Sawtooth National Recreation Area

Sawtooth National Recreation Area
	Sawtooth National Recreation Area
	IUCN Category V (Protected Landscape/Seascape)
Location	Idaho, USA
Nearest city	Ketchum, Idaho
Coordinates	44°N 115°W / 44°N 115°WCoordinates: 44°N 115°W / 44°N 115°W
Area	778,000 acres (3,148.45 km²)
Established	1972
Governing body	U.S. Forest Service

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

The Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA) is a National Recreation Area located in central Idaho, within the Boise, Challis, and Sawtooth National Forests. The recreation area is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and includes the Sawtooth Wilderness. Activities within the roughly 778,000 acre recreation area include hiking, backpacking, camping, rock climbing, kayaking, mountain biking, fishing, and hunting.

The SNRA headquarters are about seven miles (11 km) north of Ketchum on Highway 75, and the SNRA also has a ranger station in Stanley, near its northern boundary.

[edit] Geology

Idaho's most famous mountain range, the Sawtooth Mountains are located withing the SNRA, along with the White Cloud Mountains, and the Boulder Mountains.

Sawtooth Mountains

White Cloud Mountains and Frog Lake

[edit] Peaks

Sawtooth Mountains

Thompson Peak - 10,751 ft
Mount Cramer - 10,716 ft
Decker Peak - 10,704 ft
Mickey's Spire - 10,680 ft
Snowyside Peak - 10,651 ft
Williams Peak - 10,635 ft
Mount Carter - 10,590 ft
Elk Peak - 10,582 ft
The Arrowhead - 10,579 ft
Horstmann Peak - 10,470 ft
Braxon Peak - 10,353 ft
Mount Heyburn - 10,299 ft
Baron Peak - 10,297 ft
Payette Peak - 10,211 ft
Warbonnet Peak - 10,210 ft
Parks Peak - 10,208 ft
Mount Regan - 10,190 ft
Imogene - 10,125 ft
Reward Peak - 10,074 ft
McDonald Peak - 10,068 ft
Glens Peak - 10,053 ft
Tohobit Peak - 10,046 ft
El Capitan - 9,901 ft
Alpine Peak - 9,861 ft
McGown Peak - 9,860 ft
Finger of Fate - 9,775 ft
Grand Mogul - 9,733 ft
Grandjean Peak - 9,105 ft

White Cloud Mountains

Castle Peak - 11,815 ft
Calkens Peak - 11,487 ft
Lee Peak - 11,342 ft
Peak 11272 - 11,272 ft
White Cloud Peak #9 - 11,263 ft
Chinese Wall - 11,238 ft
Lonesome Lake Peak - 11,202 ft
White Cloud Peak #10 - 11,102 ft
Merriam Peak - 10,920 ft
Patterson Peak - 10,877 ft
Washington Peak - 10,519 ft
Watson Peak - 10,452 ft
Croseus Peak - 10,388 ft
Blackman Peak - 10,300 ft
Bible Back Mountain - 9,928 ft

Boulder Mountains

Galena Peak - 11,153 ft
Silver Peak - 11,112 ft
Easley Peak - 11,108 ft
Boulder Peak - 10,981 ft

The headwaters of the Salmon River, also known as the "River of No Return" are in the SNRA and the river flows north through the Sawtooth Valley before turning east in Stanley and following the northern border of the SNRA. The headwaters of the Big Wood River and the Payette River are also in SNRA.

Sawtooth Mountains

[edit] Lakes

There are hundreds of lakes in the SNRA that have been created by alpine glaciers.
Some of the most popular lakes include:

Stanley Lake

Sawtooths

Alice Lake - 8596 ft.
Alpine Lake - 7823 ft.
Alturas Lake - 7016 ft.
Ardeth Lake - 8228 ft.
Baron Lake - 8312 ft.
Cony Lake - 8769 ft.
Edith Lake - 8660 ft.
Edna Lake - 8404 ft.
Elk Lake - 6650 ft.
Farley Lake - 7745 ft.
Feather Lakes - 8820 ft.
Goat Lake - 8220 ft.
Hell Roaring Lake - 7407 ft.
Hidden Lake - 8563 ft.
Imogene Lake - 8430 ft.
Lake Ingeborg - 8800 ft.
Lake Kathryn - 8996 ft.
Limber Lake - 8700 ft.
Little Redfish Lake - 6489 ft.
McDonald Lake - 7097 ft.
Packrat Lake - 8656 ft.
Perkins Lake - 7016 ft.
Pettit Lake - 6996 ft.
Plummer Lake - 8590 ft.
Redfish Lake - 6547 ft.
Saddleback Lakes - 8380 ft.
Sawtooth Lake - 8430 ft.
Scenic Lake - 8398 ft.
Spangle Lake - 8585 ft.
Stanley Lake - 6513 ft.
Toxaway Lake - 8223 ft.
Twin Lakes - 8858 ft.
Upper Baron Lake - 8505 ft.
Upper Cramer Lake - 8381 ft.
Upper Redfish Lakes - 8663 ft.
Vernon Lake - 8460 ft.
Virginia Lake - 8254 ft.
Warbonnet Lake - 8916 ft.
Yellow Belly Lake - 7076 ft.

White Clouds

Born Lakes - 9353 ft.
Boulder Chain Lakes - 9500 ft.
Castle Lake - 9519 ft.
Champion Lakes - 8661 ft.
Cirque Lake - 10,050 ft.
Cove Lake - 9842 ft.
Crater Lake - 8979 ft.
Fourth of July Lake - 9365 ft.
Frog Lake - 8835 ft.
Goat Lake - 8950 ft.
Gunsight Lake - 10,050 ft.
Hammock Lake - 9514 ft.
Heart Lake - 8860 ft.
Hidden Lake - 9510 ft.
Hoodoo Lake - 8677 ft.
Little Redfish Lake - 8780 ft.
Lonesome Lake - 10,435 ft.
Noisy Lake - 8797 ft.
Phyllis Lake - 9180 ft.
Quiet Lake - 9242 ft.
Snow Lake - 10,000 ft.
Swimm Lake - 8866 ft.
Tin Cup Lake - 9980 ft.
Walker Lake - 9239 ft.
Washington Lake - 9362 ft.
Willow Lake - 8735 ft.

[edit] Wildlife

Bull Trout in SNRA

Long-Toed Salamander in SNRA

Bull Snake in SNRA

Garter Snake eating a Shiner in SNRA

Cutthroat Trout in SNRA

Mammals

Reptiles and Amphibians

Bull snake
Garter snake
Green tree frog
Long-toed salamander
Spotted frog
Tailed frog

Fish

Birds

Gray wolves were reintroduced in the 1990s and plans to reintroduce grizzly bears have been abandoned. The SNRA contains prime habitat for wolverines and the endangered Canada lynx, but no recent sightings have been reported. Caribou are also known to migrate into the SNRA during the winter. Bull trout are the Management Indicator Species for the SNRA and population monitoring efforts are undertaken every year.

[edit] Popular Culture

Clint Eastwood's 1985 film Pale Rider was filmed in the SNRA, mostly in the Boulder Mountains in the fall of 1984.
The opening credits scene was shot south of Stanley in front of the Sawtooth Mountains.

Sawtooth Lake	Parks Peak	Washington Lake	Fourth of July Lake
Fisher Creek Trail	Warms Springs Creak Meadow	Sawtooth Valley and Sawtooth Mountains	Grand Mogul and Redfish Lake Creek Valley
Stanley Ranger Station	Smith Falls	Falls Creek Valley	Sawtooth Valley
Redfish Lake (from Boundary Creek)	The SW end of Redfish Lake (Redfish Lake Creek Canyon)