Above: the headwaters of the East Fork of the Salmon River in the Boulder Mountains - Boulder/White Clouds roadless area.

The East Fork is the uppermost major fork of the Salmon River. It begins high in the Boulder Mountains with tributaries blending their waters from the scenic White Cloud Peaks.

It mostly flows through a narrow stream valley, lined by hills made of colorful Challis Volcanics.

The East Fork country has been inhabited by wolves off and on ever since 1997, including the new Castle Peak Pack in 2003.

Over the years, two large wolf packs have been destroyed by the government in the East Fork after they killed some livestock -- the White Clouds Pack in 2000 and the Whitehawk Pack in 2002. Not to be denied their place, the wolves, nevertheless, keep coming back. This is truly a place wolves inhabited for thousands of years until Euro-American settlement.

Pronghorn antelope on the winter range East Fork of the Salmon. March 18, 2002.
Copyright © Ralph Maughan

The East Fork is key winter range for pronghorn, mule deer, elk, and bighorn sheep. Due to competition with cattle, the species doing the worst is the small herd of bighorn sheep.

Most the drainage is public land, but much of the critical bottomland is private, and the wintertime density of cattle on these bottomlands is high.

The Western Watersheds Project is restoring one former degraded ranch into the Greenfire Preserve, which will hopefully set a future model for the East Fork. Already the Greenfire Preserve teams with wildlife year round. Already hundreds of elk and deer winter on the 500-preserve. Wild horses too use the area, and in the winters of 2005 and 2006 wolves have appeared.