Big Jacks Creek Wilderness

The Big Jacks Creek Wilderness is located on the high basalt plateaus of Owyhee County in southwestern Idaho in the western United States.[1][2] Little Jacks Creek Wilderness is on its northwest border.[1] About 35 miles (56 km) of Big Jacks Creek is classified as a wild river.[3]

Big Jacks Creek Wilderness
IUCN category Ib (wilderness area)
LocationOwyhee County, Idaho, USA
Nearest cityBoise, Idaho
Coordinates42°27′43″N 116°4′46″W
Area52,826 acres (21,378 ha)
Established2009
Governing bodyBureau of Land Management

Geography

Elevation varies from 2,808 to 5,872 ft (856–1,790 m) with canyons that are as much as 655 ft (200 m) deep that are covered in several varieties of sagebrush. The Creek flows north into the Bruneau River, which in turn flows into the Snake River.[1][4]

Legislative history

The Big Jacks Creek Wilderness was created by the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 and signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 30, 2009. Also created in the Omnibus Land Act were five additional southwestern Idaho wilderness areas in Owyhee County, collectively known as the Owyhee Canyonlands Wilderness Areas:[5][6]

The Act of 2009 added 517,025 acres (209,233 ha) of wilderness within the state of Idaho.[5][6]

Wilderness areas do not allow motorized or mechanical equipment including bicycles. Although camping and fishing are allowed with proper permit, no roads or buildings are constructed and there is also no logging or mining, in compliance with the 1964 Wilderness Act. Wilderness areas within National Forests and Bureau of Land Management areas also allow hunting in season.[7][8]

Natural history

The Big Jacks Creek Wilderness lies within the Owyhee Desert, part of the northern Basin and Range ecoregion, although hydrologically the wilderness area is within the Snake River – Columbia River drainage.[1][9] The area is home to Columbia River redband trout, mountain quail, bighorn sheep, and two species of sensitive plants. Other plants found are black sagebrush, low sagebrush, Thurber needlegrass, Idaho fescue, bluebunch wheatgrass, bud sagebrush, Indian ricegrass, willow, rose, currant, and sedge.[1]

See also

References
  1. "Big Jacks Creek Wilderness - General". Wilderness.net. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
  2. "Big Jacks Creek Wilderness, Idaho". Public Lands. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  3. "Wild & Scenic Rivers". Bureau of Land Management. Archived from the original on February 14, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2011.
  4. "Big Jacks Creek". Bureau of Land Management. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
  5. "Owyhee Canyonlands Wilderness Areas". Bureau of Land Management. Archived from the original on October 24, 2011. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
  6. "Owyhee Canyonlands Wilderness". Idaho Public TV. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
  7. "Forestwide Standards and Guidelines" (PDF). United States Forest Service. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
  8. "Big Jacks Creek Wilderness - Area Management". Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
  9.  This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Geological Survey document: McGrath, CL; Woods, AJ; Omernik, JM; et al. "Ecoregions of Idaho" (PDF). (color poster with map, descriptive text, summary tables, and photographs; with a Reverse side)
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