Connections with nature continued through 2020 | Environment

After the National Weather Service issued numerous red flag warnings for south-central Idaho in July, the Wood River Valley moved into “very high fire danger” in mid-August.

In September and October, the Badger Fire tore through over 90,000 acres in Twin Falls and Cassia counties, fed by grass, timber and logging slash.

The Grouse Fire, ignited northwest of Fairfield in early September, burned through about 4,000 acres along the boundary of the Sawtooth and Boise national forests. In the Sawtooth National Forest, the Trap Creek Fire about 10 miles outside of Stanley burned through about 2,600 acres of lodgepole pine, necessitating a road closure on state Highway 21 after trees engulfed in flame fell on the highway. Both the Grouse and Trap Creek fires were declared contained by late September, with the Badger Fire following in October.

In July, August and September, a deep haze settled into the valley from eastward-traveling smoke, which came from a number of devastating wildfires in California, Oregon and Washington. The Wood River Valley saw intermittent clear, blue-sky days, but air quality changed drastically with slight changes in wind behavior. At times, the sky took on pale yellow and red hues; meanwhile, the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality issued frequent health and air pollution cautions, encouraging people to stay inside amid degraded air quality.

After a cold, dry spring, severe drought conditions and low flows on the Big Wood River resulted in widespread crop and pasture loss throughout the basin. In July, the National Integrated Drought Information System began displaying severe drought conditions in Bellevue, Hailey and Ketchum; that rating was upgraded to “extreme” in September.

Starting in May, the Big Wood River continually hit record lows. The river in Ketchum recorded its lowest-ever flows for the dates every day in September, according to U.S. Geological Survey data. The low water year had troubling implications for trout. Hit by high water temperatures, historically low flows and ongoing drought, the Silver Creek Preserve reported an increase in physiological stress to its trout in the summer.

The local Hemingway chapter of Trout Unlimited was able to rescue over 12,900 stranded trout between June and October. On a single day in October, the organization saved 2,460 rainbow and brown trout in Bellevue, gathering them in 50-foot nets in the Diversion 45 canal at Howard Preserve and relocating them upstream into the Big Wood River using buckets.

A human-caused dewatering incident in early September along the East Fork of the Big Wood River attracted much speculation. As it turned out, a property owner on Hyndman View Drive drew enough water to fill a private pond, causing a 3-mile stretch of the channel to go dry for over 24 hours. The incident resulted in a significant trout die-off and was captured by U.S. Geological Survey data. Later in the fall, the Idaho Department of Water Resources concluded that the diversion was unauthorized.

Irrigators in the Wood River Valley and Snake River Plain were perhaps hardest hit by the summer drought and low flows. Surface water rights in the Bellevue Triangle and south of Magic Reservoir were rapidly curtailed. Magic Reservoir shut off a month early, and many farmers south of the reservoir had to switch to growing early-season grains. Others faced dismal crop yields.

The drought, however, led to more discourse among farmers and ranchers around collectively managing groundwater and surface water in the Big and Little Wood River basins. A newly formed advisory committee met in Shoshone for the first time in November, focusing on solutions, particularly for senior surface water users south of Magic Reservoir.

A bustling Memorial Day weekend marked the beginning of unprecedented traffic into the Sawtooth Valley, with tourists and locals flocking to national forest lands and nearby rivers in search of freedom from isolation. In May and June, local outfitters and fly-fishing shops reported major increases in hunting and fishing trip and license sales.

While the surge of out-of-staters—mostly from Utah, California and Oregon—and more regional travelers boosted local business and drove up the demand for mountain bikes and camping gear, it wasn’t entirely positive. Rangers came across hundreds of pounds of trash at campsites and had to put out unattended campfires, sometimes up to 60 per week, amid high fire danger.

The summer spike in travelers led to trailhead parking jams, motorcycles on nonmotorized trails and human waste issues, according to Ketchum District Ranger Kurt Nelson. Thanks to the Sawtooth National Recreation Area’s fall cleanup in September and October, however, campsites were rehabilitated back to their pre-pandemic state.

In January, a 12-pound domestic cat in Hailey became one of 2020’s first victims of mountain lion attacks on pets in the Wood River Valley. Lions out and about in early January, an unusual phenomenon, sparked public-service announcements from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

In the summer, reports of close encounters with bears, moose and mountain lions along trails in the Wood River Valley prompted the department to remind hikers and bikers to keep their distance from big game species. Bears in particular ran into trouble in 2020. After emerging from their winter dens in April, several bears found quick, high-calorie meals in residential trash cans and at campsites, becoming what Fish and Game termed “nuisance animals.” In response, the Sawtooth National Recreation Area issued an order in the spring requiring campers to store food in bear-proof containers.

In early August, a juvenile bear out East Fork was euthanized by Fish and Game after establishing a pattern of eating from residential garbage bins, bird feeders and beehives, leading to an outcry among some homeowners. Conservation officers reported garbage containers left at curbside and bird feeders hanging around homes in East Fork, but several residents told a different story.

On a happier note, Fish and Game successfully treated and radio-collared a sick cow moose in Hailey last month. The cow, thought to have a severe case of conjunctivitis, has been seen multiple times crossing the Hailey Albertsons parking lot with her calf. Fish and Game also rescued a large bull elk from certain drowning this summer after its antlers became entangled in a hammock caught in the river.

Early in 2020, the Wood River Land Trust acquired a new preserve in Hailey thanks to a grant from the national Land Trust Alliance and support from the Simons/Bauer family. The goal of the Simons-Bauer preserve is to connect the Big Wood River north of Draper Preserve with its natural floodplain at Lions Park and further west to the Croy Creek wetlands. On the public access front, the Land Trust is looking to construct an elevated boardwalk and several nature trails that would link Lions Park to the Mountain Humane parking lot. Simons-Bauer preserve should be open within the year.

In September, the Blaine County commissioners gave the Land Trust the green light to pursue its Colorado Gulch Preserve restoration project. Work will involve re-creating a historic side channel on the east side of the river, excavating riprap and reconnecting the river to its natural floodplain. The Land Trust also began looking at different replacement options for the Colorado Gulch bridge, including a 500-foot suspension bridge from the preserve’s parking area to the original bridge site.

In December, the Land Trust officially acquired the home and property of longtime Colorado Gulch resident Jill Bryson, who passed away about a year ago. Bryson’s property on the north side of Colorado Gulch Road will add nearly three acres to the 150-acre preserve and could be renovated into an educational center with classrooms and restroom facilities in the near future.

One restoration project proposed by the Land Trust stalled in 2020. The Sun Peak project—designed to restore the health of the now-dry Hulen Meadows pond and adjacent Big Wood River—faced a mix of support and backlash last year in a series of meetings attended by dozens of residents. Proposed upgrades for the Hulen Meadows pond area included a new drop-off point, a parking area and restroom facilities, as well as infrastructure to connect floodplain habitat.