Idaho Outfitters and Guides

Erik and Jack run through a packed slate of issues before Jack sits down with Middle Fork guide Kami Bakken.

Annual meeting push. The IOGA Annual Meeting runs December 1–3 at Tamarack. Hunt outfitters get a session on upcoming allocation legislation. There’s a block on trail clearing, plus SROA, MFOA and Lower Salmon outfitter meetings and an Idaho State Police tutorial on DOT rules. Other sessions cover using AI in your business, how AI is changing online search, and working with overseas travel agencies. Board elections are open: three general seats, VP, VP of Recreation and VP of Hunting. Nominations are online, and you have to be there to vote. The Tamarack room block closes soon.

Forest Service reorganization paused. A federal judge halted big parts of the USFS reorg. The ruling says USDA lacks authority to reprogram funds without approval from the appropriations committees. It doesn’t weigh in on whether the reorg is a good idea. The stay runs through December 11, and USDA has appealed to the Ninth Circuit. Jack expects the next appropriations bill to decide it. Rep. Simpson’s FY27 draft keeps the language that blocks reprogramming. Erik argues a halt partway through is the worst possible outcome. He also finds it striking that this is where spending authority finally gets enforced. Both agree it’s a consequence of skipping Congress, and probably a healthy one for the system over the long run.

Clearwater steelhead harvest closed. IDFG has closed steelhead harvest on the Clearwater. Catch-and-release trips are still worth booking. The hosts call the closure another sign that Snake River salmon and steelhead need real solutions, with lower Snake River dam removal at the top of the list.

Oregon Marine Board passes Snake River reciprocity rule. The OSMB approved the rule about an hour before recording. Here’s what it means for Idaho outfitters:

• On the water: a valid Idaho license covers you shore to shore, including guided fishing from the boat. That should end disputes over Oregon’s $350 individual fishing guide license.
• On the Oregon shore: if your trip touches it, the outfitter needs an Oregon license. Hells Canyon operators mostly have one already.
• Lower Salmon outfitters who camp on river left before the Washington border now need one too. This was likely unintended.
• Guests fishing from the Oregon shore need a supporting guide who holds the Oregon individual license.

iCORT recap. Erik attended the Idaho Conference on Recreation and Tourism in Moscow. Main takeaways: AI is replacing traditional search and SEO, and European travelers who book through agencies want Idaho’s “Western experience.” Both topics will get sessions at the annual meeting.

Jack in D.C. and Spokane. At the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Jack met with William of the White House Domestic Policy Council. William is a kayaker who has run Bruneau-Jarbidge and the South Fork Salmon. They covered the river access executive order, FLSA wage-and-hour issues, and USFS permitting reform. In Spokane, Jack spoke on a Nez Perce Tribe salmon recovery panel about the Snake Basin recreation economy.

Interview: Kami Bakken. Kami guides the Middle Fork and Main Salmon for Canyons River Company. She’s also the sole employee of Rivers for Change and works on the Girl Winter Film Tour. She and Jack talk about:

• Working a full guiding season alongside a year-round career
• Rivers for Change microgrants, which open twice a year, and the “source to sea” idea
• Storytelling as one of a guide’s most powerful advocacy tools
• How the Redside Foundation got her through a dark stretch after the season
• Her advice to younger guides: there’s no box you have to fit in, so “make a puzzle”

Jack sits down with living legend Doug Tims: former IOGA president, co-founder of America Outdoors, longtime Middle Fork and Selway outfitter, the man who turned Maravia rafts into the industry standard, and for twenty years the caretaker of Campbell’s Ferry on the Main Salmon. Doug tells how a Mississippi kid who’d never seen a mountain ended up running thirteen Middle Fork launches a season. He talks about how IOGA hired its first paid staff and how a national voice for outfitters was formed, and how a Navy SEAL team helped reinvent the way rafts are built. He also shares why he’s optimistic about the next twenty years of outfitting and wilderness in Idaho.

Before the interview, Erik and Jack cover the close of the roadless rule comment period and break down the Bipartisan American Abundance and Jobs Act, the 400-page permitting reform bill, and what it could mean for outfitters. They walk through IOGA’s comments on Oregon’s Snake River reciprocity rule ahead of the October 29 OSMB decision. They also recap a busy week in Boise, including a South Fork Boise working group meeting on long-licensed but never-permitted day trips.

Plus: the IOGA Annual Meeting at Tamarack Resort, December 1–3, is the most packed agenda yet. Register, book your lodging before the room block ends, and submit nominations for Guide of the Year, Resource Manager of the Year, and Lifetime Membership. Doug will be there presenting on the Selway.

No guest this week. Erik and Jack catch up on news after a week on the river, then work through two of the heavier policy changes facing outfitters.

They start with the IOGA Annual Meeting, set for December 1–3 at Tamarack Resort. Speakers include a state economist, Brandon Lake on adventure marketing, NRS's chief marketing officer, an Idaho outfitter who automated his operations with AI, and leaders from the Forest Service and BLM. There's also news on a Gem Air flight from Salmon, a reminder to book in the room block before it closes at the end of October, and a call for nominations for Guide of the Year, Land Manager of the Year and Lifetime Membership. Jack recaps the Partners Afloat trip down the Middle Fork, which put outfitters, agency staff and congressional staffers on the river together. Quick hits: the Roadless Rule comment deadline moves to October 6, the Asotin scat machine may close for good, and ICL has openings that would suit guides looking for winter work.

The bad news is a steelhead run on track to be the worst in nearly 90 years, with the lowest Bonneville count since the dam was finished in 1938. The mixed news is the new executive order on hunting access, which calls for reforming the Four Rivers lottery and lifting restrictions on lead ammo and tackle. The good news is new Good Neighbor Authority agreements that send IDPR crews to clear trails in the Frank and on the Nez-Clear.

The second half gets into the weeds. Erik walks through IOGA's comments with America Outdoors on the Forest Service's plan to rewrite the travel management rule. Topics include presumed-open routes, protections for permit holders, Class 1 e-bikes, airstrips and use-day reviews. Jack explains how the Fish and Wildlife Service's new, narrow reading of "harm" changes what counts as a "take" under the ESA. He covers what that means for hunting, fishing, permits and private-land habitat, and why NOAA's approach to salmon and steelhead is the one to watch.

Erik and Jack skip the interview this week for a rapid-fire update episode. They open with IOGA housekeeping: annual meeting registration is live (December 1–3 at Tamarack Resort), there won't be a podcast next week since they're leading a Middle Fork partners float with congressional staffers and Forest Service officials, and Jack just got married riverside (membership renewals accepted as wedding gifts). From there they dig into the meaty policy stuff: the Forest Service's proposed Travel Management Rule overhaul (flipping the closed-by-default presumption, easing minimization criteria, allowing Class 1 e-bikes on non-motorized trails, and inviting comment through September 23 — IOGA has a member survey out for input); the disappointing final Hells Canyon Dam relicensing decision, which keeps the 6,500 CFS summer minimum flow rather than the 8,500 CFS outfitters pushed for, despite backing from the Forest Service and Army Corps; a Forest Service facilities study that ended up preserving 41 more sites than originally proposed, framed as a responsible efficiency move; a federal court largely upholding approval of the Stibnite gold mine project; the quirky story of "The People's Tree," Idaho's Capitol Christmas tree, which will roll through Salmon on a flatbed November 4th (IOGA is helping organize); and a reminder that Redside Foundation scholarship applications for river guides are due October 1st.

Erik, Jack, and special guest Hardy Bender catch up on everything Idaho outfitters need to know this week. Hardy previews the IOGA Annual Meeting, happening this December at Tamarack Resort near Donnelly and McCall — early-bird pricing ends at the end of the month, chartered flights are being arranged out of the Lemhi Valley, and this year's sessions range from digital marketing basics to AI-driven operations management, alongside old favorites like cowboy poetry and the exhibitor fair.

On the policy side, Erik explains that the Forest Service has delayed rollout of the Explore Act's predetermined fee option, meaning most operators should budget for the traditional AGR-based fee model this season rather than the new per-person-per-day structure. Jack breaks down the newly published proposal to rescind the 2001 National Roadless Rule, walking through what it does and doesn't change — including why Idaho's own 2008 Roadless Rule keeps most in-state impacts limited, while forests along the Montana, Wyoming, Oregon, and Washington borders could see more road-building conversations down the road. The team also covers a Forest Service reorganization consolidating fire and aviation authority under a single Deputy Chief, sobering fall steelhead and Chinook return numbers on the Snake and Columbia systems, a nearly 700,000-acre fire season and strained state suppression budgets, and a proposed Oregon State Marine Board rule clarifying guide licensing requirements in Hells Canyon.

The back half of the episode features Erik's conversation with Mark Deming, Chief Marketing Officer of NRS, the Moscow, Idaho-based river gear company. Mark traces NRS's path from a 1970s mail-order operation built on duct-taped-together necessity (the Bill's Bag, the NRS strap) to a globally recognized outdoor brand that still designs, builds, and ships almost everything in-house. The two talk about NRS's employee-owned culture, the evolving outdoor customer base, the rise of pack rafting as the next big category, the company's approach to conservation advocacy, and why NRS has chosen to stay rooted in Moscow rather than scale up elsewhere.

Hardy closes out with a look ahead to February's Lobby Day and Big Thaw fundraiser in Boise, and Erik reminds everyone to renew their IOGA membership.

This week, Erik and Jack cover the news you need before the season winds down: the IOGA Annual Meeting is set for November 30–December 4 at Tamarack Resort (early bird pricing through August 31), and they're looking for member presentation ideas. They break down a new $1.3 million feasibility study on consolidating federal wildland fire management under the Department of Interior, dig into 30 years of Idaho wildfire ignition data from Headwaters Economics, and share an update on the Asotin scat machine closure (plus a reminder on what does — and doesn't — belong in a Groover). Also covered: a lawsuit challenging the new ESA critical habitat rule, IOGA's $200K+ marketing award from the Idaho Travel Council, a reminder on Explore Act fee planning for the season, and the August 17 comment deadline on the grizzly bear 4(d) rule. Then, Jack sits down with Tyler Green of Woodsman Outfitter Solutions (a division of Evolve) for a deep dive into payment processing for outfitters — card-present vs. card-not-present transactions, fraud prevention, PCI compliance, cash flow and funding timelines, and why a one-size-fits-all payment solution doesn't work for an industry as varied as outfitting.

Erik and Jack record together in person for the first time, from the McCall Library studio. This week's rundown:

Access alert: Recent rainstorms have caused blowouts across the Frank Church, including damage to the Flying B airstrip runway (closed to the public, though commercial air operators are still getting in with a shortened strip) and a major landslide on Highway 21 west of Banner Summit that ITD says could take a week or more to clear — recommend alternate routes for McCall/Cascade-to-Stanley or Boise-to-Stanley travel, and Montana routes for Main Salmon shuttles (with a reminder to review IOGA's DOT compliance guide before crossing state lines).

FWS critical habitat exclusion rule: A new final rule (effective August 20) changes how Fish and Wildlife weighs economic/other costs against conservation benefits when excluding land from critical habitat designations under ESA Section 4(b)(2). Permittees are now explicitly named parties who can submit "credible information" on economic impact, agencies must give more weight to on-the-ground data, and exclusion becomes closer to mandatory once the cost-benefit analysis favors it. Applies only prospectively, only to FWS (not NOAA Fisheries/anadromous species), and could cut both ways for outfitters — helpful for pushing back on overly broad designations, but also opens the door for mining/logging interests to make similar arguments.

Grizzly bear rule follow-up: More detail on the tiered state-management-authority proposal (comment period open through August 17). Doesn't delist the bear, doesn't authorize hunting, and doesn't touch experimental populations (Bitterroot, Cascades). Biggest potential outfitter impact: provisions on incidental take related to predator trapping, which could eventually ease restrictions on wolf/predator trapping in grizzly habitat — though any real change is likely a long way off.

IDL fire budget: Idaho Department of Lands has already spent $20M of its fire budget, with about $17M left for the rest of the summer. If funds run dry, IDL will lean on a "deficiency warrant" (essentially a government credit card) rather than stop fighting fires. A forest fire protection tax increase was discussed but not enacted — yet.

Hatchery study: A major IDFG/Oregon/Washington fish biologist study finds the anadromous hatchery system fundamentally can't deliver the adult fish returns needed to support a sport fishery — smolt production would need to increase 300–1200%, and even then, most programs likely couldn't support a minimal recreational fishery. Erik shares a striking figure from a Fish & Wildlife contact: proposed capital investment to boost production pencils out to roughly $5,000 per additional adult fish returned. The takeaway: the bottleneck is the hydrosystem, not the hatcheries.

Community note: Jack will be in Lewiston (Lewis-Clark State College, 8/3) and Clarkston (Red Line Golf Club, 8/5) with Idaho Rivers United discussing their new lower Snake dam economic impact report.

Interview: Jack sits down with Justin Meuse of The Wilderness Society to unpack the Congressional Review Act (CRA) and its unprecedented use against BLM/Forest Service land use plans — including how the CRA works, why resource management plans were never historically submitted to Congress as "rules," what "substantially the same" means for replacement plans, the pending Cascadia Wildlands v. Burgum lawsuit in Oregon challenging RMP validity, and what a legislative fix might look like. Directly relevant to any outfitter operating under a BLM or Forest Service permit tied to an RMP or forest plan.

Erik Weiseth and Jack Hurty run through a packed news roundup before sitting down with Eric Barker, the longtime outdoors and environmental reporter for the Lewiston Tribune.

News roundup highlights:

• ESA "harm" definition change: US Fish & Wildlife and NOAA Fisheries finalized removing habitat modification from the definition of "harm" under Section 9. Erik and Jack agree the day-to-day impact on outfitter permitting is likely limited, since Section 7 consultation remains unchanged — this mostly affects incidental take liability, and may matter more for logging/ranching than guiding.
• Grizzly management shift: Interior Secretary Burgum, USFWS, and the governors of MT, WY, and ID announced a proposal to hand more day-to-day grizzly management authority to states via a 4(d) rule change (bears stay listed as threatened). Public comment opens soon; IOGA plans to submit comments and wants field input from outfitters working in bear country. No hunting season is on the table.
• Rep. Fulcher's public lands survey: Fulcher, who previously voted for a public land sell-off amendment, has softened his stance and is now soliciting Idahoan input via a detailed survey. Erik and Jack strongly encourage members to take it, drawing a parallel to the massive public response that helped kill the Mike Lee sell-off provision last year.
• Forest Service directive/handbook overhaul: A proposed rule would make the Forest Service Handbook essentially voluntary while keeping the Manual in place. This could increase flexibility with good administrators but removes accountability — including for things like non-competitive permit renewals, which may only be codified at the Handbook level. IOGA and America Outdoors are auditing what's at risk.
• New IOGLB appointee: Derek Atterbury nominated to replace Brad Compton on the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Licensing Board, bringing 8 years of Fish & Game Commission experience.
• New DOT compliance guide: IOGA published a plain-language guide to DOT regulations for outfitting vehicles/trailers.
• Upper Lochsa land consolidation ("Project Gen 3"): A creative non-exchange deal would move ~27,000 acres from Western Pacific Timber into Forest Service ownership via The Conservation Fund, with an endowment offsetting county tax losses. Broad local support; needs Senate funding support ($54M in the 2027 LWCF budget).
• Salmon-Challis RAC recruitment: Applications due Aug 16 for the Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee, which allocates ~$740K in Secure Rural Schools funding.
• Fun one: Idaho Fish & Game wants artist submissions for next year's hard license artwork — Erik's rooting for a "Geronimo the parachuting beaver" design.
• Membership renewals are open for the new cycle, with shoutouts to Dollars for Outdoors and Dollars for Salmon donors.

Interview — Eric Barker (Lewiston Tribune): Barker reflects on nearly 30 years covering Idaho's outdoors and environment beat. Topics include how the Snake River dams/salmon debate has evolved (from agency recommendation to Congress to the courts), the massive public backlash that helped stop the Mike Lee land sell-off, shrinking federal agency staffing capacity post-DOGE cuts and its effect on trail maintenance and wildfire response, the ongoing Forest Service reorganization, the tension between fire suppression and prescribed burning, growing outdoor recreation pressure and funding gaps (hunters/anglers pay via tags/licenses, but hikers and bikers largely don't), and the growing difficulty of reporting on federal agencies that have become more guarded since DOGE. He closes with a tour through his favorite Idaho waters and asks listeners to subscribe to local news and send him tips.

This week we are sharing the most recent episode of, The Outfitter Brief, the AO/IOGA shared podcast. If you follow it you should follow that podcast. On this one, Erik Weiseth (IOGA) and Aaron Lieberman (America Outdoors Association) cover the major policy issues facing outfitters and guides, then sit down with Jessica Turner, President of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, for a wide-ranging conversation on federal recreation policy, coalition strategy, and an emerging push to connect outdoor recreation with the American healthcare system.

Aaron opens with an update on AO's new endorsed insurance program through CBiz Adventure Sports, offering AO members up to 10% off core coverage premiums — a direct response to survey data showing over 90% of outfitters saw premiums rise or coverage drop in the past year. From there, the conversation moves to the Outfitter and Guide Relief (ORG) Act, AO's effort to carve outfitters and guides out of FLSA overtime requirements that have forced operators to cut guide hours and jack up prices. A Senate companion bill from Sen. Steve Daines is imminent, and guide testimonials from affected workers are urgently needed.

The two then break down the roadless rule situation — three parallel tracks (House legislation, Senate amendment to the Wildfire Prevention Act via Sen. Mike Lee, and USDA administrative repeal) — and what outfitters should actually be doing right now. They close the policy roundup with an Arizona liability waiver win: legislation signed by Governor Hobbs that clarifies the enforceability of waivers and inherent risk doctrine, similar to what Idaho passed previously.

The interview with Jess Turner is the centerpiece. She walks through the just-completed Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee markup of the America the Beautiful Act — a $10 billion Legacy Restoration Fund reauthorization that passed without a single nay vote in one of the most divided committees in Congress. She explains what that money actually does (deferred maintenance on trails, boat launches, campgrounds, visitor infrastructure), how the House version includes a 15% recreation/sportsman carve-out that may not survive the conference, and what the foreign visitor fee issue means for outfitters taking international clients. Timeline: potentially signed before July 4th.

The back half of the interview pivots to ORR's America's Outdoor Era health initiative — the argument that outdoor recreation is an upstream, preventative healthcare solution, and the emerging policy and private-sector pathways (HSA/FSA reform, employer benefits programs, hospital partnerships, medical provider training) to formalize that connection. Jess also walks through how ORR maintains its massive, diverse coalition by staying out of place-based conflicts and focusing on process, business stability, and the issues where everyone agrees.

The episode closes with news that Iowa became the 25th state to establish an Office of Outdoor Recreation, and a reminder to mark calendars for the IOGA Annual Meeting (December 1–3, Tamarack Resort) and the America Outdoors Conference and Expo (December 8–11, Oklahoma City).

In this episode, Erik and Jack cover a packed week of news before sitting down with Kristin Sleeper, Governor Little's new Policy Director. On the news front: Erik recaps a productive National Trails Day outing, Jack reports on Big Water Blowout in Riggins; the guys dig into a new legislative working group on state lands management led by Representative Raybold; and they break down the implications of President Trump's executive order rescinding the Nixon- and Carter-era travel management executive orders — a move they describe as flying under the radar but potentially significant over the long term. They also cover Senator Mike Lee's last-minute amendment to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule (noting Idaho's own roadless rule insulates the state directly), the new Headwaters Economics report on Snake River dam removal economics from Idaho Rivers United, and the Public Lands Integrity Act — legislation that would close the budget reconciliation loophole that could be used to sell public lands without 60 Senate votes.

The main interview with Kristin Sleeper covers her winding path from Detroit to DC to Montana to the Trump administration and finally to Governor Little's office, her vision for a coordinated statewide recreation strategy, Idaho's opportunity to expand Good Neighbor Authority and Shared Stewardship into recreation trail maintenance, the Make Forests Healthy Again executive order, wildfire preparedness for what could be a difficult fire season, and the thorny challenge of creating a sustainable funding mechanism for non-motorized trail maintenance.