NEWS/REC REC
PARKS AND RIDES Hoping to glean some funds from state and federal grant pools, the Idaho City Ranger District has applied for a total of $170,000 in grants from the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation. The district wants a shot at funds netted from state user fees and federal endowments. “Annually we open up for applications for those grants from those programs … we have state and federal agencies that appeal to the program for that funding,” said Jennifer Blazek, communications director at IDPR. The applications are reviewed by citizens associated with the uses and areas affected, who then prioritize the funding based on how it would benefit their community, since their user fees go toward the project. ICRD hopes to use the money on four separate projects: education on off-highway motor vehicle use and the new travel management rule with signs and literature, brush and survey miles of trail near the basin, blasting and maintenance of the Crooked River trail, and signage on the 55mile Idaho City Area Trail System. But maybe you don’t ride an ATV. You would, however, sell a kidney to buy a season ski pass at Bogus Basin. The problem is, you don’t have any money left over to put gas in your car. A survey conducted last summer by Community Planning Association found that many people would like to carpool to Bogus Basin but did not want to ride with strangers and lacked a way to meet potential ridesharers. That is no longer the case. Valley Regional Transit has launched three new rideshare programs to better connect people offering and seeking rides. They are all web-based, using Facebook, yahoo groups and a dedicated message board, ridesharetobogus.org. To use the programs, aspiring ridesharers can “join” or “like” the “Ride Share to Bogus” social networking groups or just post on the board their desire to share or catch a ride. The dedicated site was made by snowbomb.com, who made a similar board with over 3,000 users in the Lake Tahoe area. It’s specifically designed for riders and drivers to seek out like-minded and scheduled cohorts, providing search fields for snowboarders, tele-skiers, skiers, smokers, non-smokers, men, women, dates, meetings places and more. The programs are considered experimental, in that VRT is trying them all to see what to works. But VRT representative Steve Stuebner says if something else comes along, they’re willing to try that, too.
R ANDY K ING
Maybe the best new way to hitch a ride to Bogus Basin.
THE WRITING ON THE ROCKS (Not) understanding the petroglyphs here in our own back yard RANDY KING Taking a left onto Map Rock Road south of Nampa, I realized I was following modern road signs to find a set of ancient road signs: petroglyphs, which are intricate carvings found up and down the Snake River canyon outside of Boise. They are often located Small hands can touch thousands of years of history at one of a number of nearby petroglyph sites. on the flat faces of boulders left where prehistoric Lake Bonneville once was. The petroglyphs, created by ancient indigenous are most probably artistic. of the park coalesce around the rock art. people, are most often outlines and stick“David Whitely at the Rock Art Institute But possibly the best and most plentifigures etched into car-sized boulders. The at UCLA has argued that some lines curve, make circles and sometimes form ful example of petroglyphs art is associated with shamanin the valley are at Wees Bar. shapes of animals and people. istic activity or rituals ... indeed Cross the Guffy Bridge—built I recently took my son to Map Rock for [they] may have been produced by in 1897—south of Celebration an introduction to the etchings. It was a shamans for or during rituals,” he simple enough lesson to get to. We pulled off Park and head upstream about added. four miles. Be careful in this area the road at an unimproved parking area and Now that I knew what the in the warmer months because looked up at the boulders. It was instant imrock art might be about, I might it is home to rattlesnakes and mersion into Great Basin archaeology, and it also now have to explain art and scorpions. The area has more than was interesting enough to hold the attention shamanistic rituals to my third 90 boulders covered in symbols of a third grader for quite some time. grader. This ought to be an entertaining that vary from bird and animal shapes to Map Rock is not the only nearby area conversation opening up the possibility of complex geometric forms. with petroglyphs. Celebration Park near counseling sessions. Staring at the white squiggles at Kuna features a host of amenities, including But it’s important for him to know that Map Rock, my son asked a simple, yet difself-guided and guided tours of the rock art the petroglyphs do mean something, that located near the park. It also has restrooms, ficult to answer question, “So, Dad, what they aren’t simply “you are here” signs or do they mean?” boat ramps, a visitors’ center and fresh wadoodles. Taking the time to scrape shapes “I don’t know,” ter. You can view and animals into the sides of boulders had to was the best I could 12,000-year-old take some commitment. come up with, other Native American But what is the record trying to tell us? Is than pointing out rock art without the rock art some ancient code that we have the obvious animal ever leaving a shapes. I promised to yet to crack? paved road. “It’s not a writing system,” Plew said. find out. Celebration Park So maybe they are maps to hunting When we can be a full-scale grounds. returned home, I immersion into “I am not convinced that we have prehisasked Boise State’s ancient times. The toric maps,” Plew said. “I think our indigDr. Mark Plew, an guides not only enous populations got along well without expert in the field share the history them knowing where they were and where of Great Basin of the area but can they were going.” archaeology, to tell also talk about the Now I had to explain to my boy that me what the signs geology and flint maybe no one knows exactly what the petromeant. knapping, as well as You can get more information about Map “It has been widely glyphs mean. All I could tell him was that offer atlatl throwing Rock, Celebration Park and Wees Bar at visisomeone made them a very long time ago, believed that animal instruction. An attidaho.org and blm.com. Scan the QR code in they must be important, and while we don’t depictions serve as latl—a kind of a dartthis story for an accompanying video report. know exactly what they mean but we need signs ... markers of throwing spear—was, to preserve them. Maybe I took the wrong game trails and/or according to Celebrapresence of particular approach in trying to explain the petroglyphs tion Park’s website, to my son. When we got home, I asked if he resources,” said Plew. man’s first machine, developed 45,000 years had a good time at the petroglyphs. But, as my 8-year-old pointed out, not all ago to help throw a spear farther than pos“Yeah,” he said, simply. “They are really sible with a human arm. The park even hosts rock carvings are so identifiable. Some are cool to look at.” complex geometrical shapes and others look an annual atlatl state championship at its Sometimes, maybe that’s all that counts. like scratches on stone. Plew said that some spear tossing range. All of the great features
—Andrew Crisp and Josh Gross
26 | FEBRUARY 16–22, 2011 | BOISEweekly
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