Three of us — and my new dog, Laddie — stood at the top of Sawtooth in the midst of the proposed wilderness last Saturday (August 28th), an internationally flavored group if there ever was one. Daniele Puccinelli is an Italian who lives in Switzerland visiting the US. Fellow hiker Kaca is from the Czech Republic, living in Canada and lining up to move to Portugal soon. Waiting below were Richard (from New York, New York); Gwen, a transplanted Brit living in Creston, and Chic, photographer extraordinaire and world traveler. And, of course, there was me, your basic Montanan/American with …
Roughly 60 miles south of Canada, the 88,000 acre Scotchman Peaks roadless area spans the Idaho-Montana border. Since the 1970s, when the U.S. Forest Service carried out extensive evaluations of lands suitable for wilderness, this rugged, scenic and biologically diverse portion of the Cabinet Mountains has been managed for its wilderness potential. The Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness believe now is the time to preserve the Scotchmans, one of the last, and largest, wild areas in our region.
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3000th Friend is due in August. Will you sign them up?
August 7th, 2010We are seeking our 3,000th Friend of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness, and we know we will meet them in August. We just don’t know – yet – who they are, or who will welcome them as a new Friend.
Two of our biggest opportunities to make new Friends and get our message to literally hundreds of people are just around the corner: the Trout Creek Huckleberry Festival (August 13-15) and the Bonner County Fair (August 24-28). Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness will have a booth at both of these multiday events staffed by volunteers, board members and staff.
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July 31 Yaak Wilderness Festival was a winner.
August 2nd, 2010Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness program coordinator Sandy Compton took the opportunity on July 31 to meet Lincoln County Friends, catch some rays and listen to some stellar music at the Yaak Valley Forest Council’s 7th annual Wilderness Festival.
“The things I have to do for the Friends,” Compton complained, tongue firmly planted in his cheek. “I’ve attended the Festival before, but I’ve never been to Turner, and I think I’ll force myself to come back . . . probably in January or February . . . or both.”
Music for the Festival was provided by Alan Lane, Wise River Mercantile and …
Serial work days improve the Big Eddy/Pillick Ridge connection
July 28th, 2010Over the course of three days in July, two of the trails leading to Star Peak overlooking Bull River, the Clark Fork valley and Lake Pend Oreille got a makeover, applied by Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness volunteers and the Forest Service. But, the first day was separated from the other two by two weeks.
Joel Sather of the FS leads the way up Trail #998 as FSPW volunteer Jake Ostman removes a chunk of blowdown from the trail. (Photo courtesy Jacob Styer)
Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness and Forest Service personnel add up to a job well done.
June 21st, 2010A total of seventeen Friends from Sandpoint, Spokane, Hayden, Noxon and even Utah showed up Saturday, June 19 to help put Scotchman Peak Trail #65 “back in order” for the hiking season. Last fall, a microburst storm uprooted dozens of trees along the trail, crisscrossing the tread with many blowdowns. FSPW volunteers Jim and Sandii Mellen cleared much of the trail just after the storm. With a Forest Service saw team leading the way, a work crew from Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness cleared the rest of the blowdowns, as well as maintaining waterbars and rebuilding tread, particularly in the …
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New Montana Wilderness Legislation
By now most everyone has heard about the legislation recently introduced by Senator Jon Tester (D-Montana), which includes almost 700,000 acres of wilderness. This message to the Friends of Scotchman Peaks will attempt to answer some common questions and provide links to more …
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