| Salmon River Mountains Area/Range |
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Geography
| Salmon River Mountains   | 
| Page Type: Area/Range Location: Idaho, United States, North America Lat/Lon: 44.59691°N / 115.11958°W Activities: Hiking, Mountaineering, Trad Climbing, Ice Climbing, Aid Climbing, Big Wall, Mixed, Canyoneering Season: Spring, Summer, Fall | Page By: SawtoothSean Created/Edited: Feb 16, 2006 / Jul 15, 2007 Object ID: 172905 Hits: 2968 Loading... Page Score: 89.64% - 18 Votes Loading... Vote: Log in to vote |
Overview
Idaho's Salmon River Mountains encompass a huge section of central Idaho.
At over 3800 square miles, this region is nearly the size of Connecticut.
Over 135 named or known summits and rock towers exist in this area, and over 100
more have no name, recognition, or discovery. This region is extremely
rugged , wild, road-less in parts, and protected by Congress. The scenic
Salmon River dominates its borders. As late as 1988, a major peak in this region
saw it's first ever ascent. Cabin Creek Peak (9968 feet) required a 5.3 route to
gain the summit (Tom Lopez). To make this even more unbelievable, this peak is clearly visible from ID-75 just south of Stanley.
If one was to leave the paved road north of Stanley, Idaho and head directly
north, the next paved road would be encountered over 200 miles away. This
includes part of the Clearwater Mountains (not part of this region) and would
rank as one of the largest tracts of backcountry terrain in the lower 48
states. Included in this terrain are huge river valleys with elevation changes
of over 5200 feet and the largest of peaks topping out at 10,400 feet (White
Mountain). Also nestled within the region is the Middle Fork of the Salmon
River. Completely protected from roads, a journey to this river usually requires
a small plane trip into a narrow landing strip on the Middle Fork. The usage of
this pristine river is tightly restricted with a very limited number of permits
being issued each year. This is a float trip popular with the famous, but
can taken by anyone willing to pay the price. A float trip on the Middle
Fork of the Salmon with a guide usually has a Dutch Oven cooking experience and
the regulations require packing everything out- campfire ashes and human waste included. When
your not busy negotiating Class 3 or 4 rapids, the Bighorn Sheep on the hillside
make for exceptional wildlife viewing. Noteworthy Peaks
HistoryIn a true stroke of political synchronicity, a good portion of the Salmon
River region has become protected. 2+ million acres of the area are part of the
Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness and a smaller section near Lowman is
owned by the State of Idaho. In the 1930's a movement grew in Idaho to have
portions of this region protected, led by the governor H.C. Baldridge. The
Forest Service obliged and designated 1.2 million acres as a Primitive
Area.
With ever growing pressures from the exploitation industries of Idaho (mining
/ logging), the area withheld the political pork barreling that so often defined
the pre-conservation era. In the late 1970's conservation movement,
Congress solidified the wilderness designation of this area by creating the
Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, protecting 2.3 million acres. Church
was the rare Idaho conservationist, and remarkably, the incumbent U.S. president at the time
had explored the region and enjoyed it's beauty, further supporting the
cause.
In the 1990's as the high tech and internet boom occurred in many areas,
including the Boise Valley to some extent, the rest of Idaho was left behind and
pushed to explore the extraction of wood and ore from areas around the Salmon
River Mountains. President Clinton, sensing this general movement, declared a limitation on the
amount of new roads built into the backcountry. The state legislature
resented the limitation of their exploitive powers. With George W. Bush,
the pendulum has swung again, as he has essentially nullified the Clinton Road less
Plan by turning power back over to the states and those industries (mining,
logging, oil) that had monetarily supported his election and re-election
campaigns.
Defining the Bounds of the Region Defining the Bounds of the Range
- the northern edge boundary is the scenic Salmon River, with the town of
Riggins exactly in the northwest corner of the region
- the eastern edge boundary is the Salmon River, with the town of Salmon in
the northeast corner of the area
- the southern edge boundary is the South Fork of the Payette River
(southwest), and the Salmon River (southeast).
- the western edge boundary is the North Fork of the Payette River
(southwest), and the Little Salmon River (northwest)
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