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Alaska at its best — part two – East Idaho News

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Alaska at its best — part two – East Idaho News


Our second excursion on our Alaska cruise was my wife’s favorite trip as we left Skagway on the Klondike Highway into Canada. My wife loves to hike in the Tetons and loves the scenic views with lots of lakes mingled with subarctic and Arctic terrain.

As we entered Canada on the White Pass into British Columbia, we traveled through vistas which were awesome. We followed the route of the infamous gold rust into the Yukon Territory. Connor, our guide, recounted the struggles that those miners experienced.

The two highlights of that excursion for me were seeing and photographing six cinnamon-phase black bears and viewing Emerald Lake. The bears were feeding on dandelions along the side of the road and were very tolerant of smaller vehicles, but scurried off when a large truck or bus would pass by. Emerald Lake had the most beautiful colors of water that I have ever seen.

The beautiful Emerald Lake in the Yukon Territory. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

Our final excursion was out of Juneau, looking for whales before hiking to the Mendenhall Glacier. I have always dreamed of being up close and personal with a whale, and after forty-five minutes out from Auke Bay, we saw a group of boats but were informed that they were fishing boats. Disappointed, I thought it was going to be a bust; but boy, was I wrong.

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Fifteen minutes later in a channel between Shelter and Lincoln Islands, our captain announced that we were entering a pod of 10 to 15 humpback whales with some sea lions.

A Humpback whale "fluke-up" as it begins its deep dive. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com
A humpback whale “fluke-up” as it begins its deep dive. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

It did not take long for me to find out that trying to keep up with that many whales was difficult – particularly locating the whales early in their surfacing. I would watch for them to create “water spouts” as they blew air from one of their two blowholes. Some of them were “resting,” with just about a foot of their backs showing while others would be feeding by making shallow dives. After three or four of these dives, a whale would show their large hump, on their back, called a “fluke-up”, indicating a deep dive. This meant that their tail would come out of the water as the dive started.

A Humpback's tail indicates that it is making a deep dive which will last about five to 10 minutes. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com
A humpback whale’s tail indicates that it is making a deep dive which will last about five to 10 minutes. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

As I was trying to photograph these whale dives, I saw a frenzy on the top of the water with salmon flying out of the water.

A salmon jumps out of the water trying to escape for a Sea lion near Juneau. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com
A salmon jumps out of the water trying to escape for a Sea lion near Juneau. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

A very large sea lion had located a school of salmon and was trying to collect brunch. It finally captured a fish and was chewing on it with gulls trying to get a free meal by landing on the lion’s head or back to get a bite. After the fish was consumed, the animal appeared to grin at me, did a barrel roll and waved at us. This was a highlight of the excursion for me.

The sea lion captures and begins eating a fish as a gull tries to steal a bite. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com
The sea lion captures and begins eating a fish as a gull tries to steal a bite. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

After two hours of watching the pod of whales and a few more sea lions, we headed back to shore passing Lincoln Island where we got a glimpse of a female humpback with its calf. The 15-foot baby looked small against its 50-foot, 35-ton mom.

At Mendenhall Island, the highlight for me was watching the Arctic terns as they tried defending their nests on the beach from raiding birds. Part of our group who did not go on the whale watching, observed a bald eagle raiding some of the nests as they hiked to the glacier.

We had a wonderful cruise from Juneau to Ketchikan where we encountered many more humpbacks, and I watched pods of orcas (killer whales) hunting as we traveled the Inland Passage. For the first time on the trip, I was finally able to photograph the breaching of both the humpbacks and the orcas.

An orca (killer whale) breaches near Juneau in Alaska's Inland Passage. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com
An orca (killer whale) breaches near Juneau in Alaska’s Inland Passage. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

For me, the cruise was one of the highlights of my life. I was with most of my family, the meals were good, we had great weather, sunsets were awesome, and the excursions were terrific. I hope to do it again – it was a dream come true!!

A beautiful sunset over the Alaskan mountains along the Inland Passage. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com
A beautiful sunset over the Alaskan mountains along the Inland Passage. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com

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Idaho is in for a streak of clear skies next week

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Idaho is in for a streak of clear skies next week


After a round of showers came through this week, the Gem State is staying dry and clear for next week.

Temperatures finally started to feel winter-like as we take a tumble this weekend. Consistent 40’s the highs, and 20’s the lows.

Conditions on the valley floors are not expected to get past the mid 40’s. Showers appear to be nonexistent for the next 7 to 10 days.

We will also see some air stagnation in our area, meaning that as a high-pressure ridge moves in, not too much change is expected in the air. So, air quality may take a bit of a fall.

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Not much more than cold and dry air is on the way for Idaho, but at least the sun will shine for most of the forecast.

Have a great weekend and stay warm!





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Interstate 84 near Mountain Home back open after utility work

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Interstate 84 near Mountain Home back open after utility work


MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — Interstate 84 near Mountain Home is back open after crews closed the freeway due to utility work.

Crews closed westbound and eastbound lanes on Saturday morning from milepost 90 to milepost 95 due to Idaho Power working on power lines in the area, according to the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office. All lanes are now back open in both directions.

The sheriff’s office and the Mountain Home Police Department apologized for the inconvenience, saying they were just informed of the closure on Saturday morning.

More information regarding road closures and traffic conditions can be found at the Idaho Transportation Department’s 511 map.

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Idaho murder victims’ families file wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University

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Idaho murder victims’ families file wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University


The families of the four University of Idaho students killed in a brutal 2022 stabbing attack have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University (WSU), alleging the school ignored repeated warning signs about Bryan Kohberger.

The civil complaint, filed Jan. 7 in Skagit County Superior Court, was brought by Steve Goncalves, father of Kaylee Goncalves; Karen Laramie, mother of Madison Mogen; Jeffrey Kernodle, father of Xana Kernodle; and Stacy Chapin, mother of Ethan Chapin.

The lawsuit accuses WSU of gross negligence, wrongful death and violations of federal education laws, including Title IX. The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified monetary damages.

Attorney Robert Clifford, senior partner at Clifford Law Offices, said that the decision to leave damages “unspecified” is a strategic norm in high-stakes litigation because it prevents the focus from shifting towards sensationalism and keeps the decision firmly in the hands of the jury.

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“Ultimately, that’s to be determined and answered by the jury,” said Clifford, who is not involved in the lawsuit. “But you have some compelling facts and the liability is going to depend on the strength of what the school knew.”

The brother and parents of Kaylee Goncalves speak after Bryan Kohberger’s sentencing hearing at the Ada County Courthouse on July 23, 2025. Reuters
Bryan Kohberger in police custody after his arrest in December 2022. Moscow Police Department
Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle were found dead inside an off-campus apartment in Moscow, Idaho.

Despite Kohberger’s guilty plea in the murders, Clifford explained the civil case remains strong because the families face a lower burden of proof – requiring only a preponderance of evidence to establish the university’s liability.

“The mere fact that he pled guilty might not even be admissible in the civil proceeding because he’s not the defendant, right? If he is a defendant in the civil proceeding, then his plea of guilty will be important. And indeed, this school might try to use that to say, ‘See, it wasn’t our fault. He admits that it was his fault.’ But the bar is different for someone in a criminal proceeding than it is in a civil proceeding.”

According to the lawsuit, WSU hired Kohberger as a teaching assistant in its criminal justice and criminology department and provided him with a salary, tuition benefits, health insurance and on-campus housing.

The victims’ families allege the university had extensive authority over Kohberger’s conduct but failed to act despite mounting concerns.

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Here’s the latest coverage on Bryan Kohberger:


The complaint says WSU received at least 13 formal reports accusing Kohberger of threatening, stalking, harassing or predatory behavior toward female students and staff during the fall 2022 semester. The families argue university officials did not meaningfully investigate those complaints or remove Kohberger from campus before the murders – even though they had the authority to do so.

The lawsuit also alleges that the university failed to use its own threat-assessment systems designed to identify individuals who pose a risk of violence, even as concerns about Kohberger escalated. Instead, the families claim, the university continued to employ him, house him and give him access to students.

“The murders were foreseeable and preventable,” the complaint states, alleging WSU prioritized avoiding legal and reputational risk over student safety.

Madison Mogen’s mother, Karen Laramie, and stepfather, Scott Laramie, leave the courthouse after Bryan Kohberger’s sentencing hearing. Reuters
Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, on July 23, 2025. Getty Images

The lawsuit also alleges broad failures within the public university, including alleged dysfunction within campus police and compliance officers who are responsible for handling accusations of misconduct, including sexual harassment and stalking.

Kohberger pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of first-degree murder and burglary. He was sentenced to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole.

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Prosecutors said Kohberger stabbed the four students in the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2022, inside an off-campus rental home in Moscow, Idaho, just miles from the WSU campus in Pullman, Washington.

Karen Laramie, mother of Madison Mogan, and Kristi Goncalves, Kaylee Goncalves’ mother, embrace after the sentencing hearing for their daughters’ murderer. Reuters
Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Kohberger was arrested in Pennsylvania in December 2022 following a multi-state investigation.

Authorities linked him to the crime through DNA evidence, surveillance video and cellphone data showing repeated late-night trips near the victims’ home.

WSU has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit. Fox News Digital has reached out to WSU for comment.

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