Raging forest fires in the Payette and Boise national forests have more than likely ruined a three-week hunting trip by Luther White of Florida and his party of six.
White, 62, has been hunting in the Middle Fork zone since 1964. His hunting party traveled from Florida in early September in hopes of shooting elk in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness.
While no fires are raging in the hunting zone that White had planned to hunt, there is no way for White and his party to get to the area due to road closures.
The East Zone Complex and the Cascade Complex fires burning north and east of Long Valley have closed off access to most of the eight hunting units in the area.
White lives about 40 miles west of Gainesville, Fla., on the banks of the Suwannee River. He and his party transported 21 mules and horses in two trailers from Florida to property he owns near Lake Fork. Since arriving in Valley County, White said he has not done much more than "twiddle his thumbs."
"It's kind of got us fouled up," White said. "I don't guess it's anybody's fault." The McCall Elk Zone (Game Management Units 19A, 23, 24, and 25) and Middle Fork Elk Zone (Game Management Units 20A, 26, and 27) are those most affected by the fires.
Due to the forest fire closures, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game has decided to extend several hunting seasons to give hunters an opportunity to bag game when area closures lift later this fall.
The B-tag season for antlered elk in _ hunting units 20A and26 in the Middle Fork Zone, which was scheduled to close on Sept. 30 and reopen from Nov. 1 to Nov. 18, will now run through October until the Nov. 18 closing date. The A-tag season for any elk in the two units, which was scheduled to end on Oct. 31, is now extended to Nov. 18.
Unit 27, south of Stibnite, has an extended season until Nov. 18 for A tags on antler-less or brow-tined bulls only and for B tags on brow-tined and larger bulls only.
Prime hunting grounds closed off by fires
The Rattlesnake and Raines fires that have burned both sides of the main Salmon River have closed off prime hunting grounds for bighorn rams along the river.
However, hunters will have an extra 18 days to hunt Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep in Game Management Units 19, 20, 20A, 26, and 27. The season was to end Oct. 13 but has been extended to Oct. 31. Regional F&G staff members have determined the proposed one-time emergency changes will not have long-term biological effects on wildlife populations.
This season's fires may have an effect on game distribution but the extent of that effect is uncertain.
"It depends on the intensity of the fire as to how much the animals move," F&G regional wildlife manager Jeff Rohiman said. "With an intense fire, similar to the fire that burned through Stolle Meadows (near Warm Lake), it is reasonable to think that most of the animals
probably moved out of the drainage, but that doesn't mean they won't come back to their home range to check things out."
Rohlman said that the game animals may not return this year, but would come back in future years.
As for the rest of this year, "they will be looking for some type of fall green up and winter range," Rohlman said.
Rain will return access
The normal winter range for elk and other game animals is along the South Fork of the Salmon River from Poverty Flats to the confluence with the main Salmon River, Rohiman said.
It is unknown when the fires will subside and access closures will be lifted.
"If we have a significant rainfall, we could start seeing a lot of this land opening up," he said.
McCall Zone bow hunters have limited access to elk and deer for their season that ends Sept. 30. A black bear general any weapon season that ends Oct. 31 is also affected greatly by the fires.
"Units 19A and 25 are closed to access right now, so essentially half of the McCall Elk Zone is not huntable," Rohlman said. "But there's still a lot of time left."
Two permits released for antlered moose in hunting unit 19A near Warren currently cannot be filled due to the fire closures, but the hunters have until Nov. 23 to shoot a moose.
Hunters wanting to access the hunting ground in unit 19A north of McCall near Burgdorf, Secesh Meadows and Warren are for the most part entirely cut off due to the Zena Loon and Raines fires.
All of Unit 25, which encompasses the South Fork Salmon River drainage east of McCall, is closed to access by hunters due to the Monumental and Zena/Loon fires.
Access to many hunting areas to the north and south of Stibnite has also been closed off to hunters in the Middle Fork Zone.
Hunting access in unit 32 A in the Weiser River Zone, east of Council to the peak of West Mountain has been largely restricted due to the Grays Creek Fire, which is now contained.
Access restrictions in this area should be lessened in the next couple of weeks, Rohiman said.
Meanwhile, White and his hunting party will probably leave this weekend for Florida, where he works in agriculture and highway construction.
" We spent a lot of money trying to have a lot of fun," he said. "So far all, we've done is enjoy the scenery around McCall, which most of us have already seen."
