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| Tieton River Canyon III |
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| RMEF Program |
Land Protection |
| Project Type |
Contribution to Acquisition |
| Permanently Protected Acres |
2,560.00 |
| Associated Leased Acres |
.00 |
| State |
Washington |
| County |
Yakima |
| Year Reported |
2007 |
| Location |
Oak Creek Wildlife Area |
| Additional Info |
Click Here |
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Along the sharp edged cliffs and plateaus, Ponderosa pine forests and shrub steppe, the 36-mile Tieton River Canyon is home to a checkerboard of land ownership that dates back to the 1864 Northern Pacific Land Grant signed by Abraham Lincoln. The grant bestowed parcels of land into the hands of railroad companies in an attempt to complete the trans-continental raliroad in the Pacific Northwest. These days, however, such an ownership pattern presents serious challenges to public access and wildlife conservation, especially with ever-increasing development pressure from the bustling town
of Yakima just 20-miles distant. But thankfully, after years of hard work and millions of dollars raised, 10,400-acres in the Tieton Canyon are now contiguous and will forever remain open to the public, protecting winter
range for some 1,700 elk and 2,000 mule deer. The area falls within the Wenatchee National Forest and lies adjacent to the Oak Creek Wildlife Area. The river canyon extends from the forested edge of the East Cascades to the hills that border the Columbia Basin and is a popular destination for white water rafting. It's also home to 17,00 elk, the state's largest herd. The
Elk Foundation collaborated with the Nature Conservancy and several other partners to complete this multi-year and nearly $9 million project. |
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