Idaho Governor Action May Close Harriman Park

Voted the best trout stream in America by Trout Unlimited in 1999, the Henry’s Fork meanders through the 11,000-acre Harriman State Park, a preserve which– under a new proposal by Idaho governor C.L. “Butch” Otter — could be de-funded and lost to the public. Otter wants to eliminate the eliminate the Department of Parks and Recreation and give control of lands like Harriman to the Department of Lands, which manages state lands to produce revenue.
Governor Otter is no stranger to controversies regarding conservation and wildlife protection: in 2007, he angered environmentalists by supporting public hunts of gray wolves.
“‘The most obvious effect of IDPR being eliminated will be the loss to the people of Idaho of the lands and facilities currently managed by the agency,’ said Steve Trafton, Executive Director of the Henry’s Fork Foundation. ‘At no place will this loss be more obvious than at the park that started the agency: Harriman. This stunning 11,000 acre park with its eight miles of the Henry’s Fork is an international destination, arguably the most famous trout river in the world and one of Idaho’s most recognizable landscapes.'” From Henry’s Fork Country.