Northern Idaho’s Saint Joe River, a federally designated wild and scenic river in its upper reaches, runs 140 miles from its origins in the northern Bitterroot Mountains westward to Lake Coeur d’Alene. This gorgeous mountain river flows cold and crystal-clear, drops over idyllic falls, and carves its way through dramatic moss- and fern-laden canyons. The Saint Joe is one of Idaho’s wild gems. Osprey and bald eagles swoop from riverside cottonwood forests to feast on fish, while elk, mule deer, moose, and bears frequent the river’s edge. The Saint Joe also offers some of the state’s best fishing for native westslope cutthroat trout and is a superb river for whitewater rafting, bird watching, and wildlife viewing as well.
The Saint Joe gathers myriad cold-water tributaries, including Fishhook Creek, which meets the river 2 miles downstream from the tiny hamlet of Avery. This 8-mile-long tributary of the Saint Joe boasts similarly gorgeous scenery, with mile after mile of forested riverbanks and clear, cold water. Near the confluence of Fishhook Creek and the Saint Joe River, Western Rivers Conservancy (WRC) has set out to purchase and conserve a critical 585-acre property. An inholding in the Saint Joe National Forest, this property includes a mile of the Saint Joe and 0.6 mile of Fishhook Creek. With its mixed forest of Douglas fir, larch, and pine, the property provides habitat for a variety of wildlife, including grizzly bear, Rocky Mountain elk, and Canada lynx.
The Saint Joe River and its tributaries are strongholds for westslope cutthroat and bull trout, and conserving the Fishhook Creek property will complement important recovery efforts for these vulnerable species. Restoration activities currently underway on the Saint Joe upstream of the property are likely to result in higher densities of bull trout throughout the river system in coming decades. This project makes preserving high-quality aquatic habitat such as that found in the Fishhook Creek property critical to bull trout survival over the long term. Moreover, the Saint Joe’s cutthroat trout are largely fluvial, meaning they migrate within the watershed: during autumn, many of the river’s trout run downstream to overwinter in the lower river, where they need high-quality habitat in deep pools.
WRC’s goal is to purchase the property and convey it to the Saint Joe National Forest for permanent protection and recreational access. Not only will filling a gap in protection improve management strategies for the U.S. Forest Service, which manages nearly all the land adjacent to the property, but will also guarantee this special stretch of the Saint Joe remains permanently intact and its recovering forests on the path to maturity. For recreationists, conserving the Fishhook Creek property will mean improved access for fishing and other outdoor activities. All said, this project will be a meaningful step toward keeping the Saint Joe River and its excellent habitat pristine and thriving for fish, wildlife, and people.
To learn more about this project and to learn how you can help WRC’s mission of buying land along the West’s finest rivers and streams to conserve habitat for fish and wildlife, protect key sources of cold water, and provide public access, visit www.westernrivers.org.
