Beginning in a spring near Crater Lake, the Rogue River flows 215 miles through the Klamath-Siskiyou Mountains and eventually into the Pacific Ocean at Gold Beach. In particular, the lower Rogue River is one of the most stunning watersheds in the nation, providing freshwater habitat to enormous ocean-going salmon runs and flora and fauna diversity unmatched anywhere in the Pacific Northwest.
The lower Rogue was one of the original eight rivers to be designated as national treasures when Congress passed the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act in 1968. In 1970, by vote, the people of Oregon added the Rogue River to the state’s Scenic Waterways System. The Wild Rogue Wilderness and Wild and Scenic Rogue River additions are located primarily in Josephine County, with small sections in neighboring Douglas and Curry Counties.
View the Wild Rogue River Canyon map.
The lower Rogue was one of the original eight rivers to be designated as national treasures when Congress passed the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act in 1968. In 1970, by vote, the people of Oregon added the Rogue River to the state’s Scenic Waterways System. The Wild Rogue Wilderness and Wild and Scenic Rogue River additions are located primarily in Josephine County, with small sections in neighboring Douglas and Curry Counties.
View the Wild Rogue River Canyon map.
Fast Facts: The Rogue River is the largest producer of Pacific salmon in Oregon outside of the Columbia River, with nearly 100,000 fish returning from the ocean each year. These massive salmon and steelhead runs provide the backbone for a sport and commercial fishing economy worth millions of dollars annually to the state of Oregon.
Famed adventure author Zane Grey (1875-1939) purchased an old mining claim at Winkle Bar, where he went on to write several books. He celebrated the river in both fiction (The Rogue River Feud, 1929) and non-fiction (Tales of Freshwater Fishing, 1909). His cabin, along with Whisky Creek cabin still stand today and are popular attractions for river and wilderness visitors.
Why is this place important
Photo courtesy of Rogue Riverkeeper
The Rogue River Canyon is world-renowned for its recreation, ancient old-growth forests, and vibrant plant and animal life.
The lower Rogue River and associated tributaries provide ecologically valuable habitat for fish and other aquatic species. All five runs of Pacific salmon found in the Rogue River – fall and spring chinook, coho and summer and winter steelhead – depend on the Rogue River’s tributaries for spawning, rearing and migration.
Old-growth forests are prevalent in the area with over 32 percent of the forests found to be older than 150 years. Conifer species include Douglas fir, white fir, sugar pine, ponderosa pine, incense cedar, Port Orford cedar, and Pacific yew. Sweet-smelling Jeffrey pine is often present on the rare serpentine soils.
The Siskiyou Mountains are a hotspot for botanical diversity. The Wild Rogue is home to exceptional botanical resources, including rare plants, mosses and fungi. The Rogue River stonecrop (Sedum moranii) is found only in the Wild Rogue area, growing on rock outcrops and cliff faces primarily located along the north bank of the river. Another rare and fascinating plant is the white flowered ginger (Asarumcaudatumvar novum), which has only been found on BLM lands next to clear-flowing creeks in old-growth stands of trees.
While portions of the roadless lands which surround the Rogue were protected in 1978 as the Wild Rogue Wilderness Area, much of this watershed remains unprotected today. With old-growth logging slated along key tributaries of this national treasure, now is the time to protect the rest of the Wild Rogue’s roadless lands and free-flowing tributary streams for future generations, and to maintain the overall environmental health and spectacular diversity of the region.
The lower Rogue River and associated tributaries provide ecologically valuable habitat for fish and other aquatic species. All five runs of Pacific salmon found in the Rogue River – fall and spring chinook, coho and summer and winter steelhead – depend on the Rogue River’s tributaries for spawning, rearing and migration.
Old-growth forests are prevalent in the area with over 32 percent of the forests found to be older than 150 years. Conifer species include Douglas fir, white fir, sugar pine, ponderosa pine, incense cedar, Port Orford cedar, and Pacific yew. Sweet-smelling Jeffrey pine is often present on the rare serpentine soils.
The Siskiyou Mountains are a hotspot for botanical diversity. The Wild Rogue is home to exceptional botanical resources, including rare plants, mosses and fungi. The Rogue River stonecrop (Sedum moranii) is found only in the Wild Rogue area, growing on rock outcrops and cliff faces primarily located along the north bank of the river. Another rare and fascinating plant is the white flowered ginger (Asarumcaudatumvar novum), which has only been found on BLM lands next to clear-flowing creeks in old-growth stands of trees.
While portions of the roadless lands which surround the Rogue were protected in 1978 as the Wild Rogue Wilderness Area, much of this watershed remains unprotected today. With old-growth logging slated along key tributaries of this national treasure, now is the time to protect the rest of the Wild Rogue’s roadless lands and free-flowing tributary streams for future generations, and to maintain the overall environmental health and spectacular diversity of the region.
Photo by Lesley Adams
Recreational opportunities
Photo by Pete Wallstrom
Internationally recognized for excellent fishing and boating opportunities, the Rogue River itself is a prime recreational resource. There is such a demand to float the river the BLM has placed limits on boating downriver from Grave Creek, and has set up a lottery system to award permits. A vibrant commercial boating industry exists on the river as well. Tourism on the Wild and Scenic portion of the river contributes more than $13 million annually to the local economy.
Kelsey Creek/Lower Rogue Trail Hike
Peter DeFazio at Kelsey Creek, photo by George Sexton
Kelsey Creek sits in the heart of the 50,000 acre Zane Grey wildlands, the largest forested area without a single road managed by the BLM. This stream provides a source of clear-flowing cold water to the Lower Rogue River in the summer, when fish need cold water. You can discover the mouth of Kelsey Creek while floating the lower Rogue or hiking along the Rogue River Trail. Adventurous hikers can venture up into the watershed and explore the untouched old-growth forests of Kelsey Creek, and maybe even see a spotted owl roosting in a tree.
Photo by George Sexton
Mount Bolivar Hike
Photo by George Sexton
The remote 4,319 ft. peak of Mount Bolivar forms the northern tip of the Wild Rogue Wilderness. From the summit, gorgeous views look out over the Wild Rogue Wilderness to the south and west, contrasting with the sight of past BLM logging activities to the northeast. The trail climbs steeply through a spectacular and surprisingly diverse forest recovering from fire.
Photo by George Sexton
Threats
Photo courtesy of Rogue Riverkeeper
The roadless areas and associated Wild Rogue tributary streams don’t have substantive protections, and the BLM has never conducted a proper inventory of its forested roadless areas. The Kelsey, Whisky, Bunker, and Meadow Creek drainages were recently threatened by the Kelsey Whisky timber sales, which would have built logging roads and cut hundreds of acres of old-growth forest in the Zane Grey roadless area.
More recently, these lands were threatened when the Bush administration revised the BLM’s management plans and removed protections for millions of acres of public forest in western Oregon. The Obama administration later withdrew those revisions, citing they were legally indefensible, but management of BLM forests in western Oregon remains in question. All the more reason to protect the forests and tributary streams of the Lower Rogue now.
More recently, these lands were threatened when the Bush administration revised the BLM’s management plans and removed protections for millions of acres of public forest in western Oregon. The Obama administration later withdrew those revisions, citing they were legally indefensible, but management of BLM forests in western Oregon remains in question. All the more reason to protect the forests and tributary streams of the Lower Rogue now.
Photo by George Sexton
“Getting to know a river can be a lifelong journey. Like the ever changing background of an epic story, in my life the Rogue has been a place to gather with others, a fortress of solitude, an aid to memory, a song, a quality of light, a cradle of dreams, a resting place, a source of energy, a giver of joy. And always the living heart of the valley.” - Roger Dorband, from The Rogue: Portrait of a River
Photo by Amy Twiest