Smith River National Recreation Area is a protected area located in northwestern California , United States . The national recreation area is in Six Rivers National Forest and is managed by the U.S. Forest Service , an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture . Created by Congress in 1990, Smith River National Recreation Area meets the northern border of Redwood National and State Parks .
26-729: The Klamath Mountains and the Smith River , one of the longest National Wild and Scenic Rivers in the U.S., offer a variety of recreational opportunities. The National Recreation Area has five campgrounds located near major streams and along the Smith River. It is considered one of the best fishing regions in the country, and rafting and canoeing are popular activities. Most hiking trails are accessible year-round, but all activities may be greatly affected by periodic heavy rainfall that swells creeks and rivers. The region receives over 90 in (2,300 mm) of rainfall annually, with
52-416: A major spawning ground for several species of trout and salmon; yet recently, in the last 50 years, some of the fish stocks have fallen drastically, particularly salmon stocks. The ecoregion's rivers and streams are home to nine species of native salmonids . The depletions occur mainly due to construction of dams and clearcutting of forests on the rugged slopes of the area contribute to large amounts of silt in
78-950: A subrange of the Klamath Mountains located in Siskiyou County , in northwestern California . A high point is Scott Mountain Summit, a mountain gap-pass at 5,554 feet (1,693 m) in elevation. The Scott Mountains are a sub-range within the Klamath Mountains System . The Klamath system are of the Pacific Coast Ranges series of mountain range systems that stretch along the West Coast of North America. The Scott Mountains run from southern Siskiyou County southeast into northern Trinity County . California State Route 3 passes through
104-822: Is bisected by U.S. Route 199 which is designated the Smith River Scenic Byway. Passing through the community of Hiouchi , Gasquet and Patrick Creek Lodge on the western side of the summit, the National Forest Scenic Byway is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System and is eligible for the State Scenic Highway System . The highway is the northern portion of the Redwood Highway . Formerly signed as California State Route 199,
130-554: Is located in the northern portion of the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness . Typical species of the Trinity Alps region include Douglas fir , ponderosa pine, red fir, white fir, black oak , canyon live oak , Pacific madrone , bigleaf maple , California Buckeye , incense cedar , and Jeffrey pine . California's northernmost stand of gray pine ( Pinus sabiniana ) is found here along
156-555: The California Coast Ranges , the Klamath Mountains have a varied geology, with substantial areas of serpentinite and marble , and a climate characterized by moderately cold winters with very heavy snowfall and warm, very dry summers with limited rainfall, especially in the south. As a consequence of the geology and soil types, the mountains harbor several endemic or near-endemic trees, forming one of
182-431: The Klamath Mountains ecoregion . One of the principal plant communities in the Klamath Mountains is Mediterranean California Lower Montane Black Oak-Conifer Forest . The ecoregion includes several endemic or near-endemic species, such as Port Orford cedar or Lawson's cypress ( Chamaecyparis lawsoniana ), foxtail pine ( Pinus balfouriana spp. balfouriana ), and Brewer's spruce ( Picea breweriana ), forming one of
208-1136: The Russian Wilderness . They called this diverse area the Miracle Mile. In 2013 Richard Moore identified an 18th species, western juniper , in the Sugar Creek canyon. This is now considered the richest assemblage of conifers per unit area in any temperate region on Earth. Conifer species in the Klamath Mountains include coast Douglas-fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii ssp. menziesii ), Port Orford cedar , ponderosa pine ( Pinus ponderosa ), sugar pine ( Pinus lambertiana ), mountain hemlock ( Tsuga mertensiana ), white fir ( Abies concolor var. lowiana ), red fir ( A. magnifica var. shastensis ), Brewer spruce , coast redwood ( Sequoia sempervirens ), western red cedar ( Thuja Plicata ), Pacific yew ( Taxus brevifolia ), Western White Pine , Lodgepole Pine , Whitebark Pine , Incense Cedar , Foothill Pine , Foxtail Pine , western Juniper and Jeffrey Pine . The Westernmost stand of Quaking Aspen trees
234-440: The spotted owl , plus an extensive variety of additional species both plant and animal. Grizzly bears , gray wolves , and mule deer once inhabited the area, but were extirpated by European settlers. A project to reintroduce Roosevelt elk began in 1985 in the western Marble Mountains, near Elk Creek. Over the next 10 years the number and placement of reintroduced animals was expanded, and now elk can be seen roaming throughout
260-570: The Brewer's spruce and the Port Orford cedar, making the Klamath Mountains one of the richest coniferous forest regions of the world in terms of concentrated species diversity. The region also has several edaphic plant communities, adapted to specific soil types, notably serpentine outcrops. In 1969, Drs. John O. Sawyer and Dale Thornburgh discovered 17 species of conifers in 1 square mile (2.6 km ) around Little Duck Lake and Sugar Creek in
286-512: The Klamath Mountains include the Klamath River , Trinity River , Smith River , Salmon River , Rogue River , Scott River , upper Sacramento River , Chetco River , Mad River , Van Duzen River , Applegate River , Illinois River , Elk River , South Umpqua River , South Fork Coquille River , Shasta Lake , Trinity Lake , Ruth Lake , Castle Lake , Applegate Lake , and Whiskeytown Lake . The many mountains, streams and rivers form
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#1732765276438312-946: The Klamath Mountains include the Siskiyou Mountains , the Marble Mountains , the Scott Mountains , the Trinity Mountains , the Trinity Alps , the Salmon Mountains , and the northern Yolla-Bolly Mountains. They are a section of the larger Pacific Border province , which in turn is part of the Pacific Mountain System (Pacific Coast Ranges) physiographic division. Klamath Mountains is the name given to one of California's eleven geomorphic provinces . These are
338-466: The Klamath Mountains originated as island arcs and continental fragments in the Pacific Ocean . The island masses consisted of rifted fragments of pre-existing continents and volcanic island masses created over subduction zones . These island masses contain rocks as old as 500 million years, dating to the early Paleozoic Era. A succession of eight island terranes moved eastward on
364-663: The Klamath terranes. Subsequent lava flows from active volcanoes in the Cascade Range and the erosion of the Oregon Coast Range to the north partially covered these rocks with basalt and sediments. As a consequence of the geology, the mountains harbor rich biodiversity, with several distinct plant communities, including temperate rain forests, moist inland forests, oak forests and savannas, high elevation forests, and alpine grasslands. These communities form
390-752: The Klamaths. A 211-mile (340 km) stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) passes through these mountains as well. This section of the PCT is known locally as "The Big Bend" and is the transition from the California Floristic Province to the Cascades. The Bigfoot Trail is a 400-mile (640 km) trail through the Klamath Mountains from the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness to Crescent City, California . The rocks of
416-691: The Marble Mountain Wilderness, Trinity Alps Wilderness, in the northern Siskiyou Mountains, along the South Fork of the Salmon River, and in small numbers near Trinity Lake and Reading Creek. Some of the most remote areas are the location of supposed Bigfoot/ Sasquatch sightings from time to time, and the legendary creature plays a part in the folk tales of the Native American populations. Major rivers and lakes in
442-609: The South Fork of the Salmon River. The vast forested wildlands, coupled with a low rate of human settlement in the rugged remote terrain, provides excellent habitat for a number of species. Mammal species include mountain lions , black bears , bobcats , lynx , raccoons , martens , fishers , beavers , grey fox , red fox , northern flying squirrel , and plentiful black-tailed deer . Bird species include golden eagles , bald eagles , pileated woodpecker , Flicker woodpecker,band-tailed pigeon, several hawks including goshawks , Red-tailed hawks several large owl species including
468-568: The ancient Farallon Plate and collided with the North American Plate between 260 and about 130 million years ago. Each accretion left a terrane of rock of a single age. During the accretion, subduction of the plate metamorphosed the overlying rock and produced magma which intruded the overlying rock as plutons . Serpentinite , produced by the metamorphism of basaltic oceanic rocks , and intrusive rocks of gabbroic to granodiorite composition are common rocks within
494-516: The coast around Coos Bay, Oregon , to the mouth of the Mad River near Arcata . To prevent the spread of a root disease caused by the pathogen Phytophthora lateralis , forest roads and campgrounds may be closed during the rainy season when there is the most opportunities for contaminated soil to be spread around. The spores that live in water and wet soil can be introduced by vehicles, animals and people traveling from infected areas. The area
520-546: The greatest amounts in the winter. Summers may be foggy as moisture laden clouds rise up the Coast Range mountains from the Pacific Ocean . Trophy sized steelhead , chinook salmon and other game fish species have led to this area being considered one of the best fishing regions in the United States. Port Orford cedars are native to this area as the tree’s range extends about 50 miles (80 km) inland from
546-474: The highway links U.S. Route 101 near Crescent City, California with Interstate 5 in Grants Pass, Oregon , a distance of 80 miles (130 km). Klamath Mountains The Klamath Mountains are a rugged and lightly populated mountain range in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the western United States . As a mountain system within both the greater Pacific Coast Ranges and
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#1732765276438572-502: The largest collections of conifers in the world. The mountains are also home to a diverse array of fish and animal species, including black bears, large cats, owls, eagles, and several species of Pacific salmon. Millions of acres in the mountains are managed by the United States Forest Service . The northernmost and largest sub-range of the Klamath Mountains are the Siskiyou Mountains . Physiographically ,
598-513: The largest collections of different conifers in the world. The flowering plant Kalmiopsis leachiana , also endemic to the Klamaths, is limited to the Siskiyou sub-range in Oregon. A large concentration of diverse coniferous species of trees exists in these mountains. Thirty conifer species (or more, depending on where one delineates the region) inhabit the area, including two endemic species,
624-693: The range. The Scott Mountains are located approximately 30 miles (48 km) west of the towns of Mt. Shasta and Dunsmuir that are on Interstate 5 . The range is within sections of the Klamath National Forest and Shasta-Trinity National Forest . Scott Mountain Campground, is at the Scott Mountain summit in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest section. It is located on the summit's west side at
650-407: The stream beds, which in turn interfere with spawning salmon, as they lay their eggs in exposed gravel beds. The notable fish species are king , kokanee , and silver salmon , brown , brook , and rainbow trout (including steelhead), cutthroat trout , and crappie , bluegill , catfish , and largemouth and smallmouth bass . Scott Mountains (California) The Scott Mountains are
676-638: The ten highest points in the Klamath Mountains: A large portion of the Klamath Mountains is managed by the United States Forest Service . Several national forests lie in the Klamath Mountains region, including the Shasta-Trinity National Forest , Siskiyou National Forest , Klamath National Forest , Six Rivers National Forest , and Mendocino National Forest . The Klamath Mountains contain 11 wilderness areas in both Oregon and California: There are extensive hiking trail systems, recreation areas, and campgrounds both primitive and developed in
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