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Fishing the South Fork of the Clearwater River
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Written by Tim Bondy   
Friday, 03 July 2009

June 27th 2009 Trip Report from Central Idaho


View along the Clearwater River Idaho

The headwaters of South Fork of the Clearwater River is somewhere south of the city of Elk Idaho. Interestingly enough Idaho State Highway 14 follows this fork of the Clearwater the entire way. This gives the fisherman a great opportunity to easily fish 40 miles of a nice mountain river. I only got to fish about 30 miles of the Clearwater and it was a great trip.

The Fish
While fishing was the main objective of this trip, the fishing wasn't what I'd call world class. I probably caught 10 trout and a few white fish. The size of the trout was a somewhat disappointing 3-5 inch average. Basically I was catching minnows and was glad all my spinners were barbless. In other words, you likely will not be keeping a lot of fish or entering the Guinness Book of World Records while fishing the South Fork of the Clearwater River. The best part of the Clearwater is the views and easy access to the river.

 Fishing hole on the Clearwater River in Idaho

The Road - Highway 14
I started fish close to the intersection of Highway 13 and Highway 14 and headed upstream towards Elk City. The road was relatively uncrowded and easy to find pull-outs to fish from. I'd say ATV'er made up the vast majority of traffic on the road. I only had to pass up a few nice looking fishing holes where other people were already fishing. Did I mention that Highway 14 is paved the entire 30 miles I drove? To me a paved road following a beautiful river like the Clearwater is unheard of.

Hotels Are Few

I stayed in Kooskia, Idaho for the night. There aren't many choices as far as hotels go in this part of Idaho. As far as I know, "The Western Inn" of Kooskia is the only hotel but there may be others in this town. The Western Inn wasn't a AAA rated hotel but it was nice enough for a tired and dirty fisherman. The price was pretty darn good at $50 a night. With so few hotels in the area, I suspect this place rents out almost every night. You might want to keep the city of Grangeville, Idaho in mind if looking for a hotel.

Cell Phones?
This part of Idaho seems to have been ignored by most cell phone companies. I had none, zero, zippo cell coverage from my AT&T network. This lack of cell coverage extended from Highway 14 and the entire length of Highway 12 from Kooskia into Montana. I was told that "Verizon" does have a cell tower in the area but I couldn't get it. Not a big deal unless I had run into trouble.

Main Street Kooskia Idaho


Kooskia Eats
There are a few restaurants in town and I ate at a cafe on the north side of town. Typical cafe type food with friendly customers and waitresses. The food was reasonably priced and I'd eat at the place again. There was another restaurant close by but it wasn't open on the day I was there...Saturday June 27th, 2009 but looked like it was ready and willing to open. I also saw a Chinese place in town. For cheaper thrills and for a person with a microwave or kitchenette there is a full on grocery store called Harvest Foods.

Kooskia In General
This town looks to be on a downslide? Lots of commercial real estate for sale/rent and a fair amount of homes for sale. This town has a great potential for being a sportsman's mecca of sorts but it just hasn't gotten there. Of course I know nothing of this area other than what I saw in the 4 hours I spent walking the streets and eating. I wish Kooskia all the best.

Pictures...


Link to pictures above:  http://picasaweb.google.com/tim.bondy/ClearwaterRiver?feat=directlink

Other Information
Distance from Mountain Home, Idaho to the Intersection of Highway 13/14: 285 miles
Controlled By: Clearwater Ranger District and Nez Perce National Forest
Fish You Might Catch: Brook Trout, Columbia Basin Redband Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass, Westslope Cutthroat Trout, Whitefish.



Last Updated ( Friday, 03 July 2009 )
 
Good Idaho Website – splattski.com
User Rating: / 0
Written by Tim Bondy   
Wednesday, 17 June 2009

 splattski.com
 Great Idaho Website

Hiking and climbing is Idaho? Don't know where to go or bored of the same old spot? Well, the Platt Family Adventures website found at splattski.com has tons and tons of information. While there is some information about hikes and climbs in other States, The Platt Family does most of their recreating in Idaho.

 
Soldier Mountain Lodge is Gone
User Rating: / 1
Written by Tim Bondy   
Sunday, 14 June 2009

No Mountain Biking at Soldier Mountain Today

Mountain Biking Washout
The last two weekends have been rather wet in southern Idaho and summer cabin fever is worse than winter cabin fever in my opinion. Even though the weather forecast indicated there was a very good possibility of rain and thunderstorms, I had to take a chance and get into the mountains. My plan was to park near the Soldier Mountain Ski Area and mountain bike along the North Fork of Soldier Creek.

I had intermittent rain showers most of the way to Fairfield, Idaho but the last 12 miles into the mountain the rain stopped and some blue skies showed through the clouds. The dirt road was rather wet so I decided to walk a little way up the road to see if it wasn't too muddy to ride my bike. In the 15 minutes it took to walk up the dirt road past the Soldier Campground and back, rain started falling. By the time I got ready to ride, thunder and lightning were crackling around me. Then the skies opened up and the rain came down in buckets. I waited about 30 minutes before deciding my biking trip would be a complete washout.

Soldier Mountain Ski Resort Lodge is Gone
I knew something was missing when I drove past the ski area. That something is the ski lodge. The lodge burnt down at the end of March 2009 ...burnt to the ground I guess. Below you will see pictures from before and after except they are taken from different sides of the now missing building.

Soldier Mountain Ski Area Lodge during better times
January 17th, 2009
 Soldier Mountain after the fire
June 14th, 2009

Details
  • Before Picture was taken on January 17th, 2009 at 2:40PM from the south side of the lodge.
  • After Picture was taken on June 14th, 2009 at 12:05PM from the north side of the "lodge".
  • Photographer: Tim Bondy from Mountain Home, Idaho.


Last Updated ( Sunday, 14 June 2009 )
 
2009 Daniel Dopps Memorial Rodeo
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Written by Tim Bondy   
Wednesday, 10 June 2009

Daniel Dopps 2005

Good Time for a Good Cause in Mountain Home, Idaho - The Rodeo!

Ramona Dopps, Daniel Doops' mother asked me to help get the word out about the Daniel Dopps Memorial Dodge PRCA Rodeo. I went to this rodeo last year and had a great time. Unfortunately I will be out of town during this years rodeo.

Details
When: Friday June 26th and Saturday June 27th at 7:00 PM.
Where: Optimist Park in Mountain Home, Idaho
Why: In memory of Daniel Dopps who died way too young doing something he loved. Rodeo was part of Daniel's life but a tragic event unfolded on August 6th, 2005 and a fine young man only 19 years old passed away the next day. (http://daniel-dopps.memory-of.com/About.aspx)

Prices
Pre-Sales: Adults $7.00 / Military, Seniors $ 6.00 / Child (6-12) $ 5.00
At the Gate: Adults $9.00 / Military, Seniors $ 8.00 / Child (6-12) $ 5.00

daniel-dopps-rodeo.jpg

Last Updated ( Wednesday, 10 June 2009 )
 
Elmore County Mystery Photo #4
User Rating: / 1
Written by Tim Bondy   
Sunday, 07 June 2009
Where was this Elmore County Idaho Photo Taken?

Who's initials are carved in the tree?

To see the answer to this Mystery Phone, click the answer icon below.

 Elmore County Mystery Photo 4
Click to see a larger version of this photograph

Hints:
- Dutch Em and Peg Leg Annie traveled by this spot.
- Elmore County declared a local disaster emergency to exist in this area a little over three years ago.
- Number 126.

Answer Can Be Found by Clicking Here or the icon below.

Answer to Mystery Photo









...
Last Updated ( Saturday, 13 June 2009 )
 
Elmore County Property Assessment Craziness?
User Rating: / 1
Written by Tim Bondy   
Wednesday, 03 June 2009

Warning: This is a Political Sarcasm Post

Home prices and taxes are up


To Whom It May Concern:

Today I was lucky enough to discover "my" houses' value has increased quite significantly in last year. In fact, the Elmore County Assessor has determined on January 1, 2009 my house was worth about $7,000 more than I bought it for in July 2008. I cannot wait until the housing downturn starts reversing itself and house values start really increasing. Heck, I figure by the year 2020 my humble little home should be worth at least three times the amount I paid for it.

The negative side of this great news is my property taxes will also go up? I guess every rose has its thorn but does it need to prick me during the worst worldwide economic crisis in modern and maybe even ancient times? I'm sadden to find out that the 2.13% pay raise I received from President Obama's economic stimulus plan in the form of lower Federal Income Tax Withholdings this year will be eaten up by local property taxes. Oh well, the government giveth and the government taketh away.

Elmore County Assessor with all the money

What I find somewhat amazing is the value of my house in Mountain Home, Idaho has increased when the news tells me the value of homes throughout the US have been decreasing significantly for the past few years. Almost every politician will tell you this economic crisis was caused, in part (if not in most part) by declining house values. How did I get so lucky and unlucky in just one year.

Any Elmore County Assessor out there want to put their money where their assessors calculator is kept? I'll make a deal with any assessor...in the year 2020, buy the "rapidly appreciating asset" I call my house for the bargain price $600,000. Remember, property values never go down...in the eyes of a county assessor? I'll be waiting for a call from some Elmore County official looking to jump on my most generous offer.


Last Updated ( Wednesday, 03 June 2009 )
 
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Mountain Home, Idaho 83647