Blue Mountains Forests, Part D: National System of Public Lands and Local Sites

Other federal sites in Blue Mountains forests are part of the National System of Public Lands.

Dry Mountain Research Natural Area (RNA), National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N43˚40’ W119˚36’) is 2,100 acres on an isolated mountain overlooking the Snake-Columbia shrub-steppe ecoregion. Vegetation is big sagebrush-bluebunch wheatgrass and mountain mahogany-bunchgrass.

Forest Creek-Fox Canyon RNA, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚15’ W120˚7’) is a 130-acre ponderosa pine-mountain alder forest adjacent to the Crooked River.

Forest Creek-Rough Canyon RNA, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚13’ W120˚9’) is a 240-acre ponderosa pine-mountain alder forest adjacent to the Crooked River.

Homestead Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC), National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N45˚0’ W116˚53’) is on the Snake River north of Oxbow Dam.

Hunt Mountain ACEC, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚52’ W118˚4’) is a forested mountain with rare plants.

Keating Riparian RNA and ACEC, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚55’ W117˚29’) is 2,000 acres on Balm, Clover and Sawmill Creeks.

Oregon Trail ACEC, National System of Public Lands, Oregon, protects seven areas with remnant Oregon Trail crossings:

  • Blue Mountain (N45˚25’ W118˚20’)
  • Flagstaff Hill (N44˚49’ W117˚44’) is the location of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.
  • Powell Creek (N44˚27’ W117˚19’) is east of I-84 and south of Chimney Creek
  • Straw Ranch 1 (N44˚40’ W117˚35’) is on I-84 at Alder Creek and Straw Ranch Creek
  • Straw Ranch 2 (N44˚42’ W117˚36’) is north of Straw Ranch1 along Straw Ranch Creek
  • White Swan (N44˚45’ W117˚39’) is east of I-84

Sheep Mountain ACEC, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚55’ W116˚52’) is on the Snake River south of Oxbow Dam.

South Fork Walla Walla ACEC, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N45˚50’ W118˚10’) is 2,000 acres east of Milton-Freewater and adjacent to the Umatilla NF.

North Ridge Bully Creek RNA, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚7’ W117˚53’) and South Ridge Bully Creek RNA, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N44˚4’ W117˚48’) were established to provide representative big sagebrush-needlegrass communities in the Cottonwood Mountain area.

Silver Creek RNA, National System of Public Lands, Oregon (N43˚45’ W119˚38’) is a 1,900-acre ponderosa pine-pinegrass community adjacent to the Ochoco NF north of the Harney Basin. It is accessed from Forest Highway 45.

State and local sites in Blue Mountains forests include 29 sites. Emigrant Springs State Heritage Area, Oregon, and Hilgard Junction State Recreation Area, Oregon, were described previously as Oregon National Historic Trail sites. Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site, Oregon, was described previously under National Historic Landmarks.

Battle Mountain Forest State Scenic Corridor, Oregon (N45˚16’ W118˚58’), is 400 acres on US 395 north of Ukiah. This is the site of battles between tribes and settlers.

Bates State Park, Oregon (N44˚35’ W118˚31’) is at the site of a former lumber mill on the Middle Fork John Day River. It is located on State Route 7 about one mile north of US Route 26. There are three miles of trails.

Blue Mountain Forest State Scenic Corridor, Oregon, extends from the Glover Interchange on I-84, mile 248 (N45˚22’ W118˚18’) to Deadman Pass on I-84, exit 230 (N45˚30’ W118˚25’) along old US Route 30, passing the approximate location of the Oregon National Historic Trail.

Bridge Creek Wildlife Area, Oregon (N45˚3’ W118˚6’) is on Forest Highway 52 (Blue Mountain Scenic Byway) four miles south of Ukiah. It is a wintering area for elk and mule deer.

Catherine Creek State Park, Oregon (N45˚9’ W117˚44’), is on State Route 203 at the western edge of the Whitman NF in the Wallowa Mountains. There is a campground and hiking trail.

Craig Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Idaho (N45˚56’ W116˚48’) is 78,000 acres occupying much of the area along the Snake River between Lewiston and the Salmon River.  It provides overviews of the Snake River canyon from mountain lookouts and is an elk mitigation area for Dworshak Reservoir.

John Day State Scenic Waterway, Oregon, includes the portions designated as a national wild and scenic river (see), and in addition includes the river from Service Creek at River Mile 147 (N44˚48’ W120˚0’) upstream to Parrish Creek at River Mile 169 (N44˚50’ W119˚49’) near Spray. State Route 19-207 parallels the river.

Elkhorn Wildlife Area, Oregon (N45˚2’ W118˚5’) is an elk and mule deer wintering area located nine miles west of I-84, exit 285 on the North Powder River.

Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area, Oregon (N45˚16’ W118˚2’) is at La Grande off of I-84, exit 268. The site is a bulrush marsh and migratory waterfowl area at the foot of the Blue Mountains.

Middle Fork John Day State Scenic Waterway, Oregon, includes the Middle Fork from its confluence with the North Fork (N44˚55’ W119˚18’) upstream to River Mile 71 in the Malheur National Forest (N44˚36’ W118˚27’), including Ritter Hot Springs (N44˚53’ W119˚8’).

North Fork John Day State Scenic Waterway, Oregon, includes the river from River Mile 20 near Monument (N44˚52’ W119˚24’) upstream to River Mile 76 in the Umatilla National Forest near the North Fork John Day Wilderness (N44˚58’ W119˚0’). The segment from Camas Creek at River Mile 57 upstream is also designated as the North Fork John Day National Wild and Scenic River (see description).

Fields Springs State Park, Washington (N46º5’ W117º11’) is on the boundary between the Palouse Prairie and Blue Mountains.  Seven miles of trails offer panoramic views of Hells Canyon and the Wallowa Mountains.

Grouse Flats Unit, Chief Joseph Wildlife Management Area, Washington (N46˚1’ W117˚29’) is a 640-acre open meadow area managed for elk and deer just south of the Umatilla NF.

Clyde Holliday State Recreation Site, Oregon (N44˚25’ W119˚5’) is a roadside campground on US 26-395 beside the John Day River, located west of the town of John Day. There is a nature trail along the John Day River.

Minum State Recreation Area, Oregon (N45˚38’ W117˚44’), on State Route 82 east of Elgin, includes a portion of the Wallowa River, a unit of the national wild and scenic river system, and a riverside hiking trail.

Prineville Reservoir State Park and Wildlife Management Area, Oregon (N44˚8’ W120˚44’) are south of Prineville via county roads. The state park consists of two units separated by three miles on the north side of the Bureau of Reclamation reservoir, with a lakeside trail on one of the units.

Red Bridge State Wayside, Oregon (N45˚17’ W118˚20’) is on State Route 244 on the Grande Ronde River.

Phillip W. Schneider Wildlife Area, Oregon (N44˚20’ W119˚30’) is along the South Fork John Day River at Dayville and provides access to a variety of riparian, shrub-steppe, and forested habitats between the Ochoco and Malheur national forests.

Sumpter Valley Dredge State Heritage Area, Oregon (N44˚44’ W118˚12’) is west of Baker City off of State Route 7. This five-story, 1,240-ton, 52-foot-wide dredge plowed up gravel along the floodplain of the Powder River and extracted $4.5 million in gold between 1935 and 1954. There are miles of tailings along the river valley. Trails wind among dredge ponds.

Ukiah-Dale Forest State Scenic Corridor, Oregon, stretches 15 miles along Camas Creek and the North Fork John Day River on US 395 from near Ukiah (N45˚8’ W118˚58’) south to Dale (N45˚0’ W118˚57’)..

Unity Forest State Scenic Corridor, Oregon (N44˚34’ W117˚0’), was acquired to protect a forested corridor along State Route 245 near Dooley Mountain summit south of Baker City.

Unity Lake State Recreation Site, Oregon (N44˚30’ W118˚11’) is a reservoir recreation area with trails on a Bureau of Reclamation reservoir south of Baker City.

Wallowa Lake Highway Forest State Scenic Corridor, Oregon (N45˚37’ W117˚41’) is a four-mile-long canyon of the Wallowa River along State Route 82 east of Minum. Wallowa River Wayside, Oregon (N45˚36’ W117˚37’) is on State Route 82 at the east end of the Wallowa River canyon near the town of Wallowa.

Wallowa Lake State Park, Oregon (N45˚17’ W117˚13’), is 216 acres and features a campground and marina on Wallowa Lake. The Little Alps picnic area is adjacent to trailheads for the Eagle Cap Wilderness (see).

Wenaha Wildlife Area, Oregon (N45˚55’ W117˚30’) is 12,000 acres on Eden Bench overlooking the Grande Ronde River at Troy. The area hosts migratory waterfowl, elk, deer, and bighorn sheep.

Private sites in the Blue Mountain forests include two Nature Conservancy preserves. Dunstan Homestead Preserve, The Nature Conservancy, Oregon (N44˚41’ W118˚44’), is 1,200 acres on Grant County Road 20 about 24 miles east of US Route 395 along the Middle Fork of the John Day River. It protects riparian habitat for wild salmon recovery. Juniper Hills Preserve, The Nature Conservancy, Oregon (N44˚9’ W120˚19’) is 14,000 acres off State Route 380 east of Prineville along the Crooked River at the Teaters Road junction. The acreage includes National System of Public Lands grazing allotments. It features ancient western junipers and native bunchgrass dispersed within painted hills formations.