Garden Creek Restoration Project

Project Description

Garden Creek, located approximately 36 miles east of Idaho Falls, heads in and flows through the Caribou-Targhee National Forest before entering private lands owned by the Conant Valley Ranch.  Historically, once leaving National Forest lands Garden Creek meandered through the lower elevation portion of Conant Valley before emptying into the South Fork of the Snake River.  However, irrigation practices dewatered the creek for much of the last century and disconnected it from the mainstem South Fork.  Further, the diversion structures on private land have trapped downstream migrating adult and juvenile trout adding to fish mortality rates.  Recent National Forest fish distribution surveys in the Garden Creek system upstream of the Conant Valley Ranch documented that Yellowstone cutthroat trout were the only salmonid present, and resident (non-migratory) fish were present throughout the creek.

The Garden Creek Restoration Project is a noteworthy collaborative effort to reconnect Garden Creek to the South Fork of the Snake River, allowing large South Fork Snake River (fluvial) cutthroat to access Garden Creek habitat for spawning and rearing.  The Yellowstone cutthroat trout has been considered as a potential candidate for the Endangered Species Act (ESA) list. The project will preserve traditional ranching operations while at the same time protect and restore native Yellowstone cutthroat trout habitat to help maintain and improve population numbers.

Project Activities

On the Garden Creek Restoration Project, TU:

Conant Valley Ranch: modernized the Conant Valley Ranch irrigation system by installing a center pivot irrigation system so the ranch no longer flood irrigates any land, reducing overall water consumption; removed an irrigation pond and installed three new fish-friendly culverts with bottomless arches over the newly created stream channel for ranch traffic.

Channel Design and Reconstruction: identified and recreated over 5,000 feet of the original stream channel, thereby reconnecting Garden Creek to the main stem South Fork Snake River for the first time in over 50 years in a manner that protects the long-term hydrologic and geomorphic characteristics of a living stream.

Riparian Protection: used volunteers from the local Snake River Cutthroats Chapter of TU to help remove old fencing, and installed a post-and-pole fence upstream and barbed-wire fence downstream of Highway 26 to protect the newly created stream channel from livestock impacts.

Diversion Point:   removed the old water diversion and ditch system and installed a new diversion point with a rotating fish screen and pump system, which eliminated the two fish barrier diversions upstream.  TU worked on behalf of the landowner with the Idaho Department of Water Resources to move the point of diversion and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to establish a right-of-way on federal lands to install the mainline pipe.

Revegetation: replanted appropriate, native vegetation for bank stabilization and riparian protection of the newly created stream channel, again with help from TU chapter volunteers.

Highway Culvert: removed the old, undersized culvert running under Highway 26 and installing 200 linear feet of new fish-friendly culvert with a bottomless arch in partnership with the Idaho Transportation Department.

Kiosk: erected an educational kiosk along Highway 26 describing the necessity and importance of this stream reconnection.  In addition, all project partners are listed showing the collaborative effort it took to complete a restoration project of this magnitude.

Project Partners

This project is truly a large-scale habitat restoration project that would not have been possible without the multiple funding sources and diverse community support.  The following organizations, resource agencies, and individuals have been integral to project success:

• Department of Agriculture – Natural Resource Conservation Service
• Eastside Soil and Water Conservation District
• U.S. Forest Service
• Caribou-Targhee National Forest Resource Advisory Committee
• U.S. Bureau of Land Management
• Idaho Transportation Department
• Idaho Department of Environmental Quality
• Idaho Department of Fish&Game
• Conant Valley Ranch, Inc.
• Mark Rockefeller
• Marine Ventures Foundation
• National Fish&Wildlife Foundation
• Jackson Hole One Fly Foundation
• Idaho Fish&Wildlife Foundation
• Trout & Salmon Foundation
• CHC Foundation
• Snake River Cutthroats Chapter of Trout Unlimited
• Panhandle Chapter of Trout Unlimited
• Ted Trueblood Chapter of Trout Unlimited