W is for wilderness

Wilderness. A big space full of wild lands. If it is large enough, some would say an "intact ecosystem". The Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness is just that place. I'm not sure where the boundaries are and there is also the matter of adjacent wild areas like the Gospel Hump Wilderness Area. It's big. Not a whole lot of level, lots of land on a slant. There's probably still a few valleys that have never seen a human. In the lower 48 there's no other place like it. It's the largest roadless area in the lower 48 states and we have an Idaho Senator named Frank Church to thank for it.

Wikipedia (see link above for complete entry) says, "..In 1964, Church was the floor sponsor of the national Wilderness Act. In 1968, he sponsored the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and gained passage of a ten-year moratorium on federal plans to transfer water from the Pacific Northwest to California. Working with other members of Congress from northwestern states, Church helped establish the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area along the Oregon-Idaho border, which protected the gorge from dam building. He was also the primary proponent in the establishment of the Sawtooth Wilderness and National Recreation Area in central Idaho in 1972.
Church also was instrumental in the creation of Idaho's River of No Return Wilderness in 1980, his final year in the Senate. This wilderness comprised the old Idaho Primitive Area, the Salmon River Breaks Primitive Area, plus additional lands. At 2.36 million acres (9,550 km²), over 3,600 square miles (9,300 km2), it is the largest wilderness area in the nation outside of Alaska. It was renamed the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness in 1984, shortly after the diagnosis of his pancreatic cancer. Idaho Senator Jim McClure introduced the measure in the Senate in late February,[21] and President Reagan signed the act on March 14,[22] less than four weeks before Frank Church's death on April 7.

From small roots as an Idaho kid, he grew to do great things. The wilderness, named after him, is a testament to doing the right thing at the right time. As a guide in Idaho during the summers of 1989 and 1990, I benefited from his efforts. Those of you that like roadless wild places are still benefiting. Thank you for wilderness Frank Church.

K is for Kamiah and Kooskia (and Lowell too)

Little towns. Lost and getting loster as the saying goes. All three towns in today's entry are in remotest Idaho, way down the hill from Lolo Pass on Highway 12, on the banks of the Lochsa and Middle Fork of the Clearwater Rivers. The drive down Highway 12, which is part of the ?Lewis and Clark route is a treat, if you like mountain roads hidden away in the midst of flyover country.

Kooskia is one of them. With history as each of them likely have. Kooskia is a Nez Perce word and the town itself is within the Nez Perce Reservation or it was at one time, before white settlers violated their own agreement with the Nez Perce and settled on reservation lands. Mention is made of the Internment Camp, which was about 30 miles upstream from Kooskia.

Kamiah is another town, downstream from Kooskia, that is heavy with New Perce history. The name means rope net and has to do with the ropes and nets that the Nez Perce made for Salmon fishing. Likely more significant, the Appaloosa is claimed in New Perce history to have been bred in this area by the Nez Perce.

Lowell is the third tiny burg made mention of in today's entry. Population 30, it is just barely there any more. It occupies the wide spot between the confluence of the Lochsa and the Selway. You access it across a bridge from Highway 12. The Selway and Lochsa merge to form the Middle Fork of the Clearwater.