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  • 标题:SOAK UP SOME HOLIDAY SOGGINESS
  • 作者:Rich Landers The Spokesman-Review
  • 期刊名称:Spokesman Review, The (Spokane)
  • 出版年度:1996
  • 卷号:May 23, 1996
  • 出版社:Cowles Publishing Co.

SOAK UP SOME HOLIDAY SOGGINESS

Rich Landers The Spokesman-Review

Water will play a major role for the Memorial Day holiday, the traditional weekend for many families to begin their camping and mosquito-swatting season.

For example:

There's too much water for safe canoeing and rafting in many North Idaho rivers.

There's too little water in Lake Roosevelt to launch a boat and all but a handful of boat ramps. Bureau of Reclamation officials said they're making room for the flood of runoff about to begin pouring out of Canadian mountains.

A small part of the Sam Owen Campground at the north end of Lake Pend Oreille is too soggy to be opened.

Super-saturated soils have cut loose in landslides since November, blocking some Forest Roads that give access to prime recreation areas.

With so much water gushing downstream, several rivers have not been stocked with trout for Saturday's opening of stream fishing in North Idaho.

Other than that, life in the outdoors will be as normal as it was before eight years of drought allowed us to forget that Memorial Day weekend is a traditionally watery time of year.

The bears are struggling with this turn of events, too. Foraging for food in the mountains has been difficult since they crawled out of their winter dens. Their normal food sources have been buried under a considerable snowpack.

Perhaps that's the reason for this week's first confirmed sighting of a grizzly bear in Spokane County. Almost surely it's the reason for increased sightings of black bears in Colville National Forest campgrounds.

"Bears are coming into campgrounds where we haven't usually had bear problems," said forest spokeswoman Diana Baxter. "It's not unusual to have some bear problems at Sullivan Lake, but this year we've had reports of bears at Gillette Lake and other places. Campers need to be aware of keeping their food and garbage put away this weekend."

None of this talk of bears, high water and landslides should scare you off from going camping this weekend.

Indeed, the tent-camping area at Seven Bays on Lake Roosevelt was full on Wednesday, and only about five RV sites were unclaimed. The area is attractive even though a four-wheel drive vehicle is required to launch a boat.

The only sure launching sites at Roosevelt today are at Keller Ferry and Hunters. But the Bureau of Reclamation said it's possible the water level could rise to 1,238 feet by Saturday, which would make launching possible at the popular recreation areas at Spring Canyon, which requires 1,234 feet, and Porcupine Bay, which requires 1,238.

Updates on Roosevelt water levels are available by calling (800) 824-4916.

One of the disastrous impacts of two-income households is that there's no one in the family who can leave on Thursday to stake out a campsite for the Memorial Day Weekend.

Some people get around this hassle by making reservations. About 75 campsites have been reserved for this weekend at Farragut State Park. That leaves about 100 campsites open on a first-come, first-served basis.

The status of forest roads changes daily. A landslide has closed Forest Road 302 between Priest Lake and Sullivan Lake via Pass Creek Pass. But the road could be open by Friday, Priest Lake Ranger District officials said.

Trout Creek Road west of Bonners Ferry was open 16 days ago. A rock slide closed it in a blink of an eye. But the Bunco Road to Whiskey Rock Campground on Lake Pend Oreille, which was blocked last week, has been cleared.

Drivers still can't get over Moon Pass from Wallace to the St. Joe River.

A washout has closed the St. Joe River Road 13 miles upstream from Avery.

That means you have to drive up the St. Joe River from St. Maries if you want to reach Packsaddle, Tin Can, Turner or Squaw Creek campgrounds. But you'll have to go from St. Regis, Mont., over Gold Pass if you're headed to Conrad Crossing, Fly Flat, Beaver Creek or Spruce Tree campgrounds.

But be warned: The road over Gold Pass, and particularly the road to Red Ives, are in bad shape and not recommended for RVs or horse trailers.

On the other hand, there's a good slate of NBA playoff games on TV this weekend.

Hold those fish: Streams scheduled to be stocked with trout in the Idaho Panhandle include the Coeur d'Alene River from the Little North Fork to Graham Creek and from Jupiter Creek to Devil's Elbow; the Little North Fork of the Coeur d'Alene from Bumblebee Campground to milepost 6; the North and South forks of the Coeur d'Alene; the St. Joe River from Huckleberry to Turner Flat; the North Fork of the St. Joe from Squaw Creek to Loop Creek; the St. Maries River from Clarkia to Mashburn; plus Marble Creek and the Moyie River.

But the 7,000 rainbows normally stocked before the Memorial Day weekend are being held at the hatchery until high waters subside.

About 43,000 rainbows are earmarked for stocking in the streams this summer.

Copyright 1996 Cowles Publishing Company
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.

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