Download - Wood River Land Trust Newsletter Spring 2007
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Land
Protecting and restorinour natural lands
and healthy waterssince 1994.
Wood River Land T
on
A publication of Wood River Land Trust www.woodriverlandtrust.org [email protected]
SPRING 20
perspectivesperspectives
was a record year
in conservation
donations to Wood River Land Trust.
Generous donations from a number of
local landowners helped us protect 820
acres in the Valley. This success is part of
a national trend.
The Land Trust Alliances 2005
National Land Trust Census surveyed
nearly 1,840 land conservation organiza-
tions throughout the country. This studyfound that the pace of private land con-
servation by land trusts has tripled over
the past ten years. The West has become
the fastest-growing region in both the
number of acres saved and the number of
land trusts, and public incentives such as
tax credits have spurred further private
land conservation.
The land protected in 2006 includes
an anonymous donation of the 672-acre
Cow Catcher Ridge, the donation of 17
acres in the mid-valley, and the 131-
acre gift of Church Farm, located in the
Bellevue Triangle (for more information onChurch Farm see the article on page 6).
Our largest donation to date, Cow
Catcher Ridge illustrates western land
trusts successes right here in our Valley.
This new 672-acre preserve is adjacent
to Slaughterhouse Canyon and extends
to the south end of Woodside in Hailey.Bordered by BLM land to the east and
by farmland to the west, most of Cow
Catcher Ridge is within the Idaho
Department of Fish & Games designated
deer migration corridor and/or wintering
elk range.
The 17-acre Blue Grouse Preserve
is adjacent to a recently approved mid-
valley subdivision and is an excellent
2006
Continued on page 7
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WHO WE ARE
recently lost a great friend. 10 years ago when I moved to the Wood
River Valley she came with me. We didnt know anyone, and taking
on the newly created job of Wood River Land Trusts Executive Director
was both a great challenge and a little scary. When I was caught up in
the details and frustrations of starting the new organization, my friend
showed me the values of what we at the Land Trust were trying to pro-
tect. My friend and teacher was my dog, Salma.
From a walk along the river, a drive at sunset or a hike above the
sage into grouse country, she in her enthusiastic way showed me thesubtlety and the power of what makes this Valley so special.
With her passing, Ive taken to remembering experiences shared
with her. And knowing that others in the future will be able to have
similar experiences because of the actions of the Land Trust warms my
heart.
If you have the time in the coming days, please take a walk along
the River or any favored spot and reflect on how lucky we are to live
in such a wondrous place, and by all means take a friend, two-legged or
four, along with you.
I
Photo: Nancy Whitehead
There is an eternal
landscape, a
geography of the soul;we search for its
outlines all our lives.
Josephine Hart
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ack and his wife Marie moved to the Wood River
Valley in 1999. Their road here began with a ski vaca-
tion in 1970 followed by more ski trips and, soon, their
first summer vacation. Jacks career
in real estate investment manage-
ment took him, Marie, and their
two children to Japan in the late
1980s. It was during those years
that Marie and the kids began
spending their summers here in the
Valley, and the family considered
moving to the area.
The magnificent mountains
framing the Wood River Valley
were the main attraction for Jack
and Marie. Hailing from the Bay
Area, they appreciated the Valleys
quiet, informal, and relaxed pace.
Jacks attraction to the Valleys
natural beauty and his real estate
investment background led to his
interest in Wood River Land Trusts
work. I know, as we all do, that
the Wood River Valley has and will
continue to change from my earli-
est and fondest memories of over
thirty years ago. However, Wood
River Land Trust has the ability to
protect and preserveboth directly
through its conservation efforts and
indirectly through education and
advocacy of smart planningthe
unique and special places in the
Valley, explains Jack.Jack joined our Board of Directors in 2005 and
became Treasurer in 2006. I hope my participation and
support will make a positive difference for future genera-
tions who will visit and live in the Wood River Valley,
says Jack.
ood River Land Trusts new Planning
Coordinator, Nathan Welch, moved to the
Valley in February. Originally from northern Utah,
Nathan brings a passion for the
Intermountain West and a commit-
ment to protecting and enjoying beau-
tiful places. He has earned masters
degrees in animal and plant ecology
from Utah State and Duke universities,
while studying conservation biology,
invasive species, forest ecology, and
geographic information systems. As
the Planning Coordinator, Nathan will
participate in local land use planning
efforts, collaborate with regional non-
profits and agencies, and oversee map-
ping projects.
Nathan decided early in life that
he had a future in land conservation.
He often accompanied his father, a
wildlife biologist, on trips into the
mountains. He recalls petting a relo-cating moose in a horse trailer when
he was eight years old. Ive always
admired how familiar my dad and his
colleagues are with a place and its wild-
life. My parents taught me to respect
places and biological diversity.
As a student, Nathan attended
the last two National Land Trust
Rallies and was drawn to the commu-
nity atmosphere and sense of purpose.
Inspired by the land trust movement
and intent to make a difference in theworld, he is eager to apply his talents to land conser-
vation. As a student or a technician, Ive lived all
over the country. Im thrilled to return home to the
Intermountain West to begin a career in land conserva-
tion, especially in an active, engaging community like
the Wood River Valley. I visited the Valley for a couple
days in early January and was treated to a day of snow-
ing followed by a day of bright, blue skies. I can get used
to winter weather like that again, he says.
J W
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TO THE LAND
love to fish the Big Wood. I usually
fish alone, and find myself in places
where I will not encounter others. The
river courses this valley, its rhythm and
flow connecting us, our towns and cel-ebrations, ranches and mountain tributar-
ies. But my relationship to the river is a
private affair. My time on the river and
my encountersan elk in the middle of
winter, and owl at duskhold as still in
memory as a trout in current. I am selfish
about this. So it was unusual when one
September evening I encountered anoth-
er man, fishing the Big Wood in West
Ketchum, and we shared the river and our
stories for a time.
I was fishing upstream, casting to small
eddies without much luck, but happy. A
black bear lingering at the waters edge,
preparing to cross and find a meal in town
was as surprised as I was when we saw
each other. She scrambled up the slope,
waiting for her own private moment
before crossing the river. Upstream I
paused in the midst of a smooth glide,
marked by several exposed boulders. I
approached the first downstream rock,
considering my options. Then I heard avoice call out, Hello friend!
A man approached me, wading upstream
in the middle of the river. He appeared
old. He wore old waders, with suspend-
ers, and a flannel shirt. A funny brimmed
hat. His gear was functional, not fancy. I
am particular about the etiquette of the
sport, and reluctant with strangers, so I
was confused by this fellows confident
I Foxy Lady by Glen Shapiro (top), Warm Springs Snow Storm by Jeff Hanson(below left), Walk in the Park by Joshua Wells (below right)
Continued on page 11
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O THE LAND
example of how a subdivision can bal-
ance growth with wildlife habitat pro-
tection. Protecting important habitat
through conservation organizations
and making sound planning and zon-ing decisions will determine the per-
sistence of species like mule deer, elk,
and sage grouse for future residents
of the Wood River Valley. This gift
sets an example for protecting wildlife
even as the Valley grows, says Dave
Parrish, Regional Supervisor of the
Idaho Department of Fish and Game
and Wood River Land Trust Advisory
Board member of the donation.
We hope to continue increas-
ing the number of acres protectedthroughout the Wood River Valley.
For more information about making a
donation, or to learn about current tax
incentives, please contact our office.s
Continued from page 1
o you live in the floodplain? If so, we
hope youll check out our new brochure
on floodplain living. Get To Know Your
Closest Neighbor: A Guide for Floodplain
Homeowners has helpful information on the
role of the floodplain in the rivers health and on the uses of native
plants to beautify and protect stream banks. The new brochure can
be a valuable resource this spring as you plan improvements likenew decks, additional landscaping, and other projects. Produced
in partnership with local governments and landscaping compa-
nies, the brochure is available at county and municipal offices,
Webb, Hailey Nursery and Wood River Land Trust. To download
the brochure from our website go to: www.woodriverlandtrust.org/
resources.html.
D
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THANK YOUFOR HELPING US PROTECT THE NATURAL
AREAS AROUND US THAT ENRICH OUR LIVES
Adobe Community Relations
Alpine Enterprises, Bruce Smith
Alpine Tree Service, Pat Rainey
American Water Resources, Bruce Lium
Backwoods Mountain Sports
Butler and Hilton Ball
Blue Heron Workshop
Catering by Ric Lum
Mark and Patrice Cole
Distilled Resourced, Inc.
Flolos One Hour Photo & Portraits
Glacier Graphics, Jennifer Self
Hall & Hall
Patsy Huntington
Iconoclast Books
Images of Nature Gallery
Lave Lake Land and Livestock, LLC
Lost River Outtters
Mathieu Computer
Ed and Carmen Northen
Sacred Bear Framing
Saintsbury
Sawtooth Food Town
Sawtooth Wood Products, Bob Parker
THANK YOU
John A. Seiller
Silver Creek Outtters
Bob Stevens
Sun Valley Magazine
Thats Entertainment
Chris Thompson
Doug Werth
Wood River Resource Conservation
& Development
The W.C. Bradley Company
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he Open Space Fund is a special account that
allows us to take expedient action when bar-
gain sale opportunities on important and sensitive
lands arise. We are currently working to bolster this
account so we can purchase a discounted 4-acre lot.
We hope to trade this lot to the State of Idaho for
80 acres of land adjacent to our existing Cedar Bend
Preserve in Hailey. The successful trade would expand
the preserve to 84.5 acres that span both sides of the
T Big Wood River and that include some of the mostpopular, close-to-home trails used for hiking, skiing,snowshoeing, and bird-watching in Hailey.
Gifts to the Open Space Fund help us act quickly
when singular opportunities to protect the Valleys nat-
ural areas come our way. For more information about
how you can contribute to this fund, contact Robyn
Watson at (208) 788-3947 or
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OTHER NEWSBoard of DirectorsClark Gerhardt, President
Ed Cutter, Vice President
Jack Kueneman, Treasurer
Robin Garwood, Secretary
Jerry Bashaw
William Burnham
John Flattery
Heather King
Patricia Klahr
Bill Lehman
Liz Mitchell
Steve Strandberg
Joan Swift
Tom Swift
Chris Thompson
Barbara Thrasher
Doris Tunney
Liz Warrick
Advisory Committee
David Anderson
Peter Becker
Ranney Draper
Rebekah Helzel
Dave Parrish
Larry Schoen
John Seiller
Bruce Tidwell
StaffScott Boettger, Executive Director
Morgan Buckert, Membership Assistant
Melanie Dahl, Executive Assistant
Kate Giese, Director of Conservation
Kathryn Goldman, Project Coordinator
Diane Kahm, Development Assistant
Heather Kimmel, Program& Membership Coordinator
Robyn Watson, Major Gifts Officer
Nathan Welch, Planning Coordinator
buildingmaterialthriftstore
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SPRING 2007
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