Part 1

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SHOSHONE _NATIONAL FOREST_ WYOMING

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE Rocky Mountain Region · Denver, Colorado

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON: 1941

MAP

_A map of the Shoshone National Forest, with details including roads and points of interest, will be found on the inside of the back cover._

_Our First National Forest_

The Shoshone National Forest was set aside by proclamation of President Benjamin Harrison as the Yellowstone Park Timberland Reserve on March 30, 1891. It was the first unit of its kind created after the passage of the Act of March 3, 1891, authorizing the establishment of forest reserves—as national forests were then called—to protect the remaining timber on the public domain from destruction and to insure a regular flow of water in the streams. On the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the Shoshone, the national forests embrace approximately 176,000,000 acres of forest land, located in 36 States, Alaska, and Puerto Rico.

The Shoshone National Forest is situated in the heart of the Absaroka Mountains, in northwestern Wyoming. It is bounded on the north by the Montana-Wyoming State line, on the east by the Big Horn Basin, on the south by the Washakie and Teton Forests, and on the west by the Yellowstone National Park. It lies almost entirely within Park County; minor portions extend into Hot Springs and Fremont Counties.

This national forest is the largest of 21 in the Central Rocky Mountain Region, including within its boundaries 1,592,428 acres, of which all but 26,104 are Federal land. The forest is about 75,000 acres larger than the State of Delaware. Elevations within the forest range from 4,600 to 13,140 feet, thus providing a wide variation in climate, vegetation, and wildlife. At the lower elevations the summers are warm and the winters mild. The higher mountains enjoy only a brief cool summer and are snowclad most of the year.

Few mountainous sections are more rugged or spectacular. Geologically the formations are new, and immense areas of exposed rock are broken by and interspersed with mountain meadows and mantles of unbroken forests. Those who have packed into the back country, or have driven through the North Fork of the Shoshone River Canyon, or over the Beartooth Plateau agree that the variety of scenery and vegetative types is superlative.

ADMINISTRATION FOR PUBLIC USE

In the administration of national forests the aim is to manage them in such a way as to make their resources of largest service to the local communities, the State, and the Nation. This is accomplished by promoting the highest social and economic uses of the forests consistent with the proper use of lands. Such an objective is definitely pointed toward the maximum sustained yield from all resources.

The national forests are under the administration of the Forest Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Each forest is under the charge of a forest supervisor. Headquarters of the Shoshone is in Cody, Wyo. Every forest is divided into districts, each of which is under the supervision of a district ranger, who has control of all its activities. His responsibilities include protection of the resources against fire and other enemies, the supervision of timber sales, and the grazing of large numbers of cattle, sheep, and horses; the management of wildlife resources; looking after different permitted uses, such as pastures, summer homes, resorts, power developments; maintaining forest improvements, including ranger station buildings, lookout stations, telephone lines, roads, trails, and range improvements; and providing protection and furnishing information to the thousands of people who come every year to enjoy vacations in the forest.

The Shoshone National Forest is divided into four ranger districts, as follows: The Clarks Fork, the Wapiti, the South Fork, and Greybull. The Greybull is the smallest ranger district, with approximately 300,000 acres. The Clarks Fork is the largest, with about 529,000 acres under the jurisdiction of the district ranger.

HIGHLIGHTS OF EARLY HISTORY

Perhaps nothing contributes more to the real enjoyment and to the fascination of a forest than a knowledge of its early history. Many events within this area played an important part in the growth and development of northwestern Wyoming. Many of these are nearly forgotten, and others are not generally known.

The earliest inhabitants of the forest are believed to have been Indians known as the “Sheepeaters.” Just who the “Sheepeaters” were is not definitely known. Some historians claim they were an unintellectual branch of the Snake tribe, others insist that they were renegades and misfits, driven out of the plains tribes, the Crows, Blackfeet, and Shoshones, who were forced to the timberclad hills where rough topography and cover permitted them to evade capture and killing at the hands of their erstwhile tribal members. They lived in crude tepees constructed entirely of poles. The “Sheepeaters” derived their name from the fact that they preyed extensively on mountain sheep and to some extent on other species of big game. They trapped their prey in pens or corrals made of stone.

The first white men entered Wyoming more than 30 years before the American Revolution. In 1743, Francois and Louis De La Verendrye, French-Canadian brothers, traveled through the Rocky Mountain region to establish branch trading posts. Their home and main post was in the Great Lakes region. They entered the Big Horn Valley from the north and traveled up Wood River in the southern part of the forest and crossed the rugged Continental Divide near the Washakie Needles on their way into the Wind River country.

Years later, in 1807, John Colter, who startled the world with his fantastic and unbelievable stories of the natural wonders in Yellowstone Park, traveled up the Clarks Fork River, after leaving the Lewis and Clark Expedition on the Missouri. Colter’s exact routes of travel are hotly disputed by historians, but it is well established that he was the first white man to see the “Stinking Water” River (the Shoshone), so named by him because of the foul odors from mineral hot springs along its banks.

The trail along the Clarks Fork followed by Colter was for generations a transmountain route of Indian tribes living west of the Continental Divide which led to the great buffalo country to the east. Among the tribes using this trail were the Bannocks and Lemhi. After hunting among the herds in the Big Horn Basin and on the plains east of the Big Horn Mountains, they returned to their homes heavily laden with meat and hides. These expeditions frequently led to fiercely fought battles with the Shoshones and Crows, whose territories were being invaded.

The De La Verendryes and Colter were followed by other “mountain men,” equally venturesome, representing the American and Rocky Mountain fur companies and smaller independent concerns. These hardy, restless, rugged individuals, including such men as Lisa, Sublette Brothers, Fraeb, Gervais, and Bridger, were actually the first settlers in what is now the State of Wyoming, notwithstanding the common belief that the first settlements in the Territory were in the eastern and southern parts. These pioneers exploited the country, trapping fur-bearing animals and trading with the Indians for their take in the pelts.

Following them came the nomadic prospectors and miners, and after the miners came the first really permanent residents, the cattlemen. The establishment of the first Stockyards in Kansas City, in 1870, gave impetus to the expansion of cattle-raising in the West. From 1870 to the 1890’s, this industry grew with unprecedented speed. Charles Carter, in 1879, trailed in from Oregon the first herd of cattle brought into the Big Horn Basin. Later came Capt. Henry Belknap, Otto Franc, Col. W. D. Pickett, and J. M. Carey, all of whom shaped ranches out of virgin territory on the west side of the Big Horn Basin, immediately adjacent to the mountain slopes now inside the forest.

From the early eighties the herds increased, and more and more cattle came into the Big Horn Basin. Homesteaders and settlers were “squatting” on and taking up large acreages of the best range land, and finally, there was not enough year-long range for the increased number of livestock. The advent of the farmer forced drastic changes in livestock operations. Stockmen were obliged to produce forage crops to carry a part of their herds through the winter. Eventually it was necessary to increase the production of forage crops on the land under cultivation, and this led to the development of irrigation projects, first by the ranchers, and then by the Federal Government. With water for their lands and constantly improving transportation facilities, farmers were able to produce such cash crops as small grain, truck crops, sugar beets, potatoes, and peas.

As this country was further developed and became more heavily populated, stockmen grazed their livestock in the higher foothills and eventually in the mountains during summer, depending upon the Big Horn Basin, which had formerly been used year-long, for winter range. Thus began the first actual dependence of the community upon territory within the forest. As irrigation projects developed, the second—and now perhaps the most important—great economic value of the rugged mountains in the forest became apparent in their capacity to conserve and store water for summer use in the valleys below.

The Federal Government recognized the importance of placing the great mountain wilderness of the West under control, to assure the perpetuity and proper use of the natural resources. The establishment of the Shoshone Forest in 1891 was the first step taken in carrying out this comprehensive program. The preservation of the natural resources is now assured, not by the elimination of use of the forage, timber, water, and other resources of the forest, but rather by the use of all under proper and progressive management.

PLACES OF ESPECIAL INTEREST

_Bliss Creek._—One of the favorite routes of rustlers in earlier days, leading to their favorite rendezvous in Jackson Hole, followed Clark Creek at the head of the South Fork of the Shoshone River. In 1892, a horse thief named Bliss, attempting to escape pursuers, was captured by a posse after a long and grueling chase. He was shot and buried at a point about a mile above Clark Creek, near where a small stream from the north empties into the South Fork. This stream was named Bliss Creek as a result of this episode. Bliss’s grave was marked by a rude pile of stones along the trail until a very few years ago when it was destroyed by a mountain cloudburst. Bliss Creek can be reached only with a saddle horse and is 35 miles southwest of Valley.

_Beartooth Plateau._—After two military expeditions had previously failed, the first official crossing of Beartooth Plateau was accomplished during the last week of August 1882 by a scouting party headed by Lt. Gen. P. H. Sheridan. In his party were 71 officers, soldiers, and civilians, 36 packers, 1 hunter, and 5 Shoshone Indian scouts and 1 Squaw. The party reached Cooke City, Mont., on August 24 from Mammoth Hot Springs, and Billings on August 31. The route selected and followed by General Sheridan was almost identical with that of the present Red Lodge-Cooke City Highway.

_Dead Indian Hill._—A small war party of Bannocks was attacked by General Miles’ troops just south of Clark, near the northeast corner of the forest, in 1878, shortly after the Nez Perce outbreak. The Indians retreated over what is now known as Dead Indian Hill, about 16 miles southwest of Clark, leaving one of their wounded behind. The following day the Bannock was found by some of the Crow Indian Army scouts, who promptly killed and scalped him. Until recent years a rude pile of stones halfway down the west side of the hill, north of the road and near the drift fence, marked the grave. From this episode the hill got its name. Captain Bennett, in charge of the cavalry troop which engaged the Bannocks, and one of his Crow scouts, Little Rock, lost their lives in the fight. Two streams running down the east face of Beartooth Plateau, just west of Clark, bear the names of these men.

_Camp Monaco._—Located about 15 miles north of Pahaska Tepee, along the North Fork of the Shoshone River, is one of the old hunting camps of Colonel Cody, Camp Monaco. Here in September 1913, Colonel Cody took as his guests on a hunting trip, Albert I, Prince of Monaco, and his aide-de-camp, Count Beret. At the close of the successful hunt, the Prince had his artist paint on a large tree at the camp site, “Camp Monaco, 1913,” and a bear’s foot.

_Frank Hammitt Grave._—Frank Hammitt was one of the first six forest rangers appointed in the United States. He met his death by plunging over the precipitous walls of Russell Creek Canyon near its mouth, on July 25, 1903. His grave is near the south base of Antelope Mountain, beside the Crandall Road. Hammitt was trained for the priesthood, but gave it up for the life of a cowboy. For 7 years he was chief of cowboys with Colonel Cody’s Wild West Show before he became a forest ranger.

_Jack Crandall Grave._—On July 1, 1870, a prospector named Jack Crandall and his partner, T. Dougherty, were on their way to a rendezvous with some miner friends on the headwaters of the Clarks Fork River. The two men made camp on Crandall Creek and, as they prepared their evening meal, were killed by a marauding band of Indians. The miners’ picks were driven into the ground and their severed heads were spitted on the ends protruding. The grave of these men is marked by a huge boulder on which is a large bronze plate giving a brief history of the incident. It is located on the north side of Crandall Creek, about three-fourths of a mile upstream from the Crandall Creek bridge, on the Sunlight-Clarks Fork Road.

_Pahaska Tepee._—Pahaska Tepee, situated alongside the Cody-Yellowstone Highway, 51 miles west of Cody, is the original hunting lodge of Colonel Cody, which he built in 1901. Here he entertained such distinguished guests as Albert I, Prince of Monaco, statesmen, and the more famous members of his troup.

_Sheepeaters’ Tepees._—Ancient tepees of the “Sheepeaters” made entirely of poles are to be found in different parts of the forest. There is a group of three, well preserved, on Tepee Creek, a tributary of the North Fork of Crandall Creek, where the trail crosses. Another is located about 1 mile above the Timber Creek Ranger Station, along an old logging road. They can be reached only with saddle horses.

_The Old Stockade._—In August of 1891, a cowboy discovered a log stockade on Beartooth Plateau, on the divide between Little Rock and Bennett Creeks, about 3 miles north of Deep Lake. The stockade, resembling a corral about 50 feet in diameter, had been made of huge logs laid up similarly to those in a log house. Here and there along the walls loopholes had been cut, obviously to permit shooting through them. The stockade was old when found. Who it was built by and why is not known. The logs had been cut with a sort of an ax or a hatchet, yet only a portion of the work appeared to be that of white men. Some of the chopping appeared to have been done by a man familiar with the use of an ax, while other logs were literally “gnawed off.” The old stockade is still standing. It can be reached only afoot or with horses.

_Wapiti Ranger Station._—The Wapiti Ranger Station, situated along the Cody-Yellowstone Highway, 30 miles west of Cody, is the oldest ranger station in the United States built with Government funds. It was erected in 1901.

_The Firefighters Memorial._—On August 21, 1937, 15 men lost their lives in what is known as the Blackwater Fire. Along the Cody-Yellowstone Highway, 36 miles west of Cody, at the mouth of Blackwater Creek, a large cut stone monument has been constructed by the Forest Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps, to commemorate the memory of these men. The fire, which originated 4 miles south of the memorial, burned over 1,254 acres. The Memorial Trail, a splendid foot or horse trail, begins at the Firefighters Monument and leads to the burned-over area and to Clayton Gulch, located 6 miles south, where a stone marker with a huge bronze placque has been constructed to mark the site where Ranger Alfred G. Clayton, Foreman James T. Saban, Assistant to Technician Rex Hale, and four Civilian Conservation Corps enrollees—Rodgers, Gerdes, Griffith, and Mayabb—were burned to death. In addition, Junior Forester Paul E. Tyrrel, Billy Lea, a workman on a Bureau of Public Roads crew, and CCC enrollees Allen, Garaza, Bevens, Seelke, Sherry, and Whitlock died as a result of burns suffered on this fire.

Upon the recommendation of the Forest Service, the United States Board of Geographic Names has changed the name of Double Mountain, which is the highest point in the vicinity of the Blackwater area, to Clayton Mountain, in honor of Ranger Clayton. A lookout tower is being constructed on Clayton Mountain, which commands a view of a considerable area of the Shoshone National Forest.

TIMBER—WATER—FORAGE

Timber Resources.—The actual forested areas within the Shoshone extend in altitudinal range from about 6,000 to 10,000 feet above sea level. Below the lower limits of the typical forest areas is a scattering tree growth of aspen and cottonwoods, restricted principally to the stream courses.

It is estimated that approximately 48 percent of the net area of the forest is covered with timber, and supports a stand of some 2¼ billion board feet. Lodgepole pine, Douglas fir, and Engelmann spruce are the principal timber species; alpine fir, Rocky Mountain red cedar, and several minor broadleaved species also occur.

Mature timber may be purchased, and when sales are made the cut is so regulated that a perpetual supply of timber will be available without destroying the forest cover. There are more than 20 different timber operations within the forest which provide lumber, posts, poles, and other timber products for the communities and residents of the Big Horn Basin and adjacent territory, and provide a living for approximately 100 families. These operations also supply such special products as railroad ties and mine timbers and props. Hundreds of ranchers and farmers obtain directly such material as corral poles, fence posts, and fuel from the forest.

Water Resources.—The vast coniferous forests of the Shoshone are important as a ground cover in regulating the flow of streams having their headwaters inside its boundaries. By retarding the run-off from melting snows and rains, the forests help to prevent erosion and floods in the spring and conserve the flow of water through the summer when it can be used for irrigation. The development of agriculture and, in fact, the future growth of Wyoming and other Western States are absolutely dependent upon irrigation water. Two large irrigation projects, the Shoshone and Sunshine, are dependent upon the forest watersheds, as are many cooperative and individual users. Without doubt the greatest social and economic contribution of the forest to those living within and adjacent to it, and the State at large, is water for irrigation and domestic use.

The Shoshone project waters 73,000 acres, on which agricultural crops having a value of approximately $2,000,000 are raised annually. With the completion of the Hart Mountain Division of this project, the area under water will be increased by approximately 41,000 acres. Local enterprise in the form of cooperative and individual projects has brought under irrigation more than 60,000 acres additional. The Sunshine project provides supplemental water for a part of the land included in the last figure given. If the Shoshone project is developed to capacity, it is estimated that approximately 163,000 acres of land will be under water.

There are over a million acres of arid lands in the plains of the Big Horn and Yellowstone Basins, with favorable soils and potential farm values if water can be made available for irrigation. It is important to conserve the forest and forage cover so that the greatest volume of usable water may be available for agricultural use. The future prosperity and agricultural development of the region is limited to a great extent by the amount of water that can be supplied for irrigation from the streams having their sources within the Shoshone Forest.

Grazing Resources.—The raising of livestock is a basic industry in Wyoming. The Shoshone provides summer range for 10,000 cattle and horses, and 75,000 sheep, owned by almost 200 resident owners. The higher ranges are particularly good for the production of lambs and wool, and the lower ones are excellent for beef. Range is also furnished for horse herds of the dude ranchers and for dairy cattle.

Permittees grazing livestock in the national forest are assigned specific grazing allotments, and are required to handle their stock according to approved management practices. Local officers endeavor to stock all ranges conservatively for the purpose of preventing range deterioration which reduces the volume of forage produced and starts erosion.

Grazing permittees are selected on the basis of ownership of improved ranch property which is dependent upon forest range to make it an economic unit. This policy favors the established tax-paying citizen and eliminates the tramp stockman who has no base of operations but exploits the country through which he passes.

In spite of the fact that all ranges adapted to the grazing of livestock have been fully stocked for many years, sufficient forage is reserved to take care of the 3,500 elk, 6,200 mule deer, 750 antelope, 700 mountain sheep, and 250 moose which inhabit the forest.

RECREATIONAL USE AND VALUES

No single activity of the forest has grown so rapidly in recent years as recreation. The forest is ideally adapted to recreational use because of the rough, majestic, and undeveloped character of its wilderness where most travel must be done with a horse and pack outfit. It is truly a forest with a “back country.” The numerous lakes and mountain streams, the glaciers, the vast forest cover, and the abundance of fish and game are attractions that draw large numbers of people who wish to see wilderness areas unspoiled by the hand of man.