BLM staff recap Birch Creek Wild and Scenic River trip and safety information

Original post

Ever wonder what makes a river "wild and scenic"? BLM manages 81 of them nationwide, nearly 2,700 miles of river looked after for their free-flowing condition, water quality, and Outstanding Remarkable Values (ORVs), the exceptional natural, cultural, and recreational qualities that earn a river this status under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. Birch Creek is one of them. Picture six days on the water, gravel bars clear of invasive weeds, grayling and pike hitting steady, wildlife and scenery around every bend. That's what four Eastern Interior Field Office staff found this June, floating Birch Creek from the Upper put-in down to the Lower Birch Creek Wayside near Central, the kind of trip that shows exactly why this river carries Wild and Scenic status. It's an accessible float, but not a hazard-free one. Shallow stretches, rapids, and sweepers (trees reaching into the river from the bank) are real risks, and while the crew cleared some out, the river keeps reshaping itself, so conditions shift year to year. Planning your own trip down Birch Creek? Pack out your trash and clean up fire rings so it stays this good. Learn more about the values that make this river worth protecting. https://ow.ly/4eRe50ZPkj0