Sometimes adventures don’t go the way we plan. I guess that is why they are called adventures instead of just ventures.
Cathy and I, and especially Cathy likes to explore hot springs. I think she can tell you where every hot spring is within a hundred-mile radius…and that’s conservative.
For the last couple of years or so, as we would visit a hot spring and as we talked to others, we kept hearing of a place over by Juntura Oregon that is supposed to be pretty decent. In our experience, there is generally not much to check out in that area and so anything there would be worth checking out.
We had a general description of the location and where to turn off from the highway, so we took a Sunday afternoon to explore.
Well, we arrived at the landmark where we were supposed to turn, only there was nothing to turn onto. There was one overgrown trail that looked pretty iffy (even for our four-wheel drive) with three-foot weeds growing in the middle, so we decided the turn off must be further down the road.
When we got to the Juntura Café we knew we had gone too far. So, Cathy went in to get a snack and talk to the owner. She was able to get a better description of where to turn. Cathy also found that January/February was the best time to go, and it would probably be crowded.
We went back. After some more probing, by doing a 180-degree turn at the end of the guard rail we finally found the right turn off at the base of a hill. We could tell we were on the right trail by the many tire tracks in the fresh mud. We found the T in the road like they described and went to the right. The road definitely became rougher, just like we had been told. When we came to a water filled pothole/crater in the road that looked like it might have fish in it, we kept going. When the water came up to the doors and we could hear a scrapping sound on the undercarriage, Cathy’s nerve gave out.
My hat is off to the intrepid people in the Juntura area. Not only will they not let roads that could swallow a small car stop them from going to one of the area’s favorite natural attractions, but they are also able to tolerate living in an area where going to such a place is worthwhile. The people in the Juntura area are to be commended for their fortitude and grit. Weiser really is a great place to live, work, and play.
Well, so much for that. Now on to City business.
Wayne Wallace of the Electric Department would like everyone to know the importance of allowing access to your electric meter. Legally, it is the homeowner’s responsibility to allow access. Access not only includes an unlocked gate through a fence, but also keeping the area around the meter free from clutter or other obstructions.
This is important not only so that the meters can be read and maintained. In the event of a fire, flooding, or other disaster, the power needs to be disconnected quickly to neutralize the threat of uncontrolled electricity. The alternative is to disconnect the power from the pole, which is not only more expensive, but also very time consuming when minutes and seconds can be critical for saving life and property.
So, if you do not have a gate through your fence, please build one. If you have it locked, please unlock it. If you have clutter obstructing your meter, please clear the area.
Well, that’s it for this week. Hope you have a good one! And be careful exploring hot springs!

Well! It looks like the cafes and restaurants here in Weiser will be getting quite a bit of business from Cathy and myself over the next couple of months. Starting next week, my brother and nephew are going to be remodeling our kitchen and what was once a back porch on our house. Our house is a 1910 Craftsman Sears & Roebuck kit house. It is solid but could use a few updates.
So, over the next couple of months, we will probably be very familiar with every menu in town. I know that the food is great at all our local establishments. I just hope that doesn’t translate into too many added pounds!
In City news this week, you may remember that the City received a grant to replace playground equipment in Memorial Park. Well, the City has now jumped through the hoops to accept the grant. We will be going out to bid on this project shortly.
It is too soon to say when the new playground will be completed. That will depend on the winning contractor’s work schedule. But we anticipate having the project completed by fall.
In other news, the Library is celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday on Friday, March 1. Timbra Long and the whole Library crew invite you to stop by and celebrate the good Dr.’s birthday with cookies and snacks. However, it is strictly BYOGEH (Bring Your Own Green Eggs & Ham.)
Now on to another topic. I have been getting telephone calls recently regarding the City’s procedures regarding utility disconnections. Most have centered around a lack of warning just before the disconnection takes place.
To explain why the City does not provide pre-notification a little background might help. The City of Weiser is in a rather unique situation. Rather than getting our electricity from Idaho Power, the City buys power from the Bonneville Power Authority at wholesale prices and then distributes that power to you and to the businesses in town. The City owns the power poles, lines, and has our own professional crew to insure you receive the service you need.
By doing this, your power rates are 15% to 20% less than the typical Idaho Power customer.
Idaho Power is required by the Public Utility Commission to notify its customers before power is disconnected. Weiser does not have this requirement. If the City Council chose to alter this procedure the City could comply. But it would require more staff to do so. And so, there is a trade-off between lower power bills and notification before disconnecting services.
To help alleviate most problems with this, the City announced a new set of features to pay your utility bills about a year ago. You can go to the City’s website at cityofweiser.net or call the City Office at 208-414-1965 to sign up to have text messages sent to you phone to remind you of the due date. The messages go out at the time the invoice is generated, one week later, and then if the invoice is still not paid, just before the turn off date.
In addition, there are several ways to pay for your City utilities. First, there are the traditional ways of bringing, mailing, or dropping off a check at the drop box across from City Hall. You may also call the City with your credit card to make a payment. This method will cost an additional 3.25% of the bill.
However, the City now offers online options to make your payments.
You can contact the City to Level-Pay your utilities and then set up a bill pay system with your bank to have the payment automatically deducted from your checking account at no charge. This is what I do.
If your bank allows it, you can go to the City’s website and sign up to have your checking account debited or your credit card charged for the invoice amount each month. The debit fee is 2.25% or the credit card fee is 3.25%.
So, as you can see, you can receive notification ahead of time and there are very convenient ways to pay! If you have any questions, the staff at City Hall would be more than happy to answer your questions. I hope this helps!
Well, that’s it for this week. If you see Cathy and me at a restaurant, be sure to say hi! Weiser really is a great place to live, work, and play!

Wow! Talk about a hard-fought football game. Both of the Kansas City Chiefs’ and the San Francisco 49ers’ defenses really put up a fight! I remember watching the very first Super Bowl game between the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs in 1967. (Yes, I’m old.) And I think I have watched all the games since then, I’m no expert, but I do not remember one where the defenses dominated a game like this one. It was too bad it could not have remained a tie at the end of regulation. To me, it was one of those games where neither team deserved to lose.
Last week I was in a football game of sorts myself. It involved our daughter and the older grandson against the younger grandson and me. It didn’t quite get the same media coverage as the Super Bowl, but there was one spectator, Cathy, (although she refused to pay the admission charge).
The game was interesting to say the least. For some reason, the boys ended up doing the vast majority of the running. I don’t know if I communicated the play calls very well because my six-year-old runner/receiver tended to go off in entirely different directions. I nearly intercepted one pass, but instead it ended in a face plant. Maybe I should workout a bit more before continuing this football career. I was somewhat relieved when we were called to dinner.
In City business this week, with the warmer weather, the different departments are coming out of the winter maintenance mode.
The Water and Wastewater Departments are marking Commercial Street to show the location of all water and wastewater lines. Commercial Street will then be surveyed in anticipation of the coming rehabilitation.
West Ninth Street is also being marked for water and wastewater lines and will also be surveyed at the same time. Currently, the south end of West Ninth Street ends where it turns onto West Idaho Street. However, the right-of-way for West Ninth extends south across the railroad tracks to County Road 70.
The City is working on extending the water main from the south end of West Ninth to County Road 70 to complete a loop of the water main. Currently there is a dead end on the water main where the City Limits end on County Road 70. Completing a loop allows access to water in the event of a break on one part of the line, water can come from the other direction. The water mains usually run through the middle of the road, hence the survey to determine exactly where the right of way exists.
I also wanted to let you know that there were nine bids that came in for the Indianhead/State Street walkway and sidewalk. Last summer we were unable to get even one bid. Now there were nine to contend with. The lowest bidder was chosen and awarded the contract. Although the $250,000 will not stretch as far as we had originally hoped, it will get us most of what we were after.
I mentioned that the project would be walkway and sidewalk. Along the golf course driving range, the walkway will be asphalt. There are three reasons for this. In order to place curb, gutter, and sidewalk along this stretch, a drainage system would need to be engineered and constructed. Doing so would take about half of the $250,000 grant. Also, if Indianhead Road were ever widened to meet the sidewalk, the level of the sidewalk would not be at the level needed to provide drainage for the road. So, the curb, gutter, and sidewalk would have to be torn out and replaced. In addition, the asphalt is much less expensive than concrete and allows us to stretch the project further. Therefore, an asphalt walkway seems to be the best solution to meet pedestrian safety needs while taking into consideration practical limitations.
One other item, the City’s Adopt-a-Truck program is in effect again. If you need to haul away yard work, spring cleaning, etc., just come down to City Hall at 55 W. Idaho St. and the clerks will be happy to schedule the next available truck.
Well, that’s it for this week. I hope you are enjoying the early spring weather. Weiser really is a great place to live, work, and play!

Friday was a treat for Cathy and me. The youngest grandson who is in kindergarten needed a babysitter because his mother needed to work that day. His older brother had a snowshoeing field trip, so he was taken care of. So, Cathy picked him up at 0 dark thirty and brought him to our place.
Cathy let him do the activities what he wanted to do. It is fun seeing how the boys are in our house. There are a few simple guardrails, but otherwise the boys know they have the run of the house and have a lot of freedom.
We ate pizza at Ruszoni’s where he spent quarters in the gumball machines and played pinball. I took the later part of the day off so we could swim in the Cambridge hot springs.
In the pool, our grandson wanted to play “water zombies” which we found out has a lot of rules which tend to change at a moment’s notice. Of course, Cathy and I were the “zombies,” and our grandson was the prey. I don’t know about you, but I had never been a zombie before, nor have I watched many zombies, so I guess I had to have a crash course in zombie activities and behavior from a kindergartener. I’m not sure how accurate the “zombie” information we received but it sure was a lot of fun!
When we dropped our grandson off at his parents’ that evening, we also got a report on snow shoeing, belly sledding, and the habits of snowshoe rabbits. It was a great day!
In City business this week, don’t be surprised if you see someone drilling holes in Commercial Street sometime in the next couple or three weeks. The City’s engineers will be taking core samples to determine the underlying ground composition of the road, particularly in the soft spots. This is being done to take mitigation measures when the road is reconstructed, hopefully this summer. So, if you see some strange activity on Commercial, please know that it is for a good purpose.
Also, I want you to keep your fingers crossed. As you may remember the City received $250,000 to construct a walkway from the High School, down Indianhead Street, and then down the hill on State Street. However, last summer we were unable to get a contractor to show any interest, let alone bid on the project. Well, Mike Campbell, the Public Works Director, sent it out for bid again (during the contractors’ slow season) and four contractors have expressed interest. By the time you see this article we will be opening any bids we receive. Keep your fingers crossed that the City receives at least one.
Ken Anderson, the Recreation Department Director, is looking for lifeguards again this year. The City raised the starting pay for lifeguards last year from $7.25 to $10.00 an hour. For those of you who are looking for some summer spending money while learning important skills this is a great opportunity. Last summer, the Weiser lifeguards saved a life on at least three separate occasions. There is responsibility, but also great self-satisfaction in this job.
So……if you, or someone you know, is interested in getting paid to sit by a pool and soak up rays this summer, please contact Ken or Jhonna at 208-414-0301 or stop by the Recreation Department Office in the Vendome.
On another note, Ron McDaniel, the Street Department Supervisor, would like to remind everyone that the City will haul off any not so fresh Christmas trees you might have. The only requirement on your part would be to bring your slightly used tree to the curbside. This will let the workers know your intent to have the tree removed and make your tree easier to be seen in order for it to be hauled off.
Well, that’s it for this week. I hope you are enjoying the warmer weather even if it is wet! Have a great week!

In November Cathy and I decided to take a vacation this January. When we were talking about destinations, Cathy didn’t seem too excited about any of my suggestions until I mentioned Hawaii. I had never been there before, but Cathy had, so I really didn’t care which island we went to.
Cathy loves to research and plan trips taking all factors into consideration. Well, after spending a couple or three days looking into options, she decided we should go to a place called Kaanapali on the island of Maui.
As you may or may not know, Kaanapali is just north of Lahaina. Lahaina was the city that was devastated by wildfire last August. Cathy chose Kaanapali because the wildfire not only destroyed Lahaina, but also devastated the local economy. The travel information indicated that the locals wanted visitors to come and spend their travel dollars to help the area get back on its feet.
And so, Cathy booked us eight days at a beautiful resort right on the beach. We went armed with instructions on what to and what not to talk about with locals as well as extra cash for generous tips. We were glad we had the information and the cash.
Driving to Kaanapali we had to drive through parts of Lahaina. The Lahaina streets were blocked off and visual barriers were set up to try to screen off the destruction. But, since the land slopes toward the sea, the screens could only block so much.
We drove for miles realizing that what was on the left and sometimes the right of us had all been destroyed. It was far worse than what I had imagined from reading and watching the news sources. There is no way to adequately describe what we saw, especially in the short space of this writing.
In the resort area, a portion of the beach is used for people living in tents. Some of the hotel space is used to house locals. Some of the restaurants prepare free meals for the homeless. When we stopped to realize that nearly every one of the workers in the resorts, shops, restaurants, and services that we met and interacted with were probably former Lahaina residents, we were humbled by the disruption to their lives and what they were doing to move forward.
We, the residents of Weiser, are fortunate. We take our lives and our possessions for granted when tragedy can happen to any one of us or all of us at any time. I am just thankful that we do have the town we call Weiser and each other.
While we were gone, I was also mindful that we had unintentionally left when the unusually mild winter we had been experiencing decided to act like a normal Idaho winter. We felt a little guilty about that, but not enough to rush home. Sorry!
I was also mindful and thankful for your City employees. Just as I knew it would, everything ran smoothly and all issues that came up were managed while we were gone. I cannot emphasize enough what a quality crew you have working for you at the City. I have worked closely with literally hundreds of businesses in my career as a commercial lender. Very seldom do you see the dedication, professionalism, and teamwork in an organization like there is in the City of Weiser. I did not have to be concerned about leaving knowing that capable hands in all departments would be taking care of everything.
Well, that’s it for this week. We are fortunate. Weiser really is a great place to live, work, and play.