Jackson F. Kimball State Recreation Site is a state park in southern Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. The park is operated and maintained by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department , officially known as the State Parks and Recreation Department, is the government agency of the U.S. state of Oregon which operates its system of state parks...

, and is located approximately 20 miles (32.2 km) southeast of Crater Lake National Park

Crater Lake National Park

Crater Lake National Park is a United States National Park located in southern Oregon. Established in 1902, Crater Lake National Park is the sixth oldest national park in the United States and the only one in the state of Oregon...

 and 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Fort Klamath. The park was established in 1955, and covers 19 acres (7.7 ha) including the headwaters of the Wood River

Wood River (Oregon)

The Wood River is a short river in the southern region of the U.S. state of Oregon, and part of the Klamath Basin drainage. It flows through the Fremont-Winema National Forests, Bureau of Land Management land, and private property in southern Oregon. Its watershed consists of of conifer forest,...

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Recreation

Visitors to Kimball State Recreation Site can camp or picnic

Picnic

In contemporary usage, a picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a meal is eaten outdoors , ideally taking place in a beautiful landscape such as a park, beside a lake or with an interesting view and possibly at a public event such as before an open air theatre performance,...

 and enjoy water activities like fishing

Fishing

Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....

, canoeing

Canoeing

Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....

, and kayaking

Kayaking

Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving across water. Kayaking and canoeing are also known as paddling. Kayaking is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle...

. A short trail connects the main campground to the Wood River’s headwaters spring site.

The park has ten primitive campsites near the headwaters lagoon. Toilet facilities are primitive and potable water is not available in the park.

There is a popular horse trail that begins at Collier Memorial State Park

Collier Memorial State Park

Collier Memorial State Park is a state park in southern Oregon. The park is operated and maintained by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. It is located on U.S. Highway 97, approximately north of Klamath Falls and south of Bend...

 that leads through the forest to Kimball State Recreation Site. Riders must make a round trip from Collier State Park since there are no horse corrals at Kimball Recreation Site.

Wood River

The headwaters of the Wood River emanate from a spring located in Kimball State Recreation Site. The aquifer

Aquifer

An aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...

 that feeds the spring is believed to originate twenty miles (32 km) northeast of the park on the east side drainage of Crater Lake National Park. Wood River meanders through pine forest and agricultural land for ten miles (16 km) before flowing into Agency Lake. The park itself is forested with ponderosa

Ponderosa Pine

Pinus ponderosa, commonly known as the Ponderosa Pine, Bull Pine, Blackjack Pine, or Western Yellow Pine, is a widespread and variable pine native to western North America. It was first described by David Douglas in 1826, from eastern Washington near present-day Spokane...

 and lodgepole

Lodgepole Pine

Lodgepole Pine, Pinus contorta, also known as Shore Pine, is a common tree in western North America. Like all pines, it is evergreen.-Subspecies:...

 pine with some quaking aspen.

The river offers fine fishing that can be accessed from the shore or by canoe or kayak. Brook

Brook trout

The brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, is a species of fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. In many parts of its range, it is known as the speckled trout or squaretail. A potamodromous population in Lake Superior are known as coaster trout or, simply, as coasters...

, brown

Brown trout

The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....

, and rainbow trout

Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....

 are found in the Wood River and its tributaries. In addition, Bureau of Land Management

Bureau of Land Management

The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...

 biologists have found native redband trout

Redband trout

Redband trout is a fish name that may be a synonym for the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, but is also used more narrowly for inland subspecies with well-defined geographical distributions in the United States...

 in the rver between the Kimball State Recreation Site and the confluence of Annie Creek about a mile downstream from the park.

Access

The area in the Cascade Mountains around the park experiences cold winters with significant snowfall. Summers are generally dry with warm temperatures. The park is at an elevation of 4211 feet (1,283.5 m) and usually opens in mid-April weather permitting. However, in some years deep winter snowfalls can delay the park’s opening until June. The park usually closes in October, after the summer visitor season slacks off.

The Jackson F. Kimball State Recreation Site is located just off of Highway 232, approximately 20 miles (32.2 km) southeast of Crater Lake National Park, 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Fort Klamath, and 40 miles (64.4 km) northwest of Klamath Falls

Klamath Falls, Oregon

Klamath Falls is a city in Klamath County, Oregon, United States. Originally called Linkville when George Nurse founded the town in 1867, after the Link River on whose falls this city sat, although no falls currently exist; the name was changed to Klamath Falls in 1892...

.

History

In 1943, the State of Oregon purchased 14450 acres (58.5 km²) near Sun Mountain to establish Sun Pass State Forest

Sun Pass State Forest

Sun Pass State Forest is one of six state forests managed by the Oregon Department of Forestry. The forest is located north of Klamath Falls, Oregon near the southeastern corner of Crater Lake National Park. It is the largest single block of Oregon state forestry land east of the Cascade Mountains...

. Additional land was added to the forest in 1944, 1947, and 1948. In 1955, the Oregon Board of Forestry

Oregon Board of Forestry

The Oregon Board of Forestry is responsible for forest policy and oversight of forest management practices within the state of Oregon. The board appoints the state forester and oversees the Oregon Department of Forestry...

 deeded 19 acres (7.7 ha) of Sun Pass land to the Oregon State Highway Division to create Jackson F. Kimball State Park. The park was named after Jackson F. Kimball, a district forest warden for the Klamath-Lake Forest Protective Association. The park was officially renamed the Jackson F. Kimball State Recreation Site in 2004.

Jackson Kimball was born in Maine

Maine

Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

 probably in 1874. In 1905 he began working for the Weyerhaeuser Timber Company

Weyerhaeuser

Weyerhaeuser is one of the largest pulp and paper companies in the world. It is the world's largest private sector owner of softwood timberland; and the second largest owner of United States timberland, behind Plum Creek Timber...

. While he worked for Weyerhaeuser, Kimball also acted as agent or broker for the several smaller timber companies, and was a trustee of the American National Bank of Klamath Falls. He spent considerable time in Salem

Salem, Oregon

Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...

 lobbying the Oregon Legislature on behalf of the timber industry. Kimball began his associated with the Klamath-Lake Counties Forest Fire Association, the forerunner of the Klamath Forest Protective Association, in 1908. He remained active in the association until his death in 1944.