Sean C. Morgan
The U.S. Forest Service Sweet Home Ranger District and the Northwest Mineral Prospector’s Club teamed up Saturday to build and install wooden fencing along several riparian areas in the Quartzville Corridor.
The Respect the River Project was created to help protect the riparian areas, particularly threatened and endangered fish species and their habitats, from recreation impacts. The new fencing was installed to protect vegetation and prevent further stream bank erosion in dispersed camping areas along Quartzville Creek.
“We’re not closing sites,” said Jon Meier, Detroit and Sweet Home recreation planner for the Forest Service. “We’re just trying to limit the impact to the riparian areas.”
Almost all trails between camp sites and the water remain open, he said. The only closures might be in places where there are three trails. All camp sites will still have access to the water.
The fences will mainly keep people off of the vegetation, he said.
“The main goal is to keep the site from getting any bigger than it is,” Meier said. The project was only on the National Forest portion of the Quartzville Corridor, which begins where routes 11 and 1133 meet, the single lane portion of the road painted with solid white lines on both sides.
“We get quite a bit of (camping), especially during the summer, especially on holidays and weekends,” Meier said. The camping is free and close to the river, but the Forest Service doesn’t have any estimate on how many campers use the area.
As the camping season gets under way, Meier said, he urges campers to pack out their trash. Waste management is always a concern at dispersed camping sites.
The Forest Service also is concerned about fires, he said. Campfires should never be unattended or left burning. Even though campfires usually go out on their own this time of year, it’s still a good habit and practice to make sure they’re out before leaving camp.
“It seems this time of year is when we find them left behind,” Meier said. Campers can still get a ticket abandoning a fire even this time of year.
He also urges campers to be cautious along the water. Streams run higher and colder during this part of the year.
Meier also asked that campers be courteous to their neighbors.
For more information about camping in the Sweet Home Ranger District, call the district at (541) 367-5168.