Learn about birds of the Pioneers
Next week, the Lava Lake Institute for Science and Conservation will partner with the Sawtooth Science Institute to offer a 2-day field ornithology class with Jay Carlisle, an experienced birder and instructor from the Idaho Bird Observatory. The science and conservation institute is a non-profit offshoot of Lava Lake Land & Livestock, a sheep ranching outfit operating near Carey.
The course will take place June 23-24. It will focus on the life history and identification of the birds within the Pioneer Mountain foothills—an area with an impressive diversity of habitats and birds, a news release from the institute states. Anyone is welcome to take part in the class.
For additional information contact Chris Gertschen of the Sawtooth Science Institute at (208) 788-9686.
Forest Service trail work planned
Officials with the Sawtooth National Forest's Ketchum Ranger District have awarded contracts for three lengthy trail reconstruction projects within the 48,520-acre Castle Rock Fire area. The trails—located in Red Warrior Creek, Warfield Creek and Eve Gulch west of Ketchum—were damaged during the late-summer blaze in 2007.
Work to reconstruct the trails will begin in mid-July, Ketchum District Ranger Kurt Nelsons said Tuesday. Nelson said a private contractor has been hired to complete the work with mechanical trail building equipment.
Land managers have selected new routes for the trails that will avoid sensitive areas. On Red Warrior Creek, there were 17 creek crossings trail users had to negotiate on the old trail, Nelson said.
St. Luke's hires new CEO from Texas
The Idaho-based St. Luke's health network has a new president and CEO, David C. Pate, M.D., J.D. Pate will join the organization in September. He will replace Ed Dahlberg, who plans to retire in March after 25 years of service.
The nonprofit St. Luke's health group operates medical centers across southern and south-central Idaho, including St. Luke's Wood River Medical Center near Ketchum and Magic Valley Medical Center in Twin Falls.
The search for a new president and CEO took 18 months.
"We are thrilled to be welcoming David and his wife Lynette to Idaho," said Larry Cope, chairman of St. Luke's Health System board of directors. "In the time I have spent with him, I have found him to be personable, thoughtful, and genuine. He clearly has the credentials, skills, and experience to successfully lead St. Luke's in the complex and evolving health care environment."
Dr. Pate is from Texas. After a career as a practicing general internal medicine specialist, he turned to hospital administration in 1995. During his career, he developed an interest in the law and received his J.D. in 1996 from the University of Houston Law Center, in Texas.
Valley athletes eligible for Hall of Fame
Olympic champion Picabo Street and Paralympic champions Greg Mannino and Sarah Will are candidates for the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame. Voting at the Hall of Fame Web site closed Tuesday.
The inductees will be revealed in early July and will be honored at a black-tie induction ceremony on Aug. 12 at McCormick Place in Chicago. The U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame is the only national sports Hall of Fame that includes fan voting.
Street, a three-time Olympian, left her mark in Olympic history in 1998, taking gold in the Nagano super G by a mere hundredth of a second. She originally hails from the Wood River Valley.
In 1992 Will won the first of 12 Paralympic golds of her career. A five-time Paralympian, Mannino was a legend in adaptive skiing, winning six gold, four silver and two bronze Paralympic medals in his career.
Hailey BAH set for Thursday
Wood River Insurance and Andrea and Derek Gallegos, proprietors of Three Ten Main restaurant, will co-host the monthly Business After Hours event this month in Hailey.
The BAH gathering is scheduled for Thursday, June 18, from 5-7 p.m. at the Wood River Insurance building, 410 North Main St.
The event, organized by the Hailey Chamber of Commerce, allows people to socialize and network with other business owners, operators and guests.
Much of SNRA now open
The wet spring that's kept the mountains of south-central Idaho soaked and almost permanently cloudy has delayed the opening of some high-elevation roads and trails in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. SNRA officials are asking for people's patience as things continue to dry out.
Still, much is open and available for recreationists, a news release from the SNRA states.
Because most trails are open but very wet, the forest is asking recreational users to use good judgment and turn around where trails become wet or snow-covered. SNRA officials say the best hiking in the Sawtooth Valley is around the Redfish Lake area near Stanley.
Much of the Williams Peak Trail and the Fisher Creek Loop are still snow-covered and closed. However, forest officials expect the two popular trails to dry out within a week.
Roads that remain closed in and around the SNRA include the Valley Summit Road to Seafoam, Beaver Creek Road, Chemeketan Road and the Landmark Road from Bear Valley to Warm Lake. The road to the Fourth of July Creek trailhead is open to within a half-mile of the trailhead.
Other roads that are open in the SNRA include the Smiley Creek and Alturas Lake roads.
Despite the wet conditions, all campgrounds in the upper Wood River Valley will be open this weekend and most campgrounds north of Galena Summit in the Stanley area should be in full operation, the SNRA news release states. The Alturas Lake complex and Iron Creek Campground are also now open.
