Island Park Idaho - Hotel, Lodging, Recreation, and Fishing

Island Park Reservoir may get 750,000 Fish

Harold — Sat, 20 Jan 2007 23:58:01 +0000

By Jill Margetts

Channel 8 News

Idaho Fish and Game is thinking about planting 750,000 fish in a local reservoir.

“Island Park has been a place where folks like to fish and in the future for their family,” said Idaho Fish and Game Public Information Officer Gregg Losinski.

Family fun is suffering on the Island Park Reservoir and so is the fishing ever since the onset of the most recent drought in 2000. “If there’s no water, the fish are going to have a hard time,” said Loskinski.

On average, Island Park Reservoir is about 45 percent full going into the winter. But from 2001 through 2003, its average was only 11 percent.

Authorities believe now that the water levels are improving, it’s time to rebuild the fishery.

One plan that Fish and Game is considering is to plant 750,000 fish in the reservoir before this summer. The positive part of this plan, more good tasting fish for people to catch. The negative side, “They don’t have the budget to do it, so other reservoirs will suffer by not getting fish planted in them.”

Another idea, to place a fish called a splake in the reservoir, which is a cross between a brook trout and a lake trout. The good thing about a splake, it has an appetite for junk fish.

So all you fisherman, keep crossing your fingers that this year will be a good fishing year in Island Park. Most of the fish the department may stock will be rainbow trout.

Snow Dumps on Island Park US 20 Closed

Harold — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 15:04:34 +0000

By Local News 8

People are starting to dig out from an overnight snowstorm that left some areas with up to 7 inches of snow.

Idaho Falls was hit the hardest with totals ranging from 5 to 7 inches. Downtown Pocatello is seeing 2 to 3 inches of snow with 5 inches in the bench areas. Blackfoot is reporting 1 to 2 inches of snow. Rexburg saw up to 2 inches.

Several highways are closed in the Island Park area including US 20 from Harriman State Park to the Montana Line. State Highways 32 between Ashton and Tetonia, State Highway 87 between Henry’s Lake and the Montana border.

Schools were closed in Fremont County because of the snow conditions.

Temperatures are falling and should stay in the single digits most of the day. Winds are expected to increase to 10 to 15 miles per hour with gusts up to 20 mph making wind chills well below zero.

Overnight wind chills may go as low as 20 to 35 degrees below zero. At those temperatures, it takes only 30 minutes for frost bite to set in on exposed flesh.

Keep checking with www.localnews8.com for the latest conditions.

Fremont County Considers Cabin Ordinance

Harold — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 14:57:16 +0000

ISLAND PARK, Idaho (AP) — Fremont County officials are working on an ordinance that would require cabin owners to get a permit before renting their homes. It’s part of an effort to better keep track of Island Park tourists, and the effects they have on the area. County officials say the area’s 100-plus cabins can sometimes be packed to the brim with tourists. Officials say they sometimes violate health and safety laws, and raise parking and noise concerns. The proposed ordinance would be subject to public hearings before commissioners vote on it.

AP-NY-01-02-07 2023EST

Utah Snowmobiler Dies In Idaho Avalanche

Harold — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 14:55:01 +0000

(KUTV)
We are learning a bit more information on the avalanche that killed a Utah man in the Idaho wilderness.

25-year-old Ryan White of Bountiful was swept away on Mount Jefferson near Island Park on Monday.

He was snowmobiling with friends at the time of the slide.

25 members of the Fremont County Search and Rescue showed up to help.

When they finally pulled white out of the snow, he was dead.

Officials believe the tracks made from his snowmobile triggered the wall of snow, estimated to be about eight feet tall and a half mile wide.

“If they only had known what the conditions were and heeded that warning chances are they wouldn’t have perished in the avalanche. That person wouldn’t be dead at this time.” said Brett Macker with Freemont County Search and Rescue.

Six other people were with White at the time of the avalanche. They were not hurt.

This is the second fatal snowmobile accident over the holiday weekend in the popular recreation area near Idaho Falls. A former Weber County man died Saturday when his snowmobile slammed into a parked car.

Moose numbers rising in Island Park, Idaho

Harold — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 14:55:32 +0000

Yellowstone Moose Numbers Dropping

November 13th, 2006

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Nasa Snow Data Helps Maintain Nation’s Largest, Oldest Bison Herd

Harold — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 20:25:25 +0000

Grainy photographs of America’s Old West recall a time when large bison herds migrated across wide prairie lands, 30 million strong, with the changing seasons determining their path and destination. Now, NASA satellite data and computer modeling and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) information are helping track the remnants of this once mighty herd in Yellowstone National Park as they migrate with the melting snowpack.

The Yellowstone bison are the only herd in lower North America to survive since prehistoric times. Hunting and later poaching dwindled their number down to fewer than 50 animals by 1902. Prior to 1700, millions of bison roamed through Montana, Wyoming and Idaho in areas that later became Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first national park. The bison herd at Yellowstone has grown to about 3,900 animals thanks to creative initiatives at the park to restore and maintain the population.

Scientists at California State University Monterey Bay (CSUMB) and Montana State University at Bozeman, and the National Park Service (NPS) have collaborated on a five-year, NASA-funded project that uses NASA satellite data and computer modeling to help park officials better understand the relationship between snow accumulation and the way it melts during the period when bison migrate between habitats at lower and higher elevations.

Every winter, the deep snow in Yellowstone drives most bison to lower elevations as they embark on their quest for food. In this search, some bison will migrate beyond the Park’s borders. When bison are outside the boundaries of Yellowstone, the management authority on the northern boundaries of Yellowstone shifts to the State of Montana. Conflicts can arise between people who value conservation of the bison and the ranch owners and others who concerned about the possible risk to nearby cattle from Brucellosis-infected bison.

An inter-agency partnership has developed a management plan to address this issue, requiring Yellowstone officials to move the animals off of private property, back onto public land, and sometimes capturing bison to prevent them from commingling with neighboring livestock.

“Our goal is to provide the latest snowpack information to park officials,” said landscape dynamics expert Fred Watson, principal investigator of the project and an assistant professor of science and environmental policy at CSUMB.. “Ecologists try to best understand how animal populations respond to the changing conditions of the landscape where they live. Snow is a very important factor in the livelihood of all wildlife species in the ecosystem, including the Yellowstone bison population,” said Watson.

The release of captive bison is timed to ensure a higher likelihood the animals will remain in the park. Knowing when and where the snow will melt is key to whether the bison will stay within park boundaries. To better inform the management team, park officials use a model of snowpack dynamics developed by Watson and his staff to provide the most up-to-date projections on snowpack distribution throughout Yellowstone’s winter range areas.

The snowpack model provides daily maps of snowpack depth and density throughout the Yellowstone landscape, in near-real time. It uses data from NASA’s Landsat satellite to describe how the snowpack is influenced by patterns of vegetation, geothermal features, and wind. Daily measurements of precipitation and temperature from USDA Snowpack Telemetry system are used to drive the model through time.

“Bison have one of the longest migrations of any large mammal in the country. The fact that they are moving to low-elevation winter ranges outside the park is actually a sign of how successful our restoration efforts have been,” said Rick Wallen, leader of the Park’s Bison Ecology and Management team. “The modeling of snowpack conditions on winter ranges provides managers a measure of how quickly a snow-covered area becomes clear during the spring melting period. We now have a much better idea when to release wild bison and expect winter ranges to become accessible for the bison during the critical late winter period.”

“The National Park Service is not a traditional user of NASA information,” said Watson. “But this is a great opportunity to use NASA technology to help the folks at Yellowstone. This project lets them know what capabilities we have and enables us to try different ways to incorporate NASA data and technology into their whole bison management program. It’s a wonderful chance to aid in wildlife management.”

Trouthunter Lodge to donate all dinner proceeds to Prahasto fund

Harold — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 15:12:26 +0000

The Trouthunter Lodge on Hwy 20 in Last Chance will host a dinner and auction at 5 p. m, Sunday, October 29 to raise money to help Genny and Jon Prahasto finish their cabin repairs and take care of other needs caused by an accident last Sunday that has left Genny seriously injured.
    Rich Paini, one of the lodge’s managers, said all money collected from the dinner guests will be given to the fund the community set up this week for the Prahastos.
    A delicious meal that will include chicken and pasta will be served for $15, adults, $10, children. Dinner will be served from 5 to 6 p. m., with the auction immediately following. Bill Smith of Bighorn Hills Estates will be the auctioneer. Everyone is asked to bring items for auction — new or used things in good condition, as well as baked goods, jam and jelly, and services.
    Genny was seriously injured in a fall when she and Jon were working on their Mack’s Inn cabin. Injuries include a broken leg, collapsed lung, and broken facial bones. She is in the East Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls.
    It is hoped that the fundraiser, as well as money donated to the fund at the Bank of Idaho, will help pay for builders to finish their Mack’s Inn cabin repairs.
    Genny is a member of the Island Park Planning and Zoning Board. She is an Island Park Library Friends Board member and past president, and was one of the people who helped bring the library to Island Park and turn it over to the Fremont County Library District. She has also been active in the Teton Regional Land Trust and the Island Park Advocates for Responsible Development. And, she has been a winter chef at the Trouthunter and a summer chef at the Flatrock Rock Club, in addition to being a chocolatier and a caterer.
    Jon is employed by the state Transportation Department.
    To donate to the fund at the bank, stop by or send a check to the Prahasto Fund, Bank of Idaho, 4128 Lodgepole Drive, Island Park, ID. 83429. To help out with the fundraiser, talk to Rich Paini at the Trouthunter, 558- 9900. Also, please make dinner reservations by calling 558-9900 so the lodge can have an idea of how many are coming.

Bring auction items to the dinner. Or, better, drop them off at the Trouthunter any time before the dinner.

IP Camp counselor to stand trial for alleged lewd conduct

Harold — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 14:15:35 +0000

IDAHO FALLS — A former counselor at the Island Park Scout Camp has been ordered to stand trial on a lewd conduct charge.

Twenty-year-old Shaundel McMurtrey is accused of having sex with a 14-year-old fellow camp staffer.

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Idaho Tax Assessor Tracking Down Cabin Owners Who Rent

Harold — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 14:07:28 +0000

ISLAND PARK, Idaho (AP) — The Fremont County tax assessor has found 86 rental cabin owners who have not been paying personal property tax that the county levies against landlords.

Alerted by competing businesses, the Fremont County tax assessor has found 86 rental cabin owners who have not been paying personal taxes.

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Beware of Grizzly Bears in Island Park area

Harold — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 14:31:36 +0000

Idaho Fish & Game says it may be very easy to stumble upon a bear wile hunting out in the high county, especially in the Island Park area.

Fish & Game also says having a hunting partner and hashing out an emergency bear plan ahead of time can help save your life.

Officials say that all hunters should be equipped with bear spray and know the instructions ahead of time.

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