Outdoors
What's there to do in the great outdoors? Here we've got a bevy of local outdoor activities and destinations to explore.
Pair do well at rifle competition
Two members of the Kootenai Valley Junior Rifle Team traveled to Spokane on Nov. 2 to participate in the first mat…
Robins happily hop along it's spring!
“The first day of Spring is one thing, and the first Spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.” — Henry Van Dyke, Fi…
The western bluebird: one of nature's finest!
Last Friday was a cloudy, rainy, chilly day and my mood matched the weather. Then I saw a western bluebird, and for the rest of the day I felt it was a “bluebi…
Wood ducks add splash of color to Boundary County
Recently I was in the Boundary Creek Wildlife Management Area at the north end of the county observing wildlife when I came across four drake wood ducks and on…
No headline
Hey bears it's time to wake up!
The manner in which humans wake up is well-documented. It usually involves half-opened eyes, messy hair, yawning, stretching, and maybe a grumble or two before…
No headline
Tundra Swans stop-over in North Idaho
Springtime is here and swans have returned to the ponds of North Idaho. The ponds at the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge currently host 40-60 and the Boundar…
Red-winged blackbirds indicate return of spring
As we enjoy spring, one of the most abundant birds across Boundary County — and one of the most boldly colored — the red-winged blackbird is a familiar sign at…
Thinking of - and wishing for - spring
“It’s spring fever. This is what the name of it is. And when you’ve got it, you want — oh, you don’t quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly make…
Hooded Merganser ducks make a handsome couple!
Last week while exploring in Boundary County I came across a handsome pair of ducks that I didn’t recognize. After taking a few pictures of them I consulted my…
The beat goes on for pileated woodpecker
Moments after the red-crested forest ghost landed on the pine tree with the suet bird feeder perhaps 50 feet away, another more distant rattling call resonated…
Bald eagles take up residence here
About three weeks ago I saw a pair of bald eagles begin to build their nest. Situated in a fork of a tree about 70 feet above the water, the building of the ne…
Spotting a great horned owl is such a hoot!
Contrary to its name, the great horned owl has no horns! It is named for the tufts of feathers that sit on top of its head, called plumicorns. Scientists don’t…
Focusing on the wily pheasant
In the winter mornings and evening in Boundary County, moose, elk, coyotes, mule deer and white-tailed deer might be seen. Ponds are frozen over and remaining …
The coyote: Clever, evasive and always hungry
“The coyote is a long, slim, sick and sorry-looking skeleton, with a gray wolf-skin stretched over it, a tolerable bushy tail that forever sags down with a des…