Winter 2021 Riverlands Newsletter - Issue 49 by Western Rivers Conservancy

Kern River

www.westernrivers.org

This summer, Western Rivers Conservancy launched an effort to protect the 2,300-acre Fay Creek Ranch, located almost directly between the North and South forks of the Kern, at the heart of a transition zone between the High Sierras and the Mojave Desert. In this mostly arid landscape, the ranch is prized for its abundant water, including several fresh-water springs, a hot spring and Fay Creek itself, which flows into the South Fork Kern.

WINTER 2021

NEWS FROM WESTERN RIVERS CONSERVANCY

ISSUE 49

New Effort to Conserve Critical Ranch on Kern River

This Issue: Kern River, CA WRC launches an effort to conserve Fay Creek Ranch, between the North and South forks of the Kern River.

La Jara Basin & Dolores River, CO Two new projects in Colorado will preserve habitat and safeguard public access for recreationists.

Big Hole River, MT WRC expands its efforts in the scenic Big Hole Valley in western Montana.

Panther Creek, ID On this tributary to the Salmon River, WRC is poised to wrap up a project for salmon, wildlife and people.

Methow & Chewuch Rivers, WA Two projects completed on the Methow River and its main tributary, the Chewuch River.

Western Rivers Conservancy has set out to conserve an outstanding property on the Kern River (above), with the goal of permanently protecting a series of freshwater springs, prime wildlife habitat and public hiking access to the Kern Plateau.

Kern River California

W Fay Creek, which runs through the Kern River property that WRC is working to protect, supports a population of threatened California golden trout (pictured), the state fish of California.

PORTLAND

SAN FRANCISCO

DENVER

OLYMPIA

(503) 241-0151

(415) 767-2001

(303) 645-4953

(360) 528-2012

ith pristine glacial headwaters, wild and scenic river status, renowned whitewater, diverse plant life, native cold-water fishes and a Merle Haggard country song written in its honor, California’s Kern River is a Golden State treasure through and through. The Kern’s headwaters originate in the pristine high country of the Sierra Nevada. The North Fork collects its waters from the glaciated heights of Mount Whitney, and the South Fork flows from the Boreal Plateau. They both course through the Golden Trout

Wilderness, home of California’s state fish, and they flow through dramatic, boulder-strewn granite canyons that keep the Kern running fast and furiously. Before the forks of the Kern meet at Lake Isabella (a reservoir), they are designated wild and scenic along their entire lengths. They are wild enough that stretches of both rivers are nearly impossible to get to, and scenic enough that they make the bucket lists for hikers and boaters from all over California. And in terms of the sheer diversity of life that the Kern system supports, in an area only several hours’ CONTINUED ON BACK

TOM AND PAT LEESON

In Washington’s Methow Valley, Western Rivers Conservancy has completed two projects on the Methow and Chewuch rivers that add key pieces to the valley’s conservation puzzle. On the Methow, we conveyed the 35-acre Stafford Ranch to a conservation buyer with a restorationaccess easement, laying the groundwork for restoring critical salmon and steelhead habitat along the ranch’s river frontage. A week later, we conveyed the 328-acre Wagner Ranch on the Chewuch River to the Methow Conservancy, locking in a conservation future for this historic ranch and its important fish and wildlife habitat. Located in the heart of the Methow Valley, both properties were at risk of being subdivided and developed, which spurred WRC to purchase the ranches and find solutions that instead prioritized healthy habitat and open space. Wagner Ranch—which spans 1.6 miles of the Chewuch River, the largest tributary to the Methow—is a particularly important property. Over a dozen different salmon restoration opportunities have been identified on the ranch, and it abuts the 14,800-acre Methow Unit of Washington’s Methow Wildlife Area, providing important habitat connectivity for wildlife. The Stafford property spans a short but vital stretch of the Methow River and controls groundwater rights that will allow for future re-watering of dried side-channels and reestablish spawning and rearing habitat for salmon and steelhead. Both projects deliver important wins for the Methow Valley, with special thanks going to the Methow Conservancy for stepping up to acquire and conserve the Wagner Ranch. The Methow River Valley is a place where recreation and community coexist with fish and wildlife, and WRC is proud of contributing to the balance of this relationship, ensuring more intact open space and healthy habitat for the benefit of all. g

In this mostly arid landscape, the ranch is prized for its abundant water, including several fresh-water springs, a hot spring and Fay Creek itself, which flows into the South Fork Kern.

WRC plans to buy and hold the ranch with the goal of transferring it into public ownership, permanently protecting the ranch’s water and habitat, while securing recreational access to two trailheads on the property. The trails were historically used by the Tübatulabal Tribe and ascend from the valley floor up to the spectacular Kern Plateau. Tribal leaders strongly support public acquisition of the property so that the Tübatulabal can reestablish personal ties to the landscape. Conservation of the ranch will benefit the area’s wildlife, including California condor, yellow-billed cuckoo, southwestern willow flycatcher, least Bell’s vireo and foothill yellow-legged frog, all of which are endangered or threatened. Fay Creek Ranch is a rare swath of unprotected private land within a sea of public conservation lands, and it would almost certainly be subdivided and developed had WRC been unable to gain control of the ranch this summer. Once our efforts are complete, its future will be one that prioritizes fish and wildlife, and the people of California and beyond, who will always be able to access this beautiful area at the southern foot of the Sierra Nevada. g

WITOLD SKRYPCZAK

SUCCESS! Methow Valley

drive from the most populated part of the state, the Kern is invaluable. In other words, protecting this river and ensuring its health is something that matters for everyone, not to mention the fish and wildlife of California.

MICHAEL CARL

ELLEN BISHOP

CONTINUED FROM COVER

Idaho

Two New Projects Now Underway in Colorado

Headway on Panther Creek

La Jara Basin & The Dolores River Colorado

On Idaho’s Panther Creek, a major tributary to the Salmon River, WRC is helping bring some of the state’s most important salmon habitat back to life. This month, we are poised to conserve a 110-acre property spanning a mile of Panther Creek by conveying the parcel to the Salmon-Challis National Forest. Panther Creek was once one of the Salmon River’s top producers of Chinook, but the river was decimated by decades of mining that made the lower river uninhabitable for fish as late as the mid1980s. Massive restoration efforts beginning in the mid-90s improved water quality, revived aquatic life and ultimately brought salmon back to Panther Creek. Now, one of the key components to ensuring healthy salmon populations is conserving and restoring habitat. That’s where WRC’s efforts are making a difference. The property we are conserving lies along a stretch of the river where it levels out and slows down enough to provide functional spawning and rearing habitat for salmon. These lower-gradient stretches that are so important to fish also happen to be the same stretches that are ideal for ranching and development. That’s why, when a property like this one comes on the market, buying and conserving it is key. Placing this stretch of Panther Creek into public ownership also protects excellent habitat for wildlife like mountain lion, gray wolf, Rocky Mountain elk and mule deer. It creates new fishing opportunities for anglers and improves river access for everyone along the Idaho Birding Trail, which spans the entire length of the Panther Creek. g

Protecting Land, Water, Habitat and Access in the Big Hole Valley Big Hole River Montana

CHRISTI BODE K. SCHADE

ontana’s Big Hole River is a poster child of an iconic western stream. One of the country’s premier fly fishing rivers, the 150-mile long Big Hole tumbles from high mountains through some of the most diverse geography of any river in the state. It is a beloved trout fishery and, remarkably, the only river left in the Lower 48 with fluvial Arctic grayling. Currently, WRC is working on two important projects in the Big Hole system aimed at delivering water for imperiled grayling and other fish; preserving recreational access; and protecting habitat for the Big Hole Valley’s diverse wildlife. Most recently, we signed an agreement to purchase the 317-acre Clemow Cow Camp property, which contains vital wildlife habitat and serves as an entry point into the 148,150-acre West Pioneer Wilderness Study Area, the largest remaining roadless area in southwest Montana. Two high-mountain Big Hole tributary streams, Cox and Old Tim creeks, flow through the Clemow property, which controls 2.77 CFS of water rights. WRC intends to purchase the property and convey it to the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, which plans to work with Trout Unlimited’s Western Water Project to dedicate that water in-stream. By conserving this property, we will protect

habitat for Canada lynx, grizzly bear, Rocky Mountain elk, mule deer and pronghorn. We will also conserve 154 acres of riparian wetland and wet-meadow habitat that is crucial for waterfowl and shorebirds and offers important headwater flow into the Big Hole River. Our efforts at Clemow Cow Camp build on a project we launched this summer, when we purchased the 200acre Eagle Rock Ranch to return critically needed water to the Wise River, a major tributary to the Big Hole. Conserving Eagle Rock Ranch will allow us to return nearly 11 CFS of water to the Wise, a significant boost for a stream this size. We plan to convey the ranch to the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest and dedicate the ranch’s water in-stream in partnership with Trout Unlimited’s Western Water Project. The Big Hole Valley is a gateway to some of Montana’s most scenic countryside and home to some of its very best fly fishing. WRC’s efforts in the valley will protect habitat for wildlife, deliver prime recreational access and return much-needed water to the system for the benefit of imperiled fluvial Arctic grayling, as well as westslope cutthroat and nonnative rainbow and brown trout for which the Big Hole is famous. g

A hiker looks across the La Jara Basin, which spans 71 square miles of the eastern San Juan foothills, in the San Luis Valley. WRC has partnered with the Colorado State Land Board to permanently conserve the property.

grazing to the climate benefits of intact open space and free-flowing streams. It is also home to important Native American and cultural sites, some dating back to the earliest signs of human habitation in North America. Roughly 100 miles west of La Jara, near the resort community of Telluride, we launched an effort to conserve a prized property set in a high-elevation saddle between the East and West forks of the Dolores River. Known as Dunton Meadows, the property sits at the edge of the Lizard Head Wilderness and is dominated by a broad wetland meadow beneath the snow-capped summit of Mount Wilson. This subalpine meadow provides excellent habitat for birds and wildlife and captures snowmelt and rain that drain to a nearby stream called Coal Creek. This critical headwater tributary of the Dolores offers some of

WRC is working to conserve Dunton Meadows because of its importance to the Dolores River and to imperiled Colorado River cutthroat trout. The property lies at the edge of the Lizard Head Wilderness.

the richest habitat in the entire upper Dolores for imperiled Colorado River cutthroat. Surrounded by national forest and wilderness, Dunton Meadows is also extremely important from a recreational perspective. Several trails cross or start on the property, and a stream called Meadow Creek, which bisects the southern edge of the parcel, is a popular trout fishing stream. Given Dunton Meadows’ immense conservation and recreational values, WRC’s efforts to purchase the property and convey it to the San Juan National Forest have been met with broad local support. Conservation organizations, agencies, recreational and community groups, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and local recreational groups all back the project. Permanently protecting this special place will be a tremendous benefit to fish, wildlife and people alike. g

MINDY LUNDY KRAMER

Montana’s Big Hole River is a well-known trout stream and the only remaining river system in the Lower 48 with fluvial Arctic grayling. WRC recently launched its second project in the Big Hole Valley.

CHRISTI BODE

DANITA DELIMONT

n Colorado, Western Rivers Conservancy has launched two new projects that will benefit fish and wildlife while preserving prime open space and recreational opportunities. Late this summer, we signed a contract to purchase a critical 158-acre inholding in the San Juan National Forest at the headwaters of the Dolores River. And, in fall, we joined together with the Colorado State Land Board to pursue an exciting opportunity to permanently protect over 71 square miles of the La Jara Basin in the San Luis Valley. Perched on a mesa between the South San Juan Wilderness and the San Luis Valley floor, the La Jara Basin is a 45,650-acre grassland bowl, centered at La Jara Creek and surrounded almost entirely by protected public lands. It has been owned and managed by the State Land Board for over 145 years, but because of its immeasurable natural, cultural and community importance as protected open space, it no longer meets the objectives of the board’s mission to generate income for public schools. This fall, WRC partnered with the land board to permanently protect this important place. More than 30 miles of cold-water streams run through the property and eventually feed into the Conejos River and the Rio Grande. It is a vast swath of public land with all the benefits that conservation landscapes provide, from recreation to seasonal local