Q: I read your column about tipping your canoe and getting wet (Zimo, Oct. 12).

You might also answer the question about what you should do if your camera gets submerged in the water and gets wet.

LOU MCDONALD, Boise

A: Cameras and water don't mix unless you have one that's waterproof.

Statesman Outdoors writer Roger Phillips and I have dunked our cameras. It's bound to happen if you're an angler or boater and not super careful.

The lesson I learned from my flipped canoe at Payette Lake was that no matter what you do, if your camera goes completely underwater, it's toast.

What you have to try to do is minimized the damage. I tried that while still trying to save myself. (I'm glad I had a life vest on).

As I tip-toed to shore in neck-deep water, I held the camera over my head. As soon as I got out of the water, I made sure the camera was off and I removed the battery.

I also removed the card to make sure I could save my photos.

Then, I immediately dried the camera. I took off the lens, popped open the flash compartment and left the battery and card compartments open to dry in the heat inside my truck.

Some photographers say you should let the camera dry for 24 to 72 hours before trying to use it again. I was on a photo shoot and let it dry for an hour or so. It didn't work.

My digital SLR camera body and telephoto lens were doing all sorts of crazy things except taking pictures.

I took the camera to Idaho Camera at 1310 N. Orchard St. in Boise (377-3686), and the repair staff miraculously saved it.

Idaho Camera did a fantastic job of fixing it. I had lost all hope and actually was getting estimates on a new camera and lens.

I got some tips from the crew at Idaho Camera on what to do if you go swimming with a camera. Basically, I had done some of them.

John Rydman, a technician at Idaho Camera, said that you should remove all batteries, including the backup battery. I hadn't done this because I didn't know my camera had a backup battery.

"Dry it out as quickly as possible," he said. "Remove all power between the camera and the lens by separating them."

Rydman agrees that if you swim with your camera, there's going to be damage no matter what, but taking the necessary steps will at least minimize the damage.

After 40 years of carrying cameras on river trips, ski hills, rainy hikes, sea kayaking adventures and to the tops of mountain peaks, I blew it.

Lesson learned. Keep the camera in a Pelican box or other waterproof case and make sure it's safe to take it out for a shot.

By the way, a waterproof point-and-shoot camera works well on many trips.

Foothills trails

Q: Once again, it is time for my fall rant. The Foothills trails have been bone dry now for, what, five months?

Well, after that recent Friday snowstorm, someone on a horse thought it was an ideal day to go for a ride on Shane's Loop over the weekend.

The following Wednesday morning you could clearly see the torn-up patches and shod hoofprints.

I know mountain bikers are more to blame for tearing up the trails, but come on, horse people, show a little restraint.

Thanks.

SCOTT ELDER, e-mail

A: We've gotten spoiled in these dry years. Many folks think the Boise Foothills trails can be used year-round. Not so.

You're right. Everyone should respect the trails and not use them when they are wet.

It can be warm and sunny in the fall, and the trails can be dry. It only takes one rain or snowstorm to muddy them up.

The rule of thumb (or foot, tire or hoof) is that if you leave a track and pull up mud, turn back.

Deep tracks or ruts cause erosion, and that leads to trail damage.

When trail users continue to travel wet trails, they also try to avoid mud and puddles and go out on the fringes of trails. That causes the widening of the trail, destroying the single-track. Single-track trails are getting hard to come by and are the most desirable among trail users.

It's pretty simple to respect Boise Foothills trails. For more tips, see the Ridge to Rivers Web site at www.ridgetorivers.org.

Camping fees

Q: I was off to the mountains at O-dark-30 Thursday for deer and elk hunting in the Sage Hen Reservoir vicinity.

I decided we should check with the ranger district in Emmett about which campgrounds would be open.

We learned that full fees of $15 per night will be charged at Antelope and Antelope Annex campgrounds (the only two open).

I guess we should have checked the U.S. Forest Service Web site before making plans for this year.

Unless I am suffering from "old-timers," I would swear that after Labor Day, campgrounds go to limited services (no water pump handles, no TP) and the rates are reduced.

I have an e-mail to them for written verification. It would really chap my cheeks if I was the only person at the Sage Hen Complex paying, because in the 17 years we've hunted that area we've seldom seen any U.S. Forest Service vehicles patrolling.

As it is, my tab will be $180 for six nights (two campsites). Your thoughts?

LARRY L., e-mail

A: The word we got from the U.S. Forest Service in our roundup on fall camping in Idaho Outdoors on Sept. 4 was that Antelope and Antelope Annex campgrounds at Sage Hen Reservoir would be open with services through Sept. 30 and then remain open without services or fees through the hunting season.

Apparently, there should not have been any fees charged during the general deer and elk seasons.

I can see the confusion. The Boise National Forest's Web site says the campground is operated by a concessionaire from the third week in May through the first week in September.

However, the area is accessible for a season that usually ranges between April 20 and Oct. 20, depending on snow levels.

The Web site lists the camping fees but doesn't say when the late-season ends.

Many ranger districts leave certain campgrounds open throughout the fall for hunting season without fees or services.

You can call the Emmett Ranger District (365-7000) next time to get the right information before heading out.

I hope you bagged a deer or elk.