Nez Perce National Forest
From the dry, rugged canyons of the Salmon River to the moist cedar forests of the Selway drainage, the Nez Perce National Forest offers something for everyone.
This vast, diverse area is managed to provide a variety of goods and services including breathtaking scenery, wilderness, wildlife, fisheries, timber harvest, livestock grazing, mining, pristine water quality and a wide array of recreation opportunities.
The Forest is best known for its wild character. Nearly half of the Forest is designated wilderness and is part of the Gospel Hump and Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Areas.. It also sports two rivers popular with thrill-seeking floaters—the Selway and the Salmon.
The Nez Perce National Forest (NPNF) was created by Executive Order No. 854 signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. That Order, which became effective July 1, 1908, established the Forest from lands given up by the Bitter Root and Weiser National Forests.
The Forest was the traditional home of the Ni Mii Pu (The People). The Ni Mii Pu were later named the Nez Perce Indians by the Lewis and Clark expeditions.
To learn more about recreational opportunities, take a look at the "Clearwater and Nez Perce Country Travel Planner," which is a guide to recreational opportunities on public lands in the north central Idaho area.
You can view/download the planner in sections or in its entirety.