all of the rapids on the Payette River and all of the flatwater trips as well. Many people don't realize that there is more flatwater boating on the Payette, than whitewater. My guide tells you where to find 14 flatwater adventures, and 10 whitewater trips. It costs $12.95, and it's available for sale online, or you can buy individual paddling trips for 99 cents each online.

If you like to go inflatable kayaking, but you don't have your own IK, you can rent one, or you can book an IK trip with Cascade Raft and Kayak on Saturdays. They're offering a special on IK trips. Inquire with Cascade for details on rates and times available.

On Sunday, the Idaho Canoe SUP Club, an offshoot of Idaho River Sports, is hosting the ever-popular Mother's Day float on the Middle Fork of the Payette River "Tie Creek" section, upstream of Crouch. This is a beautiful 9-mile float trip on flatwater, with eddies and current. It's suitable for canoes, inflatable kayaks and small rafts. Here's a previous blog entry with photos all about the Middle Fork trip.

If you'd like to go on the Middle Fork trip, and you don't have a boat, IRS is offering a special of $35 for either a canoe or IK rental for the day. You'd need to pick up your craft on Saturday afternoon to do the trip on Sunday. Call 336-4844 for more information. The canoe club group is meeting at the park in Crouch at 10 a.m. to set shuttle vehicles, before heading up to the Tie Creek Campground to launch the trip.
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Calling all cyclists! Look ahead to Boise Bike Week next week. Check out a fun-filled calendar of events from Monday through Saturday of next week. At minimum, make an extra effort to commute by bicycle to work or the store next week, and try to attend as many events as possible to support cycling in our pro-cycling community.
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The Coyote Classic bike race and fun ride are coming up Saturday at Avimor. If you've always wanted to check out the course, but don't care for racing, they are offering a no-drop group ride on Saturday as well. You'll need to sign up for the event in advance to participate. Avimor has a ton of cool trails to check out, including a number of new trails. This would be a good opportunity to experience them.
----------------------------------------
In case you were wondering, the North Fork Championships is coming back this year on June 6, 7 and 8. See their Facebook page for more details.

Have fun!
- SS

Lots of things to do over Labor Day weekend; What sounds best for you? Avoiding the smoke Part III

Fire/smoke map from NASA dated Aug. 28, 2012

Hi all,

We've got a three-day weekend coming up for Labor Day weekend, and there are lots of fun things going on in SW Idaho. With three major wildfires burning well over 100,000 acres each, the big challenge still is trying to avoid the smoke. We might call this week's post "Avoiding the Smoke - Part III."

Two weeks ago, I recommended Priest Lake, N. Idaho bike trails and McCall. Last week, I recommended some spots in the West Central Mountains and provided a number of useful, if not critical resources for determining where it may not be as smoky in SW Idaho and Central Idaho.

Here's Irene on the summit of 12,140-foot Mount Breitenbach

Thanks to Facebook, I am noticing that a lot of people are boldly going where they want to go regardless of the smoke! Watch for an upcoming column soon on Irene Vogel, who is climbing all of the 12,000-foot peaks in Idaho in one field season! I think most, if not all of those peaks are in the Pioneer Mountains and the Lost River Range. Her pictures look kind of smoky, but the high peaks appear pretty clear. She's going for the summit of Leatherman Peak this weekend to finish off her journey. Go Irene!

Fires burning slowly on the bank of the Salmon River ... no big deal! (courtesy Ted Kielley) 

I also saw that Ted Kielley did a week-long trip on the Main Salmon in various amounts of smoke and haze, but he felt that it was a trip of a lifetime! I put out a news release for the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association last week, pointing out that Middle Fork trips are still happening without incident, the road is still open to Boundary Creek, and outfitters like Mystic Saddle Ranch is still offering horseback trail rides in the upper Wood River Valley and the Sawtooths, and guests are happy! 

"We are fully open for our trail rides, and there are no fires burning in the Sawtooths," says Deb Bitton, co-owner of Mystic Saddle Ranch. "I was at our corrals in the upper Wood River Valley yesterday, and it was a glorious day with no smoke in the air. There's still a lot of good fishing to be had in the high mountain lakes."

I think the main thing to remember is that "Conditions are changing on a daily basis." 

Leo Hennessy, who is a trip leader for the Idaho Outdoors Yahoo Group, has been traveling to different places every weekend for the last month. "I'm trying to thread the needle of smoke and haze between Sun Valley, Stanley and McCall, and all I can say is, "It changes day to day. It seems to be the most clear around McCall and Lick Creek, and that's where I'm going this weekend." 

Leo is going with a group that's backpacking into the Prince Lakes. It's very steep and challenging, trip leaders forewarn. If you'd like to tag along, see the invite on Idaho Outdoors.

He Devil Peak (courtesy Summit Post)

Pete Zimowsky asked four guidebook authors for their recommendations on high alpine lakes to explore this fall in the Statesman, and those folks recommended a number of hikes in the Bighorn Crags, Sawtooths, Seven Devils and Pioneers. Smoke-wise, I think the Seven Devils might be the best bet this weekend.
Smoke considerations aside, all of the popular campgrounds at Redfish Lake are open. See the Sawtooth National Recreation Area web site for a full report. Another good spot might be the Bear Valley and Elk Creek areas north of Lowman. That's a great spot for camping,  canoeing and wildlife-watching.  

Blue Lake near Snowbank Mountain (courtesy Dave Williams, from Boise Trail Guide)

Another option this weekend might be to go camping in the Lake Cascade area and take in the bluegrass festival in Round Valley nearby. You also could go hiking to Blue Lake or on the high ridge by Snowbank Mountain (you can drive to the top), go biking on the Eagle's Nest Trail (get free sample  trail/map download from my book Mountain Biking in McCall), or go boating on the Cabarton stretch of the North Fork Payette River. 

Well, hopefully these ideas will provide inspiration this weekend. If  you're stuck in town, I bet a ton of people will go to the Barley Brothers beer fest in Meridian Friday and Saturday. And plus, there are a number of great Labor Day sales at Boise's outdoor retailers. Idaho Mountain Touring, Boise REI, Greenwood's, McU Sports, Alpenglow Mountain Sport and Idaho River Sports all have some fantastic clothing and gear on sale right now. Great deals! 

Have fun! 
-- SS