Having worked for the local USFS office, I had the pleasure of seeing some amazing sites over the summers. Though all of my adventures rank high (whitewater rafting, backpacking, flyfishing mountain lakes, backcountry skiing, etc), the most amazing aspect is ability to see native Chinook salmon return to Idaho every year to spawn in the pristine mountain streams and rivers. These fish migrate to the ocean as smolts after spending two years in our headwaters, spend one to three years in the ocean to grow larger and swim back upstream through the gauntlet of dams and other impedments to reach the exact same stream they were born in. These fish bring back the important nutrients from the ocean that helps sustain the aquatic and terrestrial life in our backyard. If you get a chance, take a look at these majestic creatures spawning in our headwater streams (South Fork (and East Fork) of the Salmon and Secesh rivers) in August and September by building redds (spawning beds) as they have for thousands of years.
Ryan Lothrop
Ryan Lothrop