Most of the estimated 100,000 people who float the Boise River each summer put in at Barber Park and get out at Ann Morrison Park — or someplace in between these two points — but a growing number of tubers and rafters are getting in farther downstream.
That's why local officials are alerting people who play in the river to three large trees that are in the river, downstream from the Glenwood Bridge in Garden City. The trees, which have the same root ball, have created a dangerous strainer or water entrapment. The trees are large and difficult to access from the bank, officials say.
That section of the river has traditionally been considered wild and natural, so river managers have no immediate plans to remove the trees, according to Boise fire officials.
Boise Fire Battalion Chief Aaron Hummel, who was on the dive team for several years, said one reason more of the public may floating downstream from Ann Morrison is because of the new Boise River Recreation Park. He cautions floaters to be alert while on the river.
"The river is a dynamic thing. As things break free, things enter the river and create a new strainer," Hummel said.
