Stabler is a small unincorporated community in Skamania County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Washington. Also known as "Hemlock", Stabler is a small unincorporated community in the southernmost region of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Stabler is primarily a bedroom community for commuters working in nearby

Carson Carson may refer to: People *Carson (surname), people with the surname *Carson (given name), people with the given name Places ;In the United States * Carson, California, a city * Carson Township, Fayette County, Illinois *Carson, Iowa, a city * ...

Stevenson Stevenson is an English language patronymic surname meaning "son of Steven". Its first historical record is from pre-10th-century England. Another origin of the name is as a toponymic surname related to the place Stevenstone in Devon, England. The ...

, and other towns in the Columbia River Gorge. Stabler is also home to the Wind River Experimental Forest, and the Wind River Ranger Station, a base of operations for the

USFS The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

History

The 26' Hemlock Lake dam was built in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to provide water for hydroelectric power generation, and was modified in 1958 to provide irrigation water to the Wind River Tree Nursery. The hydropower was terminated in the 1950s, and the diversion that used to supply the nursery is not currently in use. The Wind River Tree Nursery was closed in 1997 and the dam is no longer used to divert water. It was the first in the Columbia basin to incorporate the use of a fish ladder. The dam was torn out in the summer of 2009 amid much debate with the idea that the removal of Hemlock Dam and restoration of lower Trout Creek would contribute to this whole watershed approach to habitat restoration, and is the culmination of many years of planning.

Geography

Stabler is located at Latitude: 45.80833 : Longitude: -121.90639 : Elevation: 947 ft

Recreation

As the "Gateway to Mount St. Helens", Stabler is a year-round recreation area. Activities include

hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

, fishing, hiking with access to the Pacific Crest Trail, camping and

snowmobiling A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

. A plethora of forest products can be obtained, with permit, such as edible mushrooms, huckleberries and

beargrass ''Xerophyllum tenax'' is a North American species of plants in the corn lily family. It is known by several common names, including bear grass, soap grass, quip-quip, and Indian basket grass. Ecology ''Xerophyllum tenax'' has flowers with si ...

External links

Unincorporated communities in Skamania County, Washington Unincorporated communities in Washington (state) Portland metropolitan area Gifford Pinchot National Forest {{SkamaniaCountyWA-geo-stub de:Carson (Washington)