Silver Creek, Idaho
Encyclopedia
Silver Creek in Southern Idaho
Southern Idaho
Southern Idaho is a generic geographical term roughly analogous with the areas of the U.S. state of Idaho located in the Mountain Time Zone. It particularly refers to the combined areas of the Boise metropolitan area, the Magic Valley and Eastern Idaho....
refers to two different streams. One is a spring-fed tributary of the Little Wood River
Little Wood River
Little Wood River is a river in south-central Idaho in the United States. It is a tributary of the Malad River, which in turn is tributary to the Snake River and Columbia River....
in Blaine County
Blaine County, Idaho
Blaine County is a county located in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2010 Census the county had a population of 21,376. The county seat and largest city is Hailey. The county is home to the Sun Valley ski resort....
, north of Picabo
Picabo, Idaho
Picabo is an unincorporated community in Blaine County, Idaho, United States. Picabo is located along U.S. Highway 20, about west of Carey, southeast of Hailey, and northeast of Shoshone. It has a gas station, country store, post office, and a small airport. The community is surrounded by...
, and the other is a tributary of the Middle Fork of the Payette River
Payette River
The Payette River is an river in southwestern Idaho and is a major tributary of the Snake River.Its headwaters originate in the Sawtooth and Salmon River Mountains at elevations over...
in Boise County
Boise County, Idaho
Boise County is a rural mountain county in the U.S. state of Idaho. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census; it was estimated at 7,571 in 2007...
, near Crouch
Crouch, Idaho
Crouch is a city in Boise County, Idaho, United States. The population was 154 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.The city was founded in 1934, and named for resident William Crouch.-Geography:...
.
The Little Wood River tributary is formed by dozens of springs
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
bubbling up from an 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...
to form a stream. It is an example of a high desert
High desert
High desert refers to the inland and often high elevation deserts of the American West. Examples of high deserts in North America include the Great Basin Desert and the Mojave Desert.High desert can also mean:...
, cold-spring ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
, and attracts a variety of wildlife, including 150 species of birds.
It is a world-renowned fly fishing
Fly fishing
Fly fishing is an angling method in which an artificial 'fly' is used to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. Casting a nearly weightless fly or 'lure' requires casting techniques significantly different from other forms of casting...
preserve.
The Payette River tributary, approximately 100 miles (160 km) northwest, has native brook trout
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...
and is stocked with 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....
.