Bridger-Teton National Forest reopens Snake River
by Bridger-Teton National Forest
September 1, 2008
(Jackson) – The Jackson Ranger District of the Bridger-Teton National Forest has reopened the whitewater stretch of the Snake River after a tree fell across the channel, blocking the river to boats. The blockage was approximately 1-mile downstream of the West Table Boat Ramps, located in Lincoln County, Wyoming about 25-miles south of Jackson. A tree had washed into the S-turns on the river and the Forest had to close the stretch due to safety concerns until the tree could be removed. Members of Star Valley Search and Rescue working with their jet boat, along with sawyers from the local Forest Service fire engine crew were able to dislodge the tree, secure it in an eddy below the blockage point, and buck the tree into less than twelve-foot segments that should not be able to hang up elsewhere in the river channel.
"We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding today," said Jackson District Ranger Dale Deiter. "Consider the river reopened," he said.
Boatmen from Mad River also lent their skills, knowledge, and equipment to providing scene safety during the tree removal operation. The dynamics of cutting on heavy wood under extreme tension are very dangerous. Forest Service sawyers spend hundreds of hours in training, and working with huge trees in hazardous conditions. "We are all very pleased that this hazard was removed without any of the specialists or the public being injured," remarked Deiter.
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