The Nez Perce National Forest is a

United States National Forest In the United States, national forest is a classification of protected and managed federal lands. National forests are largely forest and woodland areas owned collectively by the American people through the federal government, and managed by ...

located in west-central

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

. The forest is bounded on the east by the state of

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

, on the north by the

Clearwater National Forest Clearwater National Forest with headquarters on the Nez Perce Reservation at Kamiah is located in North Central Idaho in the northwestern United States. The forest is bounded on the east by the state of Montana, on the north by the Idaho Panha ...

, on the west by a portion of the

Wallowa–Whitman National Forest The Wallowa–Whitman National Forest is a United States National Forest in the U.S. states of Oregon and Idaho. Formed upon the merger of the Wallowa and Whitman national forests in 1954, it is located in the northeastern corner of the state, in ...

and on the south by the Payette National Forest. The mountains in this forest provide wildlife habitat for timber wolf,

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...

moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...

black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...

, coyote, cougar, elk, two species of fox, bald eagle,

pika A pika ( or ; archaically spelled pica) is a small, mountain-dwelling mammal found in Asia and North America. With short limbs, very round body, an even coat of fur, and no external tail, they resemble their close relative, the rabbit, but wi ...

, beaver, flammulated owl,

pine marten The European pine marten (''Martes martes''), also known as the pine marten, is a mustelid native to and widespread in most of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and parts of Iran, Iraq and Syria. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. ...

, white-tailed and

mule deer The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer. Unlike the related whi ...

, muskrat, river otter, peregrine falcon, mink,

marmot Marmots are large ground squirrels in the genus ''Marmota'', with 15 species living in Asia, Europe, and North America. These herbivores are active during the summer, when they can often be found in groups, but are not seen during the winter, ...

, fisher, and

mountain goat The mountain goat (''Oreamnos americanus''), also known as the Rocky Mountain goat, is a hoofed mammal endemic to mountainous areas of western North America. A subalpine to alpine species, it is a sure-footed climber commonly seen on cliffs an ...

History

The Nez Perce National Forest was established on July 1, 1908, by the U.S. Forest Service with from parts of

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 Idah ...

and Weiser National Forest. On October 29, 1934, part of Selway National Forest was added. In 2012, Nez Perce National Forest and Clearwater National Forest were administratively combined as Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests, with headquarters in Kamiah, Idaho. There are local ranger district offices in Elk City, Grangeville, Kooskia, and White Bird. In 2018, the Penman Mine in Nez Perce served as a filming location for Discovery Channel's ''

Gold Rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New ...

''. During this filming, on October 5, 2018, Raw TV production staff member Terrance Woods Jr. (27) was reported as missing, as was Connie Johnson (76), a cook for Richie Outfitters last seen October 2. Johnson's border collie, Ace, was recovered alive at the Moose Creek ranger station three weeks later, but as of 2022, neither Johnson nor Woods have been found.

Wilderness areas

There are four officially designated

wilderness area Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

s within Nez Perce National Forest that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Three of these are partly or mostly in neighboring National Forests (as indicated). *

Frank Church—River of No Return Wilderness Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Cur ...

(only 4.68% lies within Nez Perce NF; mostly in either Payette National Forest, Challis NF, Salmon NF, Boise NF, or Bitterroot NF)Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness acreage breakdown, Wilderness.net
/ref> * Gospel Hump Wilderness * Hells Canyon Wilderness (mostly in Wallowa National Forest; partly in Payette National Forest, Whitman National Forest, or BLM land) * Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness (partly in Bitterroot NF; Clearwater National Forest; Lolo NF) Nez Perce National Forest Map

References

External links

Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests
{{Authority control National Forests of Idaho Protected areas of Idaho County, Idaho Protected areas established in 1908 1908 establishments in Idaho

History

Wilderness areas

See also

References

External links