Aldos Silver City • Entered by Marcia Stout on July 19, 2022
Riparian – Grazing Monitoring
July 1, 2022 – July 20, 2022
Participants and Hours
| Pre Planning hours | 2 |
| Post Admin hours | 1 |
| Activity Hours | 11.25 |
| Participants | 4 |
| Total Hours | 48 |
Key Issue: Livestock Grazing Management
Activity Type: Stewardship (monitoring, sampling, planting, etc.)
Key Partners: Gila National Forest
Landscape/area: Gila National Forest (2658321 acres)
Measurable Outcomes
Outcome 1: Trail/land monitored (2 surveys)
Outcome 2: Hiked (10 miles)
Short Description of Activity
Aldo’s Broadband Riparian Monitoring Team conducted two field trips in July. Recent rains have raised river levels, and many locations are not accessible at this time. We were able to monitor the San Francisco River downstream from Harve Gulch, for a total of 4.5 miles. We did not find cattle or fresh sign. We did, however, encounter five beautiful coatimundis. On July 18, we monitored Sapillo Creek downstream from the place where it meets Highway 15, for a total of 5.3 miles. Although this creek was not in the lawsuit brought by the SW Center for Biological Diversity, FS personnel encouraged us to check it out. There was old sign, but no cattle or new sign, in this beautiful, pristine area.
Reflection/Evaluation
Cattle may not be as likely to breach riparian exclosures when rains are producing hospitable environments outside of riparian areas. On the other hand, it would be good if we could increase our monitoring during the months of April, May, and June.
Photos/Uploads
Upload 1 |
Upload 2 |
Upload 3 |
Upload 4 |
Photo Captions
1: Taking a break to enjoy the cool stream on a hot day while monitoring Sapillo Creek in Gila Wilderness.
2. Testing the waters while embarking on our monitoring along Sapillo Creek, July 18, 2022
3. On our way down to the San Francisco River via Harve Gulch, July 7, 2022.
4. Discovering the relatively high monsoon river levels while monitoring the San Francisco River downstream from Harve Gulch on July 7, 2022.