BOGUS BASIN, Idaho — Over the next four years, officials and partners representing the Boise National Forest will undertake a management plan to reduce wildfire risks near Bogus Basin. However, that also brings a few different closures that people need to know about.
The Deer Point Forest Stewardship Project aims to improve forest health for some 1,300 acres of Boise National Forest land. The management plan calls for commercial logging of "selected species" and "the removal of hazard trees resulting from insects and disease."
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The project will focus on the forested terrain from Bogus Basin to Stack Rock. It doesn't take much effort to witness all the dead and down trees lining the trails and throughout the area.
“The Deer Point Stewardship Project is using active forest management to address three concerns," said Mike Williamson of the Boise National Forest. "One is reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires, [second] is reducing the amount of Douglas Fir up there that has the propensity [for] insect disease and mistletoe infection, and the third is addressing safety concerns with hazard trees and down trees along recreational trails and sites.”
The goal is to improve forest health but also protect the infrastructure at Bogus Basin, including the communication towers and other structures that exist in the Wildland Urban Interface.
“Not only is that going to improve the resiliency of that area to wildfire, should there be a fire in that area, it will be safer for firefighters to go in there," said Williamson.
Starting on Monday, Bogus Basin Road will be closed at mile marker 10 so vehicles and bikers will not be able to get to the top from 8 a.m. - 11 a.m. Monday through Friday.
The closure will stay in place from May 12th through June 20th, but the road will be open on weekends and Memorial Day to access Bogus Basin and the national forest.
"As someone who uses trails regularly, I get that these short-term closures can be frustrating," said Brad Wilson, the general manager at Bogus Basin. "However, the long-term advantages of a more fire-resilient forest and safer trails make the temporary inconvenience worthwhile."
This area also includes one of the most popular trail systems in the Ridge to Rivers system, including Freddie’s Stack Rock, Mr. Big, and Sinker Creek. All these trails will be closed starting at 6 a.m. on Monday and not reopening until 6 p.m. on Friday.
“We know how important that area is. We want to minimize the impact" said Williamson. "We have worked with the contractor to prioritize getting the work done along Bogus Basin Road first, so we can have minimal closures after that," said Williamson.
However, the bad news comes for mountain bikers with the closing of the Eastside Trail. The Boise National Forest will use this trail as a logging road during the duration of the Deer Point Stewardship Project.
“It will probably be in that status as a logging road for the next four years, while work is being done, after which it is going to be turned back into a trail and the proper width," said Williamson.
The Boise National Forest will post updates on the project, and Ridge to Rivers will have up-to-date closures listed on its interactive map.
