RIVERS — River running outfitters training workers for the approaching season on the popular Salmon River in central Idaho have asked the state for permission to practice on other rivers due to a massive logjam, according to an Associated Press report this morning.

Grant Simonds of the Idaho Outfitters & Guides Association tells the Idaho Business Review that outfitters made the request so they can get ready for the season that starts at the end of May.

Officials say a blowout near the Black Creek drainage formed a logjam that created a new rapid.

About 9,000 visitors and workers float the river every summer.

U.S. Forest Service officials predict spring high water will remove the logjam.

The Forest Service used explosives to remove a logjam from the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in 2006.