Bear River: Last Chance to Change Course

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments Acknowledging people who have helped a book come together is always a humbling experience because reflecting on these contributions drives home the point that any creation is a collaboration . This book is no different. I am deeply indebted to the people I interviewed who have been woven into the text of this book.Their insights and gracious willingness to share them have enriched this documentary. They’ve contributed immensely to whatever illumination this book provides. There are other people, too, who have helped along the way but aren’t identified in the text. I’d like to thank them here: Zach Frankel, former executive director of the Utah Rivers Council gave me background and source information on problems facing the Bear River. Fred Selman shared his research on the sometimes-murky locations of fords and ferries on the river. Val Grant, former president of Bridgerland Audubon Society and head of BioResources, Inc., offered his insights on the river in Cache County, Utah. Vince Lamarra and Hart Evans of Ecosystems Research Institute documented the water-quality measurements in various reaches of the Bear. Jack Schmidt, professor in the Department of Watershed Sciences at Utah State University, provided an overview of the Bear River Basin. Richard Toth, professor in the Department of Environment and Society at Utah State University, shared his graduate students’ study of the geomorphologic, ecological, and hydrological dimensions of the Bear River. Dottie Kasperson of Preston, Idaho; Kent McMurdie of Deweyville, Utah; and Gordon Zilles of Hyrum, Utah, allowed me access to their land. Blaine Newman, recreation specialist at the Pocatello office of the Bureau of Land Management, provided me with reports on Idaho’s appraisal of possible Wild and Scenic status for the Bear River. Kerry Brinkerhoff of the Friends of the Native Americans of Northern Utah showed me important sites in the history of the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation. Paul Knopf from the Department of Planning and Development in Evanston, Wyoming, responded graciously to my questions regarding the town’s riverreclamation efforts. Dan Miller of the Bear River Watershed Council xiii helped unravel the problems of watershed protection in the Bear River Range. Phil Donegan of PacifiCorp worked through the corporate bureaucracy during a time of heightened security to give me access to the Grace power plant. Monte Garrett of PacifiCorp gave me the record of nongovernmental-organization claims during the Grace relicensing process. And, to the two outside reviewers of the manuscript, your critiques highlighted issues I had missed. Your suggestions have helped create a better book. n Coniferous pines and firs in the subalpine zone of the Bear River headwaters. Acknowledgments xiv A reflective moment at the inlet of Allsop Lake. 1 n Gravity my engine Water my soul. I am the teller of life and deep time. You would measure me, Sever me, Own me, In your name. Let me flow In your imagination That I may speak. Allsop Lake is the source of Left Hand Fork of the Bear River and the most easterly lake in the river’s watershed. ...