Working and Playing the Land 



l.i\v A NXashington-bascd cx)nscrvatit.)n group call- 

 ed American Rivers soon began appealing Forest 

 Plans that failed to do so. The Forest Service is in- 

 stitutionally very committed to Wild and Scenic 

 Rivers now." says Tom Cassidy, a spokesman for 

 American Rivers. "They see it as one of their suc- 

 cess stories."'* American Rivers finished intensive 

 work with public agencies in Oregon and 

 Washington in 1990. and planned to turn its atten- 

 tion to Montana in 1991. 



"Viild and Scenic Rivers is the best way that 

 federal law provides to protect a river and its adja- 

 cent lands," says Cassidy "It gets away from reliance 

 on administrative discretion and into statutory pro- 

 tection. This is the only statute on the books, for 

 example, that prevents hydro-dams." 



Under Section 5-D. public agencies must first 

 evaluate whether a river is "eligible" for classifica- 

 tion as "wild," "scenic" or "recreational." Once 

 eligibility is determined, a river must be maintain- 

 ed in its present classification while "suitabjlity" for 

 Wild and Scenic River status is determined." Finally, 

 as before, an act of Congress is required to designate 

 a river Wild and Scenic. ■*» 



The Deerlodge National Forest already has 

 determined that Rock Creek is the only river under 

 its jurisdiction that is at least partially eligible. The 

 Deerlodge Forest Plan published in 198"' classified 

 the stretch of Rock Creek between Gillies Bridge 

 and the Lolo National Forest Boundarv- as a "recrea- 

 tional" river'' Cassidy believes the Deerlodge may 

 eventually classify- more of its rivers as eligible and 

 more of upper Rock Creek as eligible. 



The Lolo National Forest is considering 

 classifying all of its portion of Rock Creek as a 

 "scenic" river Lolo officials expect to complete an 

 eligibility determination by the end of 1991.*° 



The cost of designating Rock Creek Wild and 

 Scenic would be minimal in terms of lost resources, 

 according to Deerlodge Forest planner Ron Hanson, 

 and the dollar value in tourism could be substantial. 

 Cassidy notes that though the law strictly protects 

 public lands along a riser corridor, it does not lead 

 to federal land-use controls on private lands. 'The 

 law is very solicitous of local jurisdictions," says 

 Cassidy "And despite the common concern for 

 diminishment of the tax base, it generally increases 

 the tax base because the value of streamside acres 

 increases." The Granite County Commission, 

 though not yet committed to Wild and Scenic River 

 designation, has indicated an interest in exploring it 



"Love It So Dear"— Restoring the Fishery 



Most people come to Rock Creek for the day, 

 or perhaps a few days in a Forest Service cam- 

 pground They come for the scenery and sport, 

 above all. fishing 



Rock Creek has been a sporting destination 

 at least since 1926 when the Forest Service built the 

 present road from the creek mouth to Philipsburg. 

 and sprinkled it at five mile intervals with large cam- 

 pgrounds <" Model T's were followed by pick-ups 

 and station wagons and, with the 1971 interstate 

 highway bridge across the Clark Fork, the modern 

 behemoths: camper-trailers and recreational 

 vehicles. Suddenly, traffic, dust, and even dwindling 

 numbers of fish were at issue. 



The decline in the size and number of fish 

 during the early 1970s was one of the growing pains 

 associated with a return to natural fisheries. Indians 

 who fished with baskets and early settlers who us- 

 ed flies reported abundant trout in Rock Creek 

 before the turn of the century. Peter Walbeck. wht) 

 came in 1887. said he and a friend averaged 80 

 pounds of fish each on ordinary flies in four 

 hours.*^ They sold about 500 pounds of Rock Creek 

 trout a week at 25 cents a pound. But when fly 

 fishing became a popular sport after World War II. 

 the state Fish and Game Department found it 

 necessary to stock Rock Creek. Until 1961. as many 

 as 25,000 rainbow trout were planted each year 

 Then the state turned back toward natural manage- 

 ment. The trout planting program tapered to a close 

 in the early 1970s. 



Creel limits, though, didn't taper off to 

 match, and the natural fisheries declined under 

 heavy pressure. Discouraged by fewer and smaller 

 trout, fishermen stopped coming. The number of 

 anglers dropped from 12,268 in 1959 to fewer than 

 half that, 5.816, in 19''8. "We harped for years about 

 limits on fish being too high. " says Robert Bassett. 

 former owner of the Elkhorn Guest Ranch. "Final- 

 ly. Fish and Game came through." 



In 1979, the sute reduced creel limits, im- 

 posed size and tackle restrictions and designated a 

 portion of the creek for catch-and-release fishing 

 only*' The fisheries rebounded, and so did the 

 anglers. Many switched voluntarily to catch-and- 

 release. But the popularity of Rock Creek soon 

 brought renewed gripes about crowds. 



"It is beautiful. It is wonderfully trouty And 

 its fish are magnificent." Paul G Quinnctt wrote in 

 sports Afield magazine after a lulv 198-4 fishing ex- 



