Meadow Creek (upper north fork) Roadless Area
Meadow Creek (East & West) Roadless Area
Size: 200,000 + acres
Meadow Creek is a spectacular drainage in the Nez Perce National Forest. This huge roadless area is a real gem, however, the over 200,000 acres encompassed in this area is under threat. satellite map
One of the most outstanding qualities of Meadow Creek is its clean, cold waters. Starting at its headwaters in the south, Meadow Creek flows first northeast through lush meadows which give the drainage its name. It then curves back west and north as it rushes down steep and narrow valleys, opening up before it joins the Selway river just above Selway Falls.
It is the most important tributary of the Selway not only because of the clear water it provides, but it also nourishes a healthy anadromous fish population of steelhead trout and Chinook salmon as exists in Idaho today. Bull and Westslope cutthroat trout find refuge in its waters. Many people return year after year to fish Meadow Creek's waters. The area is also home to huge cedars and firs, mixed with ponderosa and lodgepole pine. There are areas in the East Fork of the American River and Kirks Fork that need to be added. It includes some land managed by BLM. For decades it has been a priority in proposals for wilderness as an addition to the Selway-Bitterroot - though ignored by politicians.
Overwhelming citizen support for the area forced the Forest Service to recognize its natural values. However, there is currently no agency commitment to protect the area as it has long been a target for logging. Additionally, this large roadless area has been arbitrarily split into east and west sections by the Forest Service, along the creek bearing it's name. This was done in hopes of developing the west side and is one of many destructive changes the Bush administration's roadless rule repeal process has brought about.
Join Gary Macfarlane, FOC's forest watch director for a workshop dedicated to the ins and outs of timber sale monitoring from start to finish. Contact Gary at gary@wildrockies.org
