Wood is good
March 2, 2021
By Brita Olson Photo credit: Jason Blakney, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks As Sanders County residents continue to recover from January’s severe windstorm, remember that wood is beneficial for our streams and rivers. The storm left many residents with power outages, damaged homes and businesses, and uprooted countless trees. Inevitably, many of these trees have […]
Beartrap road storage benefits fish and wildlife
November 23, 2020
Another project completed in 2020 with partners on the Lolo National Forest was the Beartrap Road Storage Project. Multiple culverts were removed and over 7 miles of road prism were stored (ripped, covered with debris, seeded; left in a hydrologically neutral condition) in the Beartrap Creek drainage, a tributary to Fishtrap Creek outside of Thompson […]
Partners move road away from Fishtrap Creek
September 18, 2020
In July, Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group worked with Elk Creek Contracting and partners to realign stream adjacent road away from Fishtrap Creek on the Lolo National Forest. By moving the junction of the West Fork Fishtrap Creek Road (7609) and Fishtrap Creek Road (516), approximately 600 feet of road was transformed into stream and […]
Partners collaborate to enhance habitat in Fishtrap Creek
August 24, 2020
Working with partners and Milner Brothers Logging Co. out of Thompson Falls, the Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group helped build 30+ log jams along a mile of Fishtrap Creek in the Thompson River Basin in July. The Milner’s cable yarding system hauled and placed over 100 logs in the stream to add cover and spawning gravels […]
Grow habitat for pollinators in your own backyard
August 10, 2020
By Brita Olson When you imagine what “habitat” looks like, what comes to mind? For me, it is easy to picture the forested mountains and numerous rivers and streams of Sanders County, which many fish and wildlife species call home. However, for many pollinator species, you do not have to look any further than your […]
RFP for Emma Creek Road Project
August 3, 2020 - Featured
The Lower Clark Fork Watershed group (LCFWG), in partnership with the Kootenai National Forest, is seeking a contractor to provide equipment and labor for a road decommissioning project on Emma Creek, outside of Trout Creek, Montana. Please see the following RFP. Responses are due August 21, 2020. Any questions regarding the contract selection process can […]
Enhancing habitat in Prospect Creek
July 27, 2020
This past week, Forest Service sawyers, and partners with the Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group, Trout Unlimited, and Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, built nine woody structures in Prospects Creek on the Plains-Thompson Falls Ranger District. The project was supported by Avista’s Clark Fork Settlement Agreement. Wood structure is vital for fish habitat.Adding large woody material, […]
Volunteering in the Bull River Valley
July 24, 2020
Above: Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group Coordinator, Brita Olson, installs wire fencing around a conifer tree to protect it from browse along the Bull River. Stands of willow and cottonwoods, established amongst reed canarygrass, are pictured in the background. Photo credit: Cate Huisman. By Cate Huisman To the uninitiated, it’s hard to imagine how the […]
Streamside revegetation efforts in the Bull River continue
July 16, 2020
By Brita Olson Every spring after the snow melts off in the valley, I make my way to the Bull River to check on the progress of ongoing revegetation efforts. Accessing the river by land is often a bit of a trek, as I have to cross stream adjacent wetlands and navigate around numerous beaver […]
RFQ for GIS work in the Thompson River drainage
July 15, 2020 - Featured
Photo Credit: Paul Parson, Trout Unlimited. The Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group (LCFWG), through partnership with Trout Unlimited, is seeking a GIS contractor to support planning efforts in the Thompson River Watershed beginning in Fall 2020. The LCFWG is working with regional partners to identify projects that reduce road impacts to the Thompson River, specifically […]