Colors of a Morning Sunrise

Photo by Dennis Hinkcamp

Bear Lake Farmacy

This is one of the most adorable things you are going to see today. I love catching people doing creative things for no good reason other than to delight. This is on a back road near Laketown that most people don't know is there. If you can zoom in, one of the signs says. "pay whatever you think it is worth" ... worth a lot of smiles.

Photo by Dennis Hinkcamp

Logan Canyon closed due to accident

Photo by Tammy Eames Munk

Logan Canyon was closed for almost 4 hours in both directions after a semi pulling a double load rolled over  into the Logan River on Wednesday, August 5.  Crews worked to remove the semi near the dugway. The driver sustained injuries but none were life threatening.  Witnesses believed that the truck's hydraulic brakes had failed.

The Herald Journal reported "UHP Sgt. Jason Kendrick said the 22-year-old driver was headed northbound in the canyon when he took a curve in the road at too great a speed and rolled off the right side of the road into the river. Kendrick said the man was rescued from the cab of the truck by firefighters who waded into the river and extracted him on a stretcher.

“He was seat-belted, which we believe saved him from significant injury,” Kendrick said.

The semi was hauling two belly-dump trailers. Street said the trailers were empty and no hazmat was required for cleanup.

Kendrick said traffic was reduced to one lane till about noon, when the canyon was closed completely. Kendrick said the canyon was closed until 3:30 p.m."

There have been several crashes and slide-offs  in Logan Canyon in recent years.

While the drive through the canyon can be beautiful, it can also cause a lot of problems.

The driver of an 18-wheeler, who troopers believe was going too fast, lost control on a curve and ended up in the river below, as many drivers have.

Utah’s Department of Transportation has tried to make Logan Canyon safer in the past few years, adding cable barriers, rumble strips, signage and even a high-friction surface in one stretch known for crashes and slide-offs.

“Anything we can do to improve safety, we’re doing,” said UDOT spokesperson John Gleason.

New noxious weed near lake

Attention Shoreline Owners and Recreators

Beautiful but Bad. Yes, Another invader of the shoreline of Bear Lake

It has a beautiful purple flower right now                but it’s really another unwanted invasive plant growing along Bear Lake’s shoreline. Purple loosestrife is a semi-aquatic perennial growing up to six to eight feet tall. It reproduces by both seed and creeping rootstocks. At Bear Lake, infestations can replace beneficial plants and thus displace wildlife. It can be found in shallow marshy wetland areas and ditches and has been spotted growing along the western side and southern end of Bear Lake! In Idaho, Todd Transtrum, Bear Lake County Weed Control,       ttranstrum@bearlakecounty.id.gov , 208-221-0305      In Utah, Matt Coombs, Utah Forestry Fire & State Lands,        mattcoombs@utah.gov , 435-890-8967 At this juncture, just tell them where you’ve spotted this invader! Thanks for your help,                Dave Cottle                Bear Lake Watch blue @bearlakewatch.com

Images and info: http://www.utahweed.org/weed_plcss.html

Bear Lake Trifecta needs Volunteers

Waters Edge is hosting the Bear Lake Trifecta August 13-15. I am in desperate need of volunteers for North Beach, ID and Cokeville. Wyo. We are paying $20 per each full day volunteer slot 6am-2pm to your organization! Volunteers will need to set up their own shade & can decorate booths, bring music and make it a party! 

 

Here is the sign up link:  https://signup.com/go/LLqpCyO

 

Here is the race link for more info: www.RunBearLake.com 

 

We hope to partner with Rich County Schools to get some extra money to support staff and kiddos. 

 

Let me know what questions you have.

Sam

970.213.2850

Rich Schools to open August 24

LETTER TO PARENTS ABOUT REOPENING

Rich School District Students and Parents:
     Currently, we are planning to start school, with face to face instruction on August 24, 2020.  Our hope is to keep school “in the building” through a shared commitment from students, families, and staff by preventing the spread of COVID 19.  
     Together with the Bear River Health Department, we have developed guidance for the opening of school with all students having the opportunity to attend on a regular schedule.  However, we realize that this is a very fluid situation, and that changes in protocol can happen quickly.
     The following guidelines are intended to provide protection for students, employees, and the community.

Things we will do at school:
1.    Mitigate risk/spread by encouraging physical distancing, proper hand hygiene, sanitization, wearing masks, hallway flow adjustments, adjusting lunch time seating, recess modifications, and spacing of students.
2.    Monitor illness/symptoms in the student body and contact a student’s family immediately if a student exhibits symptoms.
3.    Monitor positive COVID 19 cases and its spread in Rich District, and follow up appropriately, as we would with any community health concern.  Rich District will follow the recommendations of the health department officials regarding school closures, modified school schedules, or in-school adjustments.
4.    Continue to refine our digital blended learning as needs arise.
5.    Modify our method of delivery, if necessary, to promote the health and well-being of students and staff.

Things parents and students can to.
1.     Keep your child home if they have a fever (100.4 or above), cough, cold or flu symptoms, and have them return only when these symptoms have subsided.
2.    Talk to your child about changes they may notice at school – masks, face shields, taking temperature, lunch changes, etc. -- reinforcing that these measures are in place to preserve their health and the health of those around them.
3.    Send your child to school wearing a clean mask and encourage them to wear it.  If your child does not have a face mask, one will be provided.
4.    Prepare, as much as possible, to adapt to change.  As conditions regarding the virus change, we will need to adjust as needed.
5.    Recognize you can choose the traditional face-to face school, a hybrid model (teachers will record instruction being taught in their classrooms and post it on Canvas daily for students at home), or an online option offered through SOEP.  Please communicate with administration if your child is not attending face to face instruction.

6.    Know that as a parent/guardian, you have the right to keep your child home at any time as you assess risk as it relates to your family.  

The information that follows will provide you more information relative to student safety.  Please read it thoroughly, and please know we are making every effort to provide a quality education experience for your child.

Please be aware there is no such thing as a “COVID-free zone”.  The more people congregate, no matter where that takes place, the more opportunity there is for the virus to spread.  COVID 19 exists everywhere in our society, at this point, no vaccine has been developed.  However, by following some best practices, we believe we can mitigate the spread of the virus, which will allow us to provide the best education we can for all students.

 

Reflections on the Journey

By Leslie Scott
Ed Note:  Introducing a new columnist for RCTonline.  Leslie struggles with brain chemistry issues and is sharing her amazing journey as a wonderful wife, mother, friend and colleague.

I have been on medication for anxiety and depression since Carter was born. For a full decade I relied upon those tiny pills to help me get through every day.

When I decided to come off my medication, it took a full year! I was tired of relying on pills to make me happy. I felt like my kids were old enough that I could maybe cope with the everyday problems that came my way. It was so freeing!!!! I loved the way I felt. And not long after taking my last pill, Ryan told me that he was seeing the old me. That he hadn’t seen me smile like that for the last ten years. And for six months, I felt like the girl I used to be! She was still here! It was glorious! I was so happy all the time.

I miss that girl now! I know that she still exists. Buried under the pill that numbs my brain so I can function is the girl I truly am. And that gives me comfort.

Elder Neal A. Maxwell said, “Patience is tied very closely to faith in our Heavenly Father. Actually, when we are unduly impatient, we are suggesting that we know what is best--better than does God. Or, at least, we are asserting that our timetable is better than His.”

The thought that I may be on medication for the rest of my life is a tad disheartening. Don’t get me wrong, I am SO grateful for it. I have come such a long way because of it. But I long for the real me. I long to be truly happy. I want to feel every emotion deep in my bones. With every fiber of my being. But the medication keeps me stable. No high highs, and no low lows.

I take comfort in the fact that I am still me, deep down. And I may not get to be her again until after this life is over. But I will get to be her again someday!! And when eternity comes, and Ryan and I are together forever, he will see me the way I wish to be. Happy, full of life, with a genuine smile on my face. I will try to be patient and trust in the Lord’s timetable. This is one of my tests. And I will do my best to bear it well. One Day at a Time!

"Switch your mentality from "I'm broken and helpless" to "I'm growing and healing" and watch how fast your life changes, for the better."

Micro Burst Hail Storm This Week

    Photo by Darin Brooks   KUTV 2 News