Stabler is a small unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Skamania County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Washington.

Also known as "Hemlock", Stabler is a small community in the southernmost region of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest

Gifford Pinchot National Forest

Gifford Pinchot National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in southern Washington, USA. With an area of 1.37 million acres , it extends 116 km along the western slopes of Cascade Range from Mount Rainier National Park to the Columbia River. It includes the 110,000 acre Mount St....

. Stabler is primarily a bedroom community for commuters working in nearby Carson

Carson, Washington

Carson is a small unincorporated town in Skamania County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Washington.Carson is the population base of Skamania County, located just north of the Columbia River near the towns of Stevenson, Bingen and White Salmon in Washington and Cascade Locks and Hood...

, Stevenson

Stevenson, Washington

Stevenson is a town in Skamania County, Washington, United States. The population was 1,465 at the 2010 census, a 22% increase over 2000. It is the county seat of Skamania County and home to the Skamania County Court House and Sheriff's Office...

, and other towns in the Columbia River Gorge

Columbia River Gorge

The Columbia River Gorge is a canyon of the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Up to deep, the canyon stretches for over as the river winds westward through the Cascade Range forming the boundary between the State of Washington to the north and Oregon to the south...

.
Stabler is also home to the Wind River Experimental Forest

Wind River Experimental Forest

The Wind River Experimental Forest is an ecological and silvicultural research in Stabler, Washington, in the United States. Used as a research site by the U.S. Forest Service beginning in 1908, and functioning as an experimental forest since 1932, it is "known as the cradle of forest research in...

, and the Wind River Ranger Station, a base of operations for the USFS

United States Forest Service

The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...

.

History

The 26" Hemlock Lake dam was built in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to provide water for hydroelectric power generation, and was modified in 1958 to provide irrigation water to the Wind River Tree Nursery. The hydropower was terminated in the 1950s, and the diversion that used to supply the nursery is not currently in use. The Wind River Tree Nursery was closed in 1997 and the dam is no longer used to divert water. It was the first in the Columbia basin to incorporate the use of a fish ladder

Fish ladder

A fish ladder, also known as a fishway, fish pass or fish steps, is a structure on or around artificial barriers to facilitate diadromous fishes' natural migration. Most fishways enable fish to pass around the barriers by swimming and leaping up a series of relatively low steps into the waters on...

. The dam was torn out in the summer of 2009 amid much debate with the idea that the removal of Hemlock Dam and restoration of lower Trout Creek would contribute to this whole watershed approach to habitat restoration, and is the culmination of many years of planning.

Recreation

As the “Gateway to Mt. St. Helens”, Stabler is a year round recreation area. Activities include Hunting

Hunting

Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...

, 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....

, Hiking

Hiking

Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...

 with access to the Pacific Crest Trail

Pacific Crest Trail

The Pacific Crest Trail is a long-distance mountain hiking and equestrian trail on the Western Seaboard of the United States. The southern terminus is at the California border with Mexico...

, Camping

Camping

Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...

 and Snowmobiling.
A plethora of forest products can be obtained, with permit, such as edible Mushrooms, Huckleberries and Beargrass.

External links