INSIDE OUTDOORS

Kiwanis Park pond stocked and open

Idaho Fish and Game officials recently planted about 4,000 hatchery rainbow trout in the Kiwanis Park Levee Pond at Lewiston.

The pond is open to fishing.

Program on trees set for Saturday

A Junior Rangers program at Hells Gate State Park near Lewiston Saturday will teach children about trees.

The program starts at 9 a.m. and will last about an hour. Park entrance fees will be waived for those attending the program.

Officials seek information on person who wasted buck on Webb Ridge

LAPWAI - Conservation officers from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game are seeking help in identifying those responsible for killing a mule deer buck along Webb Ridge Road, about 1.5 miles from the junction with the main Webb Road.

The deer was most likely shot Tuesday and no attempt was made to salvage any part of the deer.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Citizen's Against Poaching Hotline at (800) 632-5999 or the department at (208) 799-5010.

Schweitzer Mountain Resort to open Saturday

SANDPOINT - Schweitzer Mountain Resort will open for the weekend Saturday with a base of man-made snow augmented with 23 inches from Mother Nature.

The Basin Express lift and Musical Chairs lift will be open from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and provide access to a variety of terrain. Some Nordic trails will be groomed and lift tickets will be sold at the reduced rate of $40 for adults and children older than 6.

Comments being accepted on access program

OLYMPIA - The U.S. Department of Agriculture is accepting public comments through Dec. 15 on a $1 million federal grant designed to provide incentives for more private landowners to open their lands to hunting in eastern Washington.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife was one of 11 agencies nationwide to qualify for funding in the second round of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program, established under the 2008 federal Farm Bill.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, USDA's Farm Service Agency recently determined the department's plans for the grant money would not have a significant effect on the environment. The federal findings are posted at http://bit.ly/mpufNQ. Public comments on those findings may also be submitted on that site.

The agency has also raised $400,000 to expand hunter access to private lands through additional fees paid by hunters who apply for new permit-only hunts.

The department received a three-year $1.5 million grant to expand access to hunting and fishing on private lands throughout the state during the first round of the program. The department is using that funding to establish contracts with landowners to open their lands to outdoor recreation.

Lookout Pass Ski Area to open for season today

MULLAN - Lookout Pass Ski Area on the Idaho-Montana state line near here will open for the season today with a minimum of 10 skiable runs and reduced lift ticket prices.

The ski area has 10 inches of new snow, including 32 inches on the summit and 18 at the base. Lifts open at 9 a.m. Ticket price information is available at https://skilookout.com/.

Wandering bighorn ram downed by state

CASTLEFORD - Idaho Department of Fish and Game biologists killed a 4-year-old bighorn ram earlier this month that wandered too close to domestic sheep on private property near here.

Healthy domestic sheep can carry bacteria that causes pneumonia and death in bighorn sheep. To protect bighorn herds, the department's policy is to remove wild sheep that have or are likely to contact domestic sheep.

Snowmobiling club sets work day Saturday

POMEROY - The Mount Misery Drifters snowmobile club will hold a preseason work day Saturday on the machine used to groom the Blue Mountain trail system.

Volunteers will repair and replace the machine's track at the Farm & Home Supply store on Main Street.

Work will start at 8 a.m. Anyone with questions or wishing to help can contact Tom Lunquist at (509) 780-1179.