COEUR d'ALENE - Hunting season will open in two weeks, but hunters should expect road and trail closures all over North Idaho this year.

"Hunting season is definitely going to be affected this year," said Jason Kirchner, a spokesman for the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. "It is definitely having an impact on scouting."

With hunting season about to open, Kirchner said hunters should be aware that they may encounter fires that fire officials have not spotted yet.

"We've located hundreds of fires out there so far," Kirchner said. "There are bound to be some that we haven't found yet."

Kirchner said fire officials are extremely concerned about a strong windstorm that the National Weather Service predicted will blow through North Idaho on Thursday and Friday of this week.

"Our weather pattern will become more conducive for isolated showers and thunderstorms late in the week, as a cold front passes through the region," the release said. "Very gusty winds will accompany this front passage, while some isolated showers and even thunderstorms are a possibility as well, especially for northeast Washington and the Idaho Panhandle."

While the Forest Service has no plan to close the forests or lobby the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to alter the hunting season, Kirchner said hunters should understand that they will encounter several road closures and trail closures.

This fire season has already set a record for the amount of fire retardant that has been dropped. Kirchner said the tanker base at the Coeur d'Alene Airport has surpassed 1 million gallons of retardant dropped this year. The previous record for fire retardant dropped in one year was set in 1967 when fire crews dropped 980,000 gallons.

To put that in perspective, he said the average use of fire retardant has been 150,000 gallons per year for the past 10 years.

"We haven't seen a fire season like this in North Idaho since 1926," he said. "Only the old-timers can remember seeing anything like this."

IDFG issued a press release on Monday stating the agency has no plan to alter the hunting season either.

"People heading out for late-summer hunts may see some road and trail restrictions caused by wildfires," the release said. "But hunters are reminded Idaho Fish and Game rarely alters hunts or offers rain checks for controlled hunt tags because of fires."

The agency said fires typically affect only a portion of a hunting unit and are usually extinguished or under control well before the hunting season ends, so IDFG does not alter season dates in response to fire restrictions.

"Hunters affected by a fire closure can adjust their schedule to hunt later in the season, or exchange general tags to hunt in a different area, but exchanges must be made before the season begins," according to the release. "Hunters with controlled hunt tags may also exchange them for general season tags before the controlled hunt begins, but controlled-hunt fees would not be refunded."

In limited cases, IDFG will offer rain checks or refunds when access to a hunting unit is blocked by fire. A person requesting a rain check must submit his or her tag to Fish and Game with a letter describing how fires blocked their ability to hunt, the release said. If the rain check is granted, a 2016 tag is offered for the same species and hunt area as the hunter held in 2015.

For more information about rain checks, call (208) 334-2592. Send written requests to Fish and Game Licensing, P.O. Box 25, Boise, ID, 83707.