Bitterroot National Forest
| Bitterroot National Forest | |
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IUCN category VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources)
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Trapper Peak in Bitterroot National Forest
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| Location | Ravalli / Missoula counties, Montana; Idaho County, Idaho, United States |
| Nearest city | Missoula, MT |
| Coordinates | 46°13′58″N 113°57′49″W / 46.23278°N 113.96361°WCoordinates: 46°13′58″N 113°57′49″W / 46.23278°N 113.96361°W |
| Area | 1,587,070 acres (6,422.6 km2) |
| Established | 1898 |
| Governing body | U.S. Forest Service |
| Website | Bitterroot National Forest |
Bitterroot National Forest comprises 1.587 million acres (6,423 km²) in west-central Montana and eastern Idaho, of the United States. It is located primarily in Ravalli County, Montana (70.26% of the forest), but also has acreage in Idaho County, Idaho (29.24%), and Missoula County, Montana (0.49%).
Founded in 1898, the forest is located in the Bitterroot and Sapphire Mountains with elevations ranging from 2,200 feet (650 m) along the Salmon River in Idaho to 10,157 foot (3,100 m) Trapper Peak. Roughly half the forest (743,000 acres, 3,000 km²) make up part or all of three distinct Wilderness areas. These areas include the Anaconda-Pintler, Selway-Bitterroot and Frank Church River of No Return Wildernesses. The distinction is that in wilderness areas, no roads, logging, mining or other construction is permitted and all access must be done either on foot or horseback; even bicycles are not permitted. Hunting, however is allowed forest-wide including wilderness areas.
The Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through parts of what are now forest lands in 1805. After the discovery of gold in Idaho and then Montana in the 1860s, numerous mining towns were built, some of which today are ghost towns. The Nez Perce National Historic Trail passes through a portion of the forest, following the route of the retreating Nez Perce on their historic path that led from Idaho to north central Montana in 1877. Heavy logging and other resource depletion beginning in the 1880s led conservationists to push for the preservation of the forest.
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Wikipedia