Wild & Scenic Rogue River

50 Years of a Wild & Scenic Rogue

The lower Wild & Scenic Rogue River is one of the most stunning watersheds in the United States. The Wild Rogue provides freshwater habitat to massive ocean-going salmon and steelhead runs and hosts a diversity of flora and fauna unmatched nearly anywhere in the Pacific Northwest. It is one of the premier multi-day whitewater rafting trips in the country and draws thousands of visitors every year to fish, raft, hike, and explore its remote river canyon. 

Designated "Wild & Scenic" in 1968 under the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act, 84 miles of the Rogue from the mouth of the Applegate River to Lobster Creek are protected under this milestone act. In 1978, 58,000 acres of forested wildlands received protections under the Wild Rogue Wilderness Area designation. While both of these protections are crucial in safeguarding clean water, healthy forests, and abundant wildlife, much of the Wild Rogue canyon is still vulnerable to old growth logging, mining, development and other impacts. 

Efforts have been in place for over a decade to increase protections for this Oregon treasure. The Oregon Wildlands Bill seeks to nearly double the wilderness area, add over 100 miles of Wild & Scenic designations to tributary streams, and include a National Recreation Area designation.  

Now is the time to protect the rest of the Wild Rogue’s roadless lands and free-flowing streams for ours and future generations.