North Revilla

North Revilla encompasses 215,430 acres of mountainous terrain on Revillagigedo Island within the Tongass National Forest. The landscape rises from tidewater to alpine elevations, with Mount Reid reaching 4,592 feet and Thornton Mountain at 2,431 feet. The area drains through multiple watersheds: Traitors Creek originates in the high country and flows to the Naha River system, while Margaret Creek, Orchard Creek, and Licking Creek carve their own courses through the island's interior. These waterways originate in alpine basins and descend through forested valleys, their cold flows supporting distinct aquatic communities as they approach the Alexander Archipelago's coastal waters.

The forest composition shifts with elevation and moisture availability. At lower elevations, Western hemlock-blueberry and Sitka spruce-blueberry communities dominate, with dense understories of Alaska blueberry and salmonberry beneath the canopy. Western redcedar-Western hemlock forests occupy wetter sites, their floors thick with devil's club and deer fern. As elevation increases, mountain hemlock-blueberry communities replace the lower-elevation types, with shorter, more open canopies. The highest terrain transitions to Alpine Tundra above treeline. In poorly drained lowlands, Forested Muskeg communities develop, where Alaska yellow-cedar and shore pine grow among sphagnum moss. Throughout these communities, Pacific yew and white bog orchid, vulnerable (IUCN), occupy specific niches in the understory and forest floor.

The terrestrial fauna reflects this vertical zonation. American black bears forage across multiple elevations, from coastal margins to alpine meadows. Sitka black-tailed deer concentrate in the lower forest communities where browse is abundant, while mountain goats occupy the alpine and subalpine terrain on steep slopes. The Alexander Archipelago wolf hunts throughout the forested valleys, preying on deer populations. American marten inhabit the dense conifer forests, moving through the canopy and understory in search of small mammals and berries. The marbled murrelet, endangered (IUCN), nests in old-growth forest stands and commutes to nearshore waters to feed. Bald eagles hunt salmon in the creek systems and prey on waterfowl and seabirds. The federally endangered short-tailed albatross appears in offshore waters around the archipelago, while humpback whales migrate through the deeper channels between islands.

A visitor ascending from tidewater experiences the landscape as a series of ecological transitions. Following Traitors Creek inland, the sound of water intensifies as the stream gradient steepens, and the forest canopy closes overhead—western hemlock and Sitka spruce filtering the light into a dim green twilight. The understory becomes a tangle of devil's club and salmonberry, with deer fern carpeting the ground. As elevation increases and the creek narrows, mountain hemlock replaces the lower-elevation species, and the forest opens slightly. The air cools noticeably. Continuing upslope, the forest thins further, and the understory transitions to low-growing alpine vegetation. Breaking treeline at higher elevations reveals Mount Reid's rocky slopes and expansive views across the archipelago. The shift from the dark, moisture-laden cove forests to windswept alpine tundra occurs over a few thousand vertical feet—a compressed journey through distinct plant and animal communities shaped by the island's steep terrain and maritime climate.

Historically and currently, this land is the ancestral home of the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian peoples. The Tlingit, in particular, established two distinct groups—the Taantʼá Ḵwáan (Tongass People) and the Saanya Ḵwáan (Cape Fox People)—who used these forests and watersheds for subsistence harvesting since time immemorial. The region contains ancient village sites, fish traps, weirs, and burial grounds. Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian peoples harvested salmon, halibut, and eulachon from the island's watersheds and coastal waters, tracked Sitka black-tailed deer, black bears, and mountain goats, and gathered berries, seaweed, and traditional medicinal plants. Old-growth red and yellow cedar provided material for totem poles, canoes, and clan houses, while spruce roots and cedar bark were harvested for traditional weaving. The Organized Village of Saxman and the Ketchikan Indian Community represent the primary modern tribal entities of the area's descendants.

The Alexander Archipelago Forest Reserve was established by President Theodore Roosevelt on August 20, 1902, under authority of the Creative Act of 1891. The Tongass National Forest was formally created by presidential proclamation on September 10, 1907, and on July 1, 1908, the Alexander Archipelago Forest Reserve and the Tongass National Forest were consolidated into a single entity encompassing most of Southeast Alaska. Formal legislation confirming the national forest was signed into law in 1909. In the landmark case Tlingit and Haida Indians of Alaska v. United States, a federal court ruled that the creation of the Tongass National Forest constituted a taking of land from the Tlingit and Haida peoples, who held aboriginal title through time-immemorial occupancy.

For nearly fifty years beginning in the 1950s, industrial clearcut logging dominated the broader Revillagigedo Island region. While the North Revilla area itself remained largely unroaded, surrounding landscapes were heavily impacted by large-scale timber operations supporting regional pulp mills, including the Ketchikan Pulp Company mill, now closed. The area contains significant stands of old-growth spruce and cedar, some over 800 years old, which became the primary target for industrial logging interests seeking to expand beyond already-harvested lands. In 1990, Congress passed the Tongass Timber Reform Act to protect specific areas from logging, particularly near salmon-spawning streams, and to cap timber harvests.

In 2001, the Clinton administration established the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, protecting approximately 9.3 million acres of the Tongass National Forest from new road construction and logging. From 2003 to 2011, the Bush administration exempted the Tongass from the rule; this exemption was later vacated by a federal court in 2011. The Trump administration again exempted the Tongass in 2020 to allow for industrial logging. The Biden administration repealed this 2020 exemption in 2023, reinstating protections for North Revilla. Recent executive orders, such as "Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential" issued in 2025, have sought to rescind these protections once more. The Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE) processes in the 1970s identified this area as key to potential Wilderness designation under the Wilderness Act of 1964. Tribal nations, including the Ketchikan Indian Community, have been central to legal efforts to protect these roadless areas from industrial logging, asserting that road construction threatens the integrity of the cultural landscape and food security.

Vital Resources Protected

Salmon Spawning and Rearing Habitat in Priority Watersheds

The North Revilla area contains headwaters of the Naha River, Margaret Creek, Traitors Creek, and other systems identified in the Tongass 77 priority watershed initiative for their intact aquatic ecosystems and high carbon storage. These cold-water streams support all five species of Pacific salmon, which depend on stable stream temperatures, intact riparian vegetation, and spawning substrate free of fine sediment. The roadless condition preserves the forest canopy that regulates water temperature and the riparian buffer that supplies large wood—critical structural components currently depleted in many Tongass watersheds due to historical timber harvest. Loss of this roadless protection would expose these spawning grounds to the sedimentation and thermal stress that road construction and canopy removal create.

Old-Growth Forest Structure for Endemic and Climate-Sensitive Species

The North Revilla area supports Western hemlock, Sitka spruce, and Western redcedar old-growth forest, along with alpine tundra and forested muskeg ecosystems that provide habitat for species found nowhere else in the region. The marbled murrelet (endangered, IUCN) nests in the structural complexity of old-growth hemlock and spruce—cavities, large branches, and dense canopy that take centuries to develop. The little brown bat (endangered, IUCN) roosts in old-growth crevices and hunts over intact forest. The Sitka alder/salmonberry ecosystem and alpine tundra support the yellow-billed loon (near threatened, IUCN) and greater yellowlegs (near threatened, IUCN), species sensitive to habitat fragmentation. The roadless condition maintains the contiguous forest block that prevents the isolation of these populations in a naturally fragmented island archipelago.

Alpine and Subalpine Connectivity for Climate Refuge Function

Mount Reid (4,592 ft) and Thornton Mountain (2,431 ft) create an elevational gradient from sea-level rainforest to alpine tundra within a single roadless block. This vertical connectivity allows species to shift upslope as climate warms—a critical adaptation pathway for species like the white bog orchid (vulnerable, IUCN) and Pacific yew (near threatened, IUCN) that depend on cool, moist microclimates. The forested muskeg ecosystem, dominated by Alaska yellow-cedar, is already experiencing decline from reduced snowpack and root-freezing injury linked to climate change; the roadless condition preserves the intact hydrology and shade that these sensitive systems require. Road construction would fragment this elevational corridor, trapping populations at lower elevations as conditions warm.

Coastal Marine Connectivity for Seabirds and Marine Mammals

The North Revilla area's coastline—including Dogfish Island, Curlew Point, Donnelly Point, and Nigelius Point—provides nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for the short-tailed albatross (federally endangered), Steller sea lion (vulnerable, IUCN), and pinto abalone (endangered, IUCN). The roadless condition protects the undisturbed nearshore waters and coastal forest that these species depend on. Road construction in coastal areas increases human access, noise, and disturbance during critical breeding and feeding periods, and can degrade the water quality that supports the kelp forests and benthic communities that marine species feed on.

Threats from Road Construction

Stream Sedimentation and Loss of Spawning Substrate

Road construction on steep mountainous terrain generates sediment from cut slopes, fill failures, and chronic erosion that enters the drainage network through surface runoff and culvert discharge. Fine sediment smothers salmon spawning gravel, reducing egg survival and preventing alevin (newly hatched salmon) from emerging. The Tongass Watershed Condition Framework has already documented a lack of large wood components in priority salmon watersheds; road-generated sedimentation compounds this deficit by filling pools and burying the remaining wood that salmon depend on for shelter and spawning habitat. In the North Revilla area's steep terrain, where headwater streams are narrow and sensitive to sediment inputs, road construction would degrade the very spawning habitat that makes these priority watersheds ecologically significant.

Canopy Removal and Stream Temperature Increase

Road construction requires removal of riparian forest along stream crossings and adjacent slopes to create sight lines, drainage, and fill material. Loss of this canopy increases solar radiation reaching the water surface, raising stream temperature. Salmon species—particularly cold-water specialists like marbled murrelets that forage in cool streams—are sensitive to even small temperature increases; warmer water also reduces dissolved oxygen and favors invasive species over native salmon. In the North Revilla area, where headwater streams originate in alpine and subalpine zones and depend on shade to maintain cold-water conditions, canopy removal would push water temperatures beyond the thermal tolerance of spawning and rearing salmon, particularly during the warmer months when climate change is already shifting snowmelt timing earlier.

Habitat Fragmentation and Isolation of Old-Growth-Dependent Species

Road construction fragments the contiguous forest block into smaller patches separated by cleared corridors. The marbled murrelet (endangered, IUCN) requires large, unfragmented tracts of old-growth forest to maintain viable populations; roads create edge effects—increased predation, parasitism, and wind damage—that reduce nesting success in remaining patches. The little brown bat (endangered, IUCN) depends on connected forest corridors for movement between roosts and foraging areas; roads and their associated clearing disrupt these corridors. In the North Revilla area's naturally fragmented island setting, where populations are already isolated by water, road-induced fragmentation of the largest remaining old-growth block would eliminate the refugium that allows these species to persist in the Alexander Archipelago.

Culvert Barriers and Loss of Aquatic Connectivity

Road crossings of streams require culverts that, if improperly sized or installed, create barriers to fish passage. Salmon and other aquatic species cannot move upstream past these barriers to access spawning habitat, rearing areas, and refuge during high flows. The Tongass Watershed Condition Framework has documented that road/culvert conditions are a specific stressor in priority watersheds. In the North Revilla area, where the Naha River, Margaret Creek, and Traitors Creek support all five Pacific salmon species, road construction would introduce culvert barriers that fragment these populations, reducing genetic diversity and increasing vulnerability to local extinction. Once installed, culverts persist as barriers for decades, making this a long-term constraint on salmon recovery even if roads are eventually decommissioned.

North Revilla encompasses 215,430 acres of mountainous terrain on Revillagigedo Island and surrounding waters in the Tongass National Forest. The area's roadless condition supports a range of backcountry recreation opportunities accessed primarily by boat and floatplane from Ketchikan.

Hiking

The area offers maintained trails ranging from easy to difficult. The Naha River National Recreation Trail (5.3 miles one way) is the primary hiking route, featuring a nearly flat boardwalk for the first 2.5 miles, then moderating to Heckman Lake Cabin with less than 500 feet of elevation gain. The Lunch Creek Trail (3.8 miles one way) follows native material and boardwalk to Lake Emery Tobin, passing Lunch Falls. The Pipeline Trail (1.3 miles) is an easy singletrack near Ward Creek trailhead with 98 feet of elevation gain, following a historic wooden pipeline through dense salmonberry and huckleberry. Shorter options include the Orchard Lake Trail (0.7 miles), Long Lake Trail (0.9 miles), and Naha Tram Loop (0.4 miles). Hikers can access these trails from Settlers Cove State Park at Mile 18 of the North Tongass Highway, or by boat to Naha Bay. Upper elevations remain snow-covered until mid-June. Trails through muskeg areas use raised boardwalks to protect fragile ecosystems. The roadless condition preserves the quiet, undisturbed character of these trails—the absence of roads keeps them free from motorized use and maintains the integrity of the old-growth forest and watershed they traverse.

Fishing

The Naha River drainage supports steelhead, cutthroat trout, rainbow trout, and salmon species (coho, chum, pink, sockeye). Heckman Lake, Jordan Lake, and Patching Lake are accessible via the Naha River trail. Regulations require artificial lures or flies only; steelhead must be released immediately. Cutthroat and rainbow trout in Heckman and Jordan Lakes have a combined limit of 2 per day (14–22 inches). Patching Lake cutthroat are limited to 1 per day with a 25-inch minimum. Orchard Creek and Lake support cutthroat trout under the same fly-and-lure-only rule, with a 1 per day limit and 25-inch minimum at Orchard Lake. Margaret Creek and Traitors Creek are also documented fishable waters. These are wild, native populations with no hatchery stocking. Access is by foot via the Naha River trail or by boat to remote creeks. The roadless status maintains cold, undisturbed headwater streams essential to steelhead and trout survival, and protects the riparian corridors these fish depend on.

Hunting

North Revilla lies within Alaska Game Management Unit 1A. Sitka black-tailed deer, American black bear, and mountain goat are documented game species; grouse inhabit forest and forest-edge habitats. Mountain goat hunting (Permits DG005 and DG006) runs August 15 to December 31 on Revillagigedo Island. Deer hunting includes a late-season rut hunt in November. Black bear hunting is permitted except in Margaret Creek drainage (within 1/4 mile downstream from Margaret Lake). The Ketchikan Road System Closed Area prohibits big game harvest within 1/4 mile of the Tongass Highway and Harriet Hunt Lake Road. Access is by boat or floatplane to remote shorelines and alpine areas. The roadless condition maintains intact old-growth habitat and unfragmented terrain critical to fair-chase hunting and the survival of mountain goat and deer populations that depend on undisturbed alpine and forest habitat.

Paddling

The Naha River system offers a documented 30-mile canoe route through Jordan Lake and Heckman Lake, with a 100-foot portage around a saltwater tidal rapid to Roosevelt Lagoon. Forest Service cabins at Jordan Lake and Heckman Lake provide overnight access; the Jordan Lake cabin includes a rowboat. The Naha River is classified as 17 miles of wild river and 2 miles of scenic river. Orchard Creek and Lake feature a double waterfall at the saltwater interface and are classified as 10 miles of wild river and 16 miles of recreational river. Saltwater paddlers launch from Settlers Cove State Campground (Mile 18 of the North Tongass Highway) for coastal routes to Loring (10 miles) and into the Naha area. Revillagigedo Island supports a 120-mile circumnavigation route. Commercial sea kayaking tours operate in adjacent fjords and coastal waters. The roadless condition preserves the quiet, undisturbed character of these paddling routes and protects the watersheds and coastal ecosystems that make them accessible and ecologically intact.