Part 1

I am back on the grid in Boise, perusing through journal entrees and photos taken from the last few days spent exploring and revisiting southeast Oregon’s high desert region. Long story short; it was hot, and freezing… I spent a great deal of time under the unwavering sun (overheated a couple times) and thick veil of stars. Met, soaked and chatted with some good people – and encountered a bunch of wildlife. Welcome to the high country – hot, windy, sun-scorched days with no shade in sight except the man-made kind. And, chilly, near freezing nights. It may not sound like much, but it truly is paradise.

“Despite its clarity and simplicity, however, the desert wears at the same time, paradoxically, a veil of mystery. Motionless and silent it evokes in us an elusive hint of something unknown, unknowable, about to be revealed. Since the desert does not act it seems to be waiting-but waiting for what?” – Edward Abbey

I was greeted by multiple herds of pronghorn (antelope) less than half a mile after pulling off southbound highway 95 onto the all-season, ultra-rocky Whitehorse Ranch Road, just past mile marker 87. Exit to no-man’s land. Driving down the powdery dust road was reminiscent of watching a steady stream of water spraying off the hull of a speedboat as the truck bounded down the bumpy track. The mere sight and smell of the high desert unlocked old memories. I can’t help but think of an old friend that I explored this area with for the first time 11 years ago [LINK] that I haven’t seen in years. I hope life is treating you well, Stoney. You, too, Jessica – AKA PnB. Although your experience with this area only dealt with a brief visit to Alvord [LINK].

This would be my first springtime visit to this region, no doubt. All other instances occurred during late summer/early fall; September and October. The most notable difference was the obvious – the flora and fauna… the color, there was color! And water! Recent snow melt and record setting rain joined forces to deliver these usually parched and thirsty lands a drink.

Read Part 2

Alright hot springers, we knew this one was coming… as of today – May 25th, 2012 Skinnydipper AKA Mile Marker 4 Hot Springs is temporarily closed from sundown to sunrise. This comes directly from the BLM and is effective immediately.

BLM has temporarily closed Skinny Dipper Hot Springs to night-time use. The closure will help provide for public safety. Since 2004, there have been several fatalities, assaults and numerous injuries associated with night-time use of the area. Due to its location the public does not have cellular phone access, which adds to concerns regarding night-time use.

View the official press release

People have been going too crazy here for a very long time, and now the irresponsible many outweigh the responsible few, who take very good care of this special place.

Please please please please please respect this temporary closure. Not doing so could result in temporary becoming permanent – something that no hot springer wants. The BLM are just doing their job. Remember that Skinnydipper is located on critically endangered land that is under management of the BLM. Respecting this closure and the environment that surrounds Skinny is of the utmost importance and will hopefully lead to the temporary closure being lifted.

Learn more about Skinnydipper Hot Springs in IdahoHotSprings.com

It’s hard to explain the importance of intact ecosystems, wilderness and habitat conservation land planning to folks these days. Environmental education is weak, and so few of us have real relationships with the great outdoors.

We have all forgotten that we are key members of an ecosystem that sustains all life; charged with maintaining balance and order.

In truth; “Plans to protect air and water, wilderness and wildlife are in fact plans to protect man.” – Stewart Udall

It is now time to stand up – and do your part. We cannot remain idle while the last of our wilderness is destroyed.

Earth Day 2012 is on Sunday, April 22nd – Click here to find an event to participate in

Help Protect Earth Everyday in 2012

Take every opportunity to preserve what’s left of our roadless lands. Stand against invasive mining, logging and road building in every way, shape and form.

Support organizations, local and national, that fight the good fight by spreading their word, signing petitions and contacting elected officials.

Be conscious of where you spend your money. The ONLY voice we have as individuals is where we spend our money. Continuing to support corrupt corporations needs to stop. If Chase Bank is in fact the leader of ecosystem-obliterating mountain top removal mining then stop supporting Chase Bank with your business. This is the only language that carries impact until we, as a people, are able to unite in larger numbers.

Eat local food and less or no meat. Support ethical, local farmers. Everything has a transportation cost attached. A pound of beef typically equals a pound of oil. Did you hear that? – All of you rabid anti-veggies out there? The oil comes from transport, antibiotics, hormones (to make the beef bigger, faster, in unsanitary factory farm conditions), fertilizers, pesticides, plastics (styrofoam tray) and of course the energy to make them all. Each and every one of these uses of carbon is unnecessary and directly contributes to global warming. Every meal you eat that doesn’t contain any meat is far better for the environment in every way. Eating less or no meat also helps the last herd of genetically pure bison left in Yellowstone…

Defend the Endangered Species Act, Endangered Species and threatened wildlife vital to healthy ecosystems, take action now! Join the national outcry to Save Wolves! And, understand that fear mongering, ignorant cattle ranchers and politicians lead the charge against educated hunters, wildlife activists and scientists. Wolves are not responsible for declining deer and elk herds, human developments are in fact the culprit. As science has proven over and over again – wolves boost deer and elk populations and help maintain balance within healthy ecosystems.

Always pick up trash and leave a light footprint when visiting the great outdoors.

Keep good stuff out of landfills, take advantage of websites like freecycle and craigslist.

Unplug electronics and appliances. Computers, coffee makers, TVs, cell phone chargers etc. all have one thing in common. They suck power even when turned-off. Unplug ‘em, and pick up a special green surge protector.

“Keep close to Nature’s heart…and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” – John Muir

Take Action for Wolves!

Your tax dollars could be used to pay for an awful aerial wolf cull in Northeastern Idaho, an ill-conceived plan to boost game populations that could kill as many as two thirds of the wolves in the Lolo District of the Clearwater National Forest.

President Obama can stop this unscientific plan, but he needs to hear from us. I just signed a petition to the President to stop the use of federal tax dollars to kill these wolves and I hope you will too.

Sign the Petition Online Now!

Ryan, of Walkifornia, tipped me off in regard to a video he made of a recent visit to Scenic Hot Springs in Washington. Since Scenic is a personal favorite, one that I sadly do not have the pleasure of frequenting often, I wanted to share…

If you are interested in visiting Scenic Hot Springs, please read his post, or visit the caretakers blog to learn about how to setup a visit for yourself.

Rick, Matt and Mike – Thank you for taking such good care of Scenic over the years!

Related: Salute to Scenic Hot Springs – View All Scenic Posts

Earth Hour – One Hour No Power 2012

8:30pm Local Time – Saturday, March 31st

It’s almost that time of the year again; a time at which a coordinated effort is made in support of the environment across the globe. A time during which everyone is encouraged to turn their power off, for one hour… Earth Hour – One Hour No Power.

In 2011, all seven continents joined the Earth Hour – One Hour No Power movement, even the Cartoon Network halted transmissions for one hour. In 2010, a record-breaking 126 countries helped raise awareness for climate change, including destinations like the Las Vegas Strip, Mount Rushmore, The Empire State Building and Niagara Falls. Learn more about the history of Earth Hour…

Scheduled Downtime

So, setup and turn-on that reminder alarm on your phone, calendar and project management app for 8:30pm, March 31st and Shut. Down. Everything!

If you have a WordPress powered website or blog, grab a nifty plugin right here. This will automatically take your site down for one hour and display a message and links in support of the Earth Hour movement.

Don’t have WordPress? No worries! There are plenty of banners, posters, logos and videos available for placement on your website, blog and/or social network right here.

Earth Hour Flickr Global Stream

Umpqua Hot Springs Access Update

This just in from Cheryl Caplan, Public Affairs Specialist at USDA Forest Service:

Road to Umpqua Hot Springs in Oregon Temporarily Closed for Winter

Recent snow at Toketee, OR, and more snow forecasted, prompted Forest Service employees to close a gate to the road leading to the Umpqua Hot Springs. If the snow eases up, you can call the Toketee Ranger Station at 541-498-2531 to find out if the gate has been re-opened.

Visitors planning to soak in the Umpqua Hot Springs on the Umpqua National Forest, near Toketee, should plan to hike, snow shoe, or ski the last 2.5 miles. A temporary gate just past the junction of Forest Roads 34 and 3401 is installed to prevent vehicles from getting stuck in the snow on the way to the hot springs. Visitors are cautioned that as snow melts near the gate, often icy roads and snowy conditions exist further up the road to the hot springs.

Closing the gate will address public safety by limiting vehicle access to a plowed parking area at the junction of the two roads. This action comes at the request of the Douglas County Sheriff’s office and Toketee residents to gate the road during the winter months to reduce adverse impacts on the Sheriff’s office and search and rescue personnel. Douglas County responded to about 165 calls for service at the hot springs from 2003 to 2010, resulting in multiple search-and-rescue calls. “Last year was the first time we closed the gate during winter, and as a result, there were no search and rescue calls to the hot springs,” according to Aaron Grimes, Forest Recreation Staff.

Visitors are encouraged to be prepared for adverse weather and winter road conditions when heading out to enjoy the winter beauty of the hot springs. “There are no trash receptacles at the site, so, whatever you pack in please pack out, so that we can maintain the beauty of the site,” stated Grimes. Temperatures at Umpqua Hot Springs range from 92-102 degrees Fahrenheit.

Thanks for the update, Cheryl!

What more can I say that hasn’t already been said about Kirkham Hot Springs? Which is excellent, in terms of textile soaking. When driving past the full pullout for Skinnydipper on the way in, I noticed that even the pullouts before and after were akin to overflow parking. Pine Flats and Hot Springs campground had a couple vehicles and sole campers each. Timing for Kirkham was just right, as four groups of people all left upon approach. Two other groups pulled-up and parked as my ride sped off down highway 21, long after a great soak was had.

Minimal trash was a welcome surprise and all people encountered were of the friendly lot. There was about four pools prime for soaking. The largest pool had some nice depth to it as well. Watching the sun set and moon rise from the hot springs was the icing on the cake.

Sadly, just like the rest of Idaho and the northwest, there was a severe lack of snow evident for this time of the year. It practically looked like September outside. Unless paramount snowfall occurs, this summer will see a multitude of wildfires.

View Kirkham Hot Springs on IdahoHotSprings.com

Follow on Twitter for updates @hotspringsguy

Keeping in tune with publishing unpublished, past trip reports – here is one for Jerry Johnson Hot Springs in Idaho, from July 2011.

Special note: Jerry Johnson is Idaho’s most popular hot springs – and as such, is heavily abused. Please pack out all trash and don’t bring glass. This hot springs is already under nighttime closure. If we don’t take care of Jerry, we risk losing the right to visit completely. Overnight, illegal campers beware, the Forest Service will catch and fine you. They routinely send out patrols after dark ISO violators.

Just Jerry

On Sunday, July 24th 2011, we arrived bright and early at the Warm Springs Pack Bridge in the Clearwater National Forest, AKA the trailhead for the brief jaunt to Jerry Johnson Hot Springs. The parking area was half-full of overnight campers, and there was even a Rainbow bus with a handful of folks sleeping in their bags underneath.

The ‘Buffalo Tribe’ was heading back home, but had to detour around Oregon. Apparently, one of their tribe has an Oregon warrant. After crossing the pack bridge we were treated to the same sight over and over again. Jackhole overnight campers… sound asleep amongst their piles of trash, camping illegally, in areas desperately in need of recovering from years of abuse. A new jackhole sub-type was discovered here as well… the meth jackhole.

Long story short, we documented the illegals and lectured a bunch of kids drinking Boone’s that had strewn trash in a perfect circle around their little ‘hot tub’. The little jackholes took off running with our backs turned and left their trash, of course. We finally found a good soak, which was eventually shared with a photography class from MSU in Missoula, MT and a few other random people that wandered in. All good people, and all in all a great soak.

Aside from the jackholes, the soak was stellar and the people we chatted with were very friendly. We passed a handful of rangers on our way out, on their way in (to drop the hammer). I enjoy backpacking and camping near hot springs too, but when unique places like this are heavily damaged, hot springers need to respect that damage by not adding to it.

The first source was still submerged, no surprise here given the insane late spring runoff this season. The second and third sources were good to go.

View past trip reports, pictures, video clips and more on IHS

I try to be timely with trip reports, but inevitably, some slip through the cracks. Here is one of them from last July for Weir Creek Hot Springs in the Clearwater National Forest in Idaho…

Ole Weir Creek can be a crap shoot this time of the year. A time when many geothermal brethren answer the call of spending warm summer nights amidst a thick forest veil and star filled sky, soaking away life’s pain in a natural hot spring. As do I.

Upon arrival, our party encountered a mix of folks camping at the trailhead and primitive sites (along the access trail nearest to the parking lot). Some nice, others, not so nice. We counted 14 overnighters, all crammed into the small primitive sites along the trail except for 3 sleeping in the parking lot. The second night, aside from our group, saw only 2 trailhead campers. Whew! The hot springs saw a steady stream of traffic on all 3 days.

I detected 3 types of recreational users that were present; the traveling folks, road bicyclists and straight-up hot springers.

The traveling folks let their dogs run amok, crap all over the trail and didn’t bother to call them off whenever someone wanted to hike past to reach the hot springs. These folks knew or cared little of camping, backpacking, traveling and hot springing. The kind with no respect for the land. My party ended up picking up all of their trash once they finally left. This included a sopping wet mattress. Yep. They dragged mattresses from their ride out into the forest before it rained on them heavily. Brilliant.

I’m not entirely sure they knew about Weir Creek. These folks were creepy, and would try to hide when people passed by on the trail. The only decent thing I can say about the jackholes is that one of them was an alright guitarist.

The road bicyclists and soak seekers treated this area with a great deal more respect. They even helped clean up after the jackholes. Which, unfortunately, took the liberty of depositing human flowers directly on the trail to Weir Creek, with TP strewn all about… it was so nasty… the image is still burned into my mind.

Prior to arriving, we had just finished up a full day of backpacking 10+ miles in heavy rain through the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness, and needless to say were very ready for a hot soak. After parking, we strapped on the packs and got as far away from everyone as possible before setting up camp for 2 nights.

Weir Creek Hot Springs in 3 Minutes

All camping and soaking was excellent. There was little to none in regard to trash at the pool, plenty of friendly hot springers – and was exactly what summers in Idaho are all about. Minus the traveling jackholes. Long live the Clearwater National Forest.

View More Pictures, Video Clips and Trip Reports on IHS