Cottonwood Creek

The Cottonwood Creek Roadless Area covers 9,934 acres in the Ochoco Mountains of central Oregon, on the divide between Grant and Wheeler counties in the Ochoco National Forest's Paulina Ranger District. The terrain rises through Cougar Ridge, Battle Creek Mountain, Youngs Butte, A and M Ridge, and the timbered draws of Deadman Gulch and Big Bedground to mid-elevation montane country. McClanahan Meadow opens within the forest, and water leaves the area through Cottonwood Creek headwaters and a long list of named tributaries — Youngs Creek, Tunnel Creek, Brown Creek, Payten Creek, Deep Creek, Cougar Creek, East Birch Creek, East Fork Cottonwood Creek, Cameron Creek, Back Creek, Lost Cabin Creek, and Battle Creek — together with Tin Cup Spring, Breathing Spring, Home Sweet Home Spring, and the small Battle Creek Mountain Reservoir.

Forest communities sort across moisture and aspect gradients. Northern Rockies Ponderosa Pine Woodland and Southern Rockies Mixed Conifer Forest hold the higher north slopes and timbered ridges, with ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) on better-drained ground. Northern Rockies Western Larch Savanna marks fire-shaped open country, and pockets of Rocky Mountain Lodgepole Pine Forest and Rocky Mountain Aspen Forest occupy frost hollows and spring-fed pockets. The drier ridges and rocky breaks carry Intermountain Mountain Mahogany Woodland — curl-leaf mountain-mahogany (Cercocarpus ledifolius) on the cliff edges — alongside Columbia Plateau Western Juniper Woodland of western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis), with tobacco ceanothus (Ceanothus velutinus) and the sagebrush of Intermountain Mountain Sagebrush Steppe and Great Basin Big Sagebrush Steppe filling the openings. South-facing breaks open into Columbia Basin Canyon Grassland, and Columbia Basin Foothill Streamside Woodland threads the lower drainages.

The wildlife community uses these zones in seasonal turn. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) move between aspen meadows and ponderosa benches, and gray wolf (Canis lupus) follows herds through the timbered country. The open ponderosa and larch stands carry Williamson's sapsucker (Sphyrapicus thyroideus) and Lewis's woodpecker (Melanerpes lewis), whose nesting depends on standing snags, and Cassin's finch (Haemorhous cassinii), calliope hummingbird (Selasphorus calliope), and rufous hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) feed in the flowering edges. Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) and bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus, delisted) ride the canyon thermals above the rim, and olive-sided flycatcher (Contopus cooperi) calls from snag-rich forest edges. On rocky south aspects, western rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus) and desert nightsnake (Hypsiglena chlorophaea) inhabit the talus, while willet (Tringa semipalmata) and other migratory waterbirds use Battle Creek Mountain Reservoir during migration. Portions of this area fall within the potential range of several federally listed species; see the Conservation section for details.

A visitor crossing Cottonwood Creek moves through abrupt ecological shifts. From Cougar Ridge the view runs east across Deep Creek and the timbered draws to Battle Creek Mountain; large-flower clarkia (Clarkia pulchella) and large-flower cat's-eye (Cryptantha intermedia) bloom on the open benches. Dropping into the cool of Cottonwood Creek itself, the trail enters the Foothill Streamside Woodland with willow and aspen along the channel and Williamson's sapsucker drumming on a snag above. Springs at the base — Home Sweet Home Spring and Tin Cup Spring — carry perennial water down through bunchgrass openings where mule deer water in the early morning.

The Cottonwood Creek Roadless Area, in the Ochoco Mountains of Grant and Wheeler counties, lies within the ancestral homeland of the John Day (Dock-spus) band of the Warm Springs Tribe, together with the broader Warm Springs, Wasco, and Paiute peoples whose territory stretches "from the snowcapped summit of the Cascade Mountains to the palisaded cliffs of the Deschutes River" in central Oregon [1]. In 1855, the Warm Springs and Wasco tribes signed the Treaty with the Tribes of Middle Oregon, ceding 10 million acres of aboriginal lands to the United States [2]; in 1869, several Paiute bands from southeastern Oregon were removed to the Warm Springs Reservation [2].

The first wave of Euro-American economic activity in the upper John Day country was gold mining. Canyon City in neighboring Grant County, founded in 1862, was "the earliest gold mining camp in John Day country, and briefly the largest city in Oregon" [5]. As the 1860s closed, "cattle ranching and sheep ranching soon surpassed mining as an economic pursuit and a way of life," holding sway through the first three decades of the twentieth century across the Ochocos and the surrounding Blue Mountain country [5]. Beginning in 1901, residents of Baker County petitioned their congressional delegation to withdraw the mountains around Baker City and Sumpter from the public domain to protect watersheds; petitions from Malheur and Harney counties followed in 1902, asking that the Strawberry Mountains and the headwaters of the Malheur, Silvies, and South Fork of the John Day rivers be withdrawn [4]. The Secretary of the Interior responded in July 1902 by temporarily withdrawing more than 3 million acres of land in the forested areas of northeastern Oregon [4]. After delay from the Oregon land fraud scandal, in March 1906 President Theodore Roosevelt authorized the permanent withdrawal of 2,627,270 acres as the Blue Mountain Forest Reserve [4].

In 1908, the Blue Mountain Forest Reserve was broken up into several administrative units, "which later evolved into the Wallowa-Whitman, Malheur, Ochoco, and Umatilla national forests" [4]. The Ochoco National Forest itself was created by presidential proclamation dated June 30, 1911 [3]. Allen H. Hodgson, Deputy Forest Supervisor of the Ochoco, prepared a written history of the forest in September 1913 that recorded grazing administration, boundary changes, and the integration of the Maury Mountain Forest Reserve into the larger Ochoco [3]. After 1940, "harvesting and processing the vast stands of timber in the private forests and national forests of Grant and Wheeler counties emerged as the mainstay of the local economy" [5]. Cottonwood Creek, a 9,934-acre Inventoried Roadless Area in the Paulina Ranger District of the Ochoco National Forest, today carries forward the unbroken ridge and stream country at the divide between Grant and Wheeler counties, and is protected under the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.

Vital Resources Protected

• Cold Headwater Stream Network: Cottonwood Creek and a long list of named tributaries — Youngs, Tunnel, Brown, Payten, Deep, Cougar, East Birch, East Fork Cottonwood, Cameron, Back, Lost Cabin, and Battle Creeks — together with Home Sweet Home Spring, Tin Cup Spring, Breathing Spring, and Battle Creek Mountain Reservoir form an unfragmented headwater network for the John Day basin. The roadless condition keeps Northern Rockies Foothill Streamside Woodland intact along these channels and maintains the cold-water reaches that resident salmonids and downstream Middle Fork John Day fish populations depend on.

• Old Ponderosa Pine and Mixed Conifer Structural Complexity: Southern Rockies Mixed Conifer Forest occupies 67 percent of the area and Northern Rockies Ponderosa Pine Woodland another 18 percent, producing the multi-layered canopy and large-diameter live trees and snags that Williamson's sapsucker, Lewis's woodpecker, olive-sided flycatcher, and Cassin's finch require. Roadlessness keeps the disturbance interval long enough for ponderosa to grow to the size class that supports cavity nesters and that has been lost across most adjacent multiple-use ground.

• Conifer-Juniper-Sagebrush Mosaic for Wide-Ranging Wildlife: The unfragmented gradient from western larch savanna and ponderosa pine through Columbia Plateau Western Juniper Woodland into Columbia Basin Canyon Grassland and sagebrush steppe gives gray wolf (Canis lupus), mule deer, and migrating birds the seasonal habitat shifts they need within a single landscape. Roadlessness keeps these movements possible at the spatial scale these animals actually use.

Potential Effects of Road Construction

• Sediment Delivery to Cold Headwaters: Road cuts and ditches on the slopes above Cottonwood, Deep, and Battle Creeks would deliver fine sediment directly into spawning gravels and embed the substrate that supports macroinvertebrate prey. Removal of streamside canopy for road right-of-way raises summer water temperatures past the range of resident trout and aquatic amphibians, and these effects propagate downstream into the Middle Fork John Day system over the life of the road.

• Loss of Old Ponderosa Stand Structure and Snag Habitat: Roads built into Northern Rockies Ponderosa Pine Woodland accelerate the loss of large-diameter trees and standing snags through firewood cutting, post-construction salvage, and hazard-tree removal along the right-of-way. Williamson's sapsucker, Lewis's woodpecker, and olive-sided flycatcher all depend on snag densities that cannot be quickly replaced; once snags are removed, recovery takes a century or more because new trees must grow to the diameter and decay state cavity nesters require.

• Fragmentation and Cheatgrass Invasion of Juniper and Canyon Grassland: A road bisecting the conifer-juniper-grassland gradient introduces edges that fragment habitat for gray wolf and mule deer, and disturbed road shoulders act as dispersal corridors for cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and other non-native annuals — a pervasive threat already documented in Columbia Plateau Western Juniper Woodland and Columbia Basin Canyon Grassland. Once cheatgrass enters the bunchgrass-juniper understory, fire-return intervals shorten and the native bitterbrush and bunchgrass community is converted to an annual-grass state.

The Cottonwood Creek Roadless Area covers 9,934 acres of montane Ochoco Mountains country in the Ochoco National Forest's Paulina Ranger District, on the divide between Grant and Wheeler counties. Recreation here centers on a long backcountry horse trail and a short connecting route, with one access point and otherwise dispersed use. Hunting, horseback travel, hiking, fishing in the small creeks, and wildlife observation are the principal documented activities.

The Ochoco Mountain Trail (#823, 23.8 miles, native material surface) is the spine of the area. Signed for horse use, it provides a multi-day backcountry route through ponderosa pine, mixed conifer, juniper, and open canyon-grassland country. The Payten Trail (#820D, 1.5 miles, native material) branches from the main trail along Payten Creek and is also signed for horse use. The Cottonwood Trailhead provides the principal access point for both routes. No developed campgrounds lie within the area, so visitors camp at dispersed sites along the trail or at Forest Service campgrounds on adjacent roads.

Hunting follows Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife seasons and tag rules. Rocky Mountain elk and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are the principal big-game species; the open ponderosa and larch country produces traditional summer and winter range that holds animals through the rifle and archery seasons. American black bear, mountain lion, ruffed grouse, and California quail round out the area's hunted species. The roadless condition keeps elk and deer on traditional ground across Cougar Ridge, Battle Creek Mountain, and the timbered draws of Deep Creek without the vehicle pressure that displaces game on adjacent road-grid country.

Fishing concentrates on the small headwater channels. Cottonwood Creek and its tributaries — Youngs, Tunnel, Brown, Payten, Deep, Cougar, and Battle Creeks — hold native redband trout and other small-stream salmonids that contribute to the larger John Day basin populations downstream. Anglers should consult current ODFW regulations for the John Day basin before fishing these waters; gear restrictions and harvest limits change to protect wild fish stocks. Tin Cup Spring, Breathing Spring, and Home Sweet Home Spring carry perennial water at the base of the slopes, providing reliable water sources for backcountry parties.

Wildlife watching, birding, and photography reward visitors who travel slowly through the area. Six eBird hotspots fall within 24 kilometers — the John Day Fossil Beds Visitor Center at James Cant Ranch records 116 species, with strong checklists from Sheep Rock, Blue Basin Trail, and the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center. Inside Cottonwood Creek itself, observers can expect Williamson's sapsucker (Sphyrapicus thyroideus) and Lewis's woodpecker (Melanerpes lewis) in the open ponderosa and larch, Cassin's finch (Haemorhous cassinii) and rufous hummingbird at the meadow edges of McClanahan Meadow, golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) riding thermals above Cougar Ridge, and bald eagle along the larger drainages. Western rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus) and desert nightsnake (Hypsiglena chlorophaea) inhabit the talus on south aspects.

Wildflower observation rewards a late-spring visit. Large-flower clarkia (Clarkia pulchella) and Clearwater cryptantha (Cryptantha intermedia) bloom on the open benches, snowbrush ceanothus (Ceanothus velutinus) and woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca) follow on disturbed ground, and curl-leaf mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus ledifolius) on the rim breaks holds the cliff edges through summer.

What ties these activities together is the absence of new roads through the interior. The long horseback route along Trail #823, the cold-water habitat in the small creeks that supports wild trout populations, the big-game ranges that anchor fall hunting, and the open ridge sight lines that draw photographers all depend on the unbroken landscape — none of which can be recreated after the area is bisected by roads.