Parks Department eyes parking at Hole in the Ground

Every summer vehicles line Belsby Road at Hole in the Ground, as boaters launch their boats into Hole in the Ground Creek for access to Bonnie Lake.

Cars and trucks of boaters line the road near the single launch point. They are then left on both sides of the bridge over the creek.

Whitman County is looking to alleviate the congestion on the rural road.

Tim Myers, director of the county parks department, told commissioners Monday his department wanted to put up signs and investigate the possibility of creating a parking lot.

The only public land in the area is the road and an island in Bonnie Lake.

“We’re definitely not looking to make a new county park there,” said Myers. “But there are some things we can do to let people know that the whole area is private land.”

Myers suggested installing signs that point out that the land is private and more that designate parking space.

Myers also mentioned contacting the landowners about the possibility of acquiring some of their land for parking.

The county considered turning the area into a county park in the early 1980s, said Myers. But volumes of letters against the idea from private landowners in the area put the brakes on that plan.

Commissioner Greg Partch, noting the county’s current budget crunch, asked who would pay for the signs.

“Well I think it’s safe to say the county isn’t going to pay for it,” said Myers.

Partch suggested contacting groups that use the creek to access the lake to see about donations. The Spokane Canoe and Kayak Club frequents the spot, as do several fishing and bird hunting groups.