Sawtooth National Recreation Area

The U.S. Forest Service purchased an easement to build part of the trail on private property within the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.

An Idaho district court judge dismissed defamation claims made by Boise businessman Michael Boren against people who opposed his application for a private airstrip on his Sawtooth Valley ranch.

The proposal has drawn concern from some skiers and other recreators over limits to the number of people who can access backcountry huts and yurts

We take you on a trip to a wilderness paradise to look at the past, present and future of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.

The SNRA was created in 1972, in part to halt development springing up on the Sawtooth Valley floor. There was hardly any local zoning at the time. Subdivisions were growing and more were planned.

The Sawtooth Valley is prime habitat for Chinook and sockeye salmon; it's where the headwaters form to the Salmon River.

Idaho is the only Western U.S. state without a national park, and that's not accidental. Proposals introduced by regular citizens and politicians alike have been shut down for a variety of reasons, including because the idea was very unpopular with ranchers in central Idaho. In the 1960s U.S. Sen. Frank Church was ready to be the new champion of the movement, though he quickly realized it might not be the best path forward.

The Sawtooth Society, which formed 25 years ago to protect the mountainous region, gave U.S. Congressman Mike Simpson its inaugural “Champion of the Sawtooths” award Thursday.

The Sawtooth Society has been working to protect the Sawtooth National Recreation Area for 25 years. Idaho Matters sat down to learn a little about the history of the society and why preserving the SNRA is so important.

The Andrus Center of Public Policy at Boise State University will publish a policy white paper following up on the conference sometime later this year.