Drew Dodson here with this week’s edition of the Valley Lookout newsletter. We had a few hiccups sending last week’s newsletter, but worked those out on our end and expect a smoother operation moving forward. This week’s lineup has everything from stories about infrastructure and development to wildfires and water quality. Let’s get to it.

First up

Agencies to host community meeting on Rock Fire

A public meeting featuring a presentation from Rock Fire incident managers will be held on Thursday night in Donnelly.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. and will include a presentation on the wildfire burning near Tamarack Resort, which as of Tuesday morning had burned about 2,695 acres.

“We’re going to have a formal presentation, and then after that we’re going to have breakout groups so that people can stop by with some representatives, including people from the incident team, the Forest Service, the Valley County Sheriff’s Office, and some other people as well, to ask questions,” said Beyla Richman, a public information officer on the Rock Fire.

The meeting will be recorded and posted on the Boise National Forest’s Facebook page afterward for anyone unable to attend Thursday night.

The community meeting coincides with Valley County designating an evacuation zone containing most of Tamarack to the “Set” status on Tuesday morning. The zone was previously one of three that had been in the “Ready” status since the Rock Fire started on Aug. 12.

The “Set” status is a “pre-evacuation” notice for occupants of the zone to pack their bags and be ready to evacuate “at a moment’s notice.”

“We’ve seen the fire become more active,” Valley County Sheriff Kevin Copperi said. “As the fire has moved closer to values at risk, we want to ensure that residents are prepared to leave if conditions warrant.”

Richman said fire managers collaborate with the county on evacuation orders and offer suggestions based on current fire activity and forecasted conditions.

“It’s a mix of current fire behavior and then also the potential,” she said. “This week is going to be dry and hot, so we kind of use the combination of the two to make those determinations.”

Tamarack continued limited operations on Tuesday afternoon, with the marina, ziplining, the mid-mountain lodge, and lift-served mountain biking all closed due to the Rock Fire.

(Photo: The northwestern side of the Rock Fire on Aug. 18, 2025. Photo: Courtesy Boise National Forest)

Regional internet outage affects thousands from Cascade to Riggins

A severed fiber line interrupted internet service for about 4,000 people from Cascade to Riggins earlier this week.

The outage occurred after Ziply Fiber’s wires linking the region to internet data centers in major cities were broken on Sunday, about 17 miles south of Cascade, according to Ryan Luckin, Ziply’s vice president of marketing and communications.

At the same time, an outage occurred on a Portland, Oregon, area network that backs up Ziply’s main lines in the region.

“This one was a unique and very rare situation in which there was a double fiber cut that impacted the region, including McCall, Donnelly, Cascade, New Meadows, and Riggins, which meant the redundant route serving the area was also impacted,” Luckin said.

The broken line was fixed on Monday. Luckin said service should now be restored to all affected customers.

“We’d recommend that people reboot their router/modem/ONT if they do not already see service back and contact support if they need assistance,” he said.

Ziply Fiber is headquartered in Kirkland, Washington. It acquired Frontier Communications’ operations and infrastructure in Idaho, Oregon, Washington and Montana in May 2020.

‘We The Public’: Idaho filmmaker fundraising for public lands documentary

An Idaho filmmaker is raising money to produce a documentary opposing the sale of public lands following recent sales proposed by federal lawmakers.

The documentary, called “We The Public,” is intended to “inspire a grassroots coalition of everyday Americans dedicated to preserving, protecting, and defending our shared natural heritage.”

“In a time when so much seems designed to divide us, public lands have the power to unite us,” said Andy Anderson of Mountain Home, an acclaimed photographer who is directing the film.

Anderson is seeking to raise $500,000 to fund the documentary, which will “ensure creative independence and authentic storytelling that captures the urgency of this moment.”

“The recent response to proposed land sales proves that Americans will stand together to protect what belongs to all of us,” Anderson said. “This is the story of America—people from vastly different backgrounds and experiences coming together for a shared purpose.” 

The documentary would be narrated by Michael Keaton and is targeting a release early next year. A trailer for the film is available here.

(Photo: Courtesy We The Public)

Civic Lookout

• Rock Fire Community Meeting: Thursday at 6 p.m. in the Donnelly Fire Station.
• McCall City Council: Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Agenda available here.
• Cascade City Council: Monday at 6 p.m. Agenda to be posted here.
• Payette Lake Watershed Advisory Group: Tuesday at 12:15 p.m. in the McCall Public Library. Agenda to be posted here.
• Valley County Commissioners: next Wednesday, starting at 9 am. Agenda to be posted here.

Valley Lookout Original Reporting

Rock Fire sees minimal growth over weekend, but fire weather expected

The Rock Fire ignited near Donnelly just over a week ago near Tamarack Resort and continues to threaten Tamarack Resort and homes along West Mountain Road. Read the initial story as well as our most recent update on Valley Lookout.

Mixed-used boathouse concept proposed in downtown McCall

A proposal to build condos over an existing business in McCall may require special permitting to exceed the city’s standard height limit. Read the full story on Valley Lookout.

Health advisory issued for Lake Cascade near popular boat ramp

A dangerous cyanobacteria bloom was detected last weekend on Lake Cascade, prompting the state to issue a health advisory for an area popular with swimmers and boaters. Read the full story on Valley Lookout.

Mountain Happenings

McCall

• Farmer’s Market: Today from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Art in the Courtyard: Gallery Fifty-Five to host 19th annual art show in the Hotel McCall Courtyard on Friday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Star Party: Boise Astronomical Society to host public stargazing event featuring telescopes at Ponderosa State Park’s Activity Center on Friday and Saturday night starting at 9:30 p.m. More information available here.
• Sharlie’s Angels Drag Show: At Foresters on Saturday night at 9 p.m. $20 entry at the door.

Donnelly

• Farmer’s Market: Every Wednesday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Donnelly City Park.
• Wednesday Night Concert Series: Innocent Man to perform in historic Roseberry at 6:30 p.m.
• MCPAWS Open House: Remodeled veterinary hospital to be publicly shown from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday.
• Ragazza di Bufalo: Seventh anniversary wine dinner on Tuesday at 6 p.m. Call 208-325-3463 to make reservations.

Cascade

• Live Music: Cliff Miller to perform at The Local at Clear Creek on Friday at 6 p.m., with Jenny and Johnny to play at North 55 Social at 8 p.m. Friday.
• Chalk on the Walk: Artists to draw chalk murals on downtown Cascade sidewalks on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. $5 entry fee for artists or $25 to sponsor an artist.
• Cascade Medical Center Golf Tournament: Five-person scramble to be held Saturday at Cascade Golf Course. Registration information available here.

New Meadows

• Farmer’s Market: Every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Dorsey Warr Memorial Park.
• McCall Mountaineers Golf Tournament: Four-person scramble Saturday at 8:30 a.m. at MeadowCreek Golf Resort. $100 per person.
• Labor Day Pie Sale: Meadows Valley Community Center to host annual pie sale on Aug. 31 from 9 a.m. until sold out. To pre-order, text or call Angie Crow at 208-789-3315 by Aug. 26
• Meadows Valley Days: 60th annual celebration featuring a classic car show, lumberjack competition, logging show, axe-throwing contest, and more to be held Aug. 30 and 31 in Dorsey Warr Memorial Park.

Mountain Pet of the Week

Meet Sage and Clover! Jenn says these best friends love running the trails outside of McCall & cooling off in the lake.

Click here to nominate your pet for Mountain Pet of the Week for a chance to be featured on a weekly newsletter!