The National Forests of California Miscellaneous Circular No. 94

NATIONAL FOREST RESOURCES

TIMBER

During the Spanish-Mexican days Californians builded almost entirely of adobe. Sutter's sawmill in Eldorado County, where Marshall discovered gold, was probably the first lumber operation in the State. Placer mining called for timber for flumes and dams for storage water to operate the monitors and sluice boxes; quartz min ng required timber to line the shafts and tunnels. So lumbering and the development of mines, reservoirs, and ditches began simultaneously.

Lumbering first started in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada and spread along the lower slopes as the mines extended and as the towns and cities grew in the valleys. It has been steadily working higher up the slopes of the mountains as the lower and more accessible timber has been cut. The Santa Cruz redwood region was logged as the cities along the coast grew, and later the industry spread to the region bordering the Pacific to the north of San Francisco. Southern California first drew on the scattering pine forests of the San Bernadino mountains.

A FOREST SERVICE TIMBER SALE AREA Under scientific forest management the national forests of California supply 300,000,000 feet of timber annually. Thrifty seed trees are left to insure a future timber crop, and all brush and debris is piled and burned in the winter to reduce the fire hazard (F—200505)

California now cuts from her forests, which contain one-fourth of the timber on the Pacific coast, about 2 billion feet of lumber per year. Lumbering ranks fourth among the industries of the State, and the annual value of lumber products amounts to $62,000,000, of which $9,700,000 comes from the national forests. One of the most remarkable features of the situation, however, is the extraordinary consumption of lumber, which reaches approximately 3-1/2 billion feet per year. This is the largest amount consumed by any State in the Union. California, with 4,000,000 people, uses more lumber than New York State, with its population of 11,000,000 people, and three times as much per capita as the average for the entire country. California's lumber consumption is roughly twice its production. But inasmuch as about one-half of what is produced is shipped out of the State, California has to bring in, chiefly from the Pacific Northwest, some 3 billion feet annually to meet her needs for industry and development.

A large part of California's forests are located in the mountains. Some of these forests will never be cut over because of their value for watershed protection, while others will be too difficult to get at or too expensive to log. The remainder of the forest area, including the best stands of lowland timber, is being rapidly cut over to supply State consumption and an increasing export demand, so that unless vigorous steps are taken to insure more adequate forest protection, and reforestation on lands in private ownership, such as the recently begun planting in the redwood region, there will come a time when a timber shortage will be a reality.

As the private forest holdings are depleted the timberlands of the Government will become of increasing importance, and from these lands will come a large part of the domestic lumber and other woods products that are required for the development and prosperity of the State. Approximately 60 per cent of the forest area of California, which covers nearly a fifth of the State, is under Federal control. The present stand of timber in the national forests, exclusive of cordwood, is about 100 billion feet, valued at nearly $200,000,000 on the stump. The annual cut is approximately 300,000,000 feet, and the receipts from the sale of timber on the stump amount to $900,000. This cut, under scientific forest management, can in the future be doubled or even trebled, and continued for all time without reducing the forest capital.

The timber crop of the national forests is not harvested by the Government but by the lumbermen who buy "stumpage" under competitive bids. Cutting is done in accordance with the terms of carefully prepared contracts, and all trees to be cut are marked or designated by qualified forest officers. Thrifty trees and reproduction are left to furnish seed and form the basis of a future crop. This represents from 15 to 20 per cent of the original stand and will furnish a second timber crop in from 50 to 75 years.

Lumbermen who cut national forest timber are required to equip each donkey engine with an approved type of spark arrester to prevent sparks from setting fire to the woods, and to have on hand an adequate supply of shovels, axes, pails, etc., for fighting fires that may start. A force pump and 200 feet of hose must be carried on each donkey and the ground around the machine cleared of all inflammable material for a radius of 100 feet.

High-speed donkey logging with "high leads" is very destructive to the forest. Young trees often have their limbs or bark knocked off or are uprooted by the incoming logs, and very often all young tree growth is destroyed for a distance of 600 to 700 feet around the spar tree. Therefore, on national forest timber sales the use of "high leads" over 35 feet from the ground and line speeds of over 500 feet per minute are prohibited.

Experiments conducted by the Forest Service have proved that from the standpoint of cost and the future growth of the forest the best method of logging is that in which horses, tractors, and big wheels are employed, because these cause a minimum of damage to young growth and do not bring fire into the woods.

The harvesting of a timber crop results in the leaving of a large amount of brush and debris on the ground, which, if not properly disposed of, constitutes a serious fire menace to the remaining forest. Because of this fact, the Forest Service requires that, all brush resulting from cutting on timber sale areas shall be piled in compact piles for burning during the rainy season or winter months. These piles are placed as far as possible from live trees and are carefully burned under the supervision of a forest officer.

All these measures have for their object the maximum production of wood from the national forests and the safeguarding of the valuable timber and other natural resources which are the property of the Nation.

A MODERN SAWMILL PLANT Lumbering ranks fourth among the industries of California in value of the products which enter into manufacturing. Great mills, such as this, help to utilize the timber crop of the national forests (F—200519)

WATER

In California, where water is the "white coal" of industry and the "gold" of agricultural prosperity, the vital importance of preserving the forest cover is apparent. Mistreat the forests or, allow them to be damaged or destroyed by fire and the results are often floods, erosion, and destruction. Protect them from fire and cut them in a rational, conservative manner, with an eye to future forest production, and they will repay the effort a thousandfold as protectors of valuable watersheds. Without forests or forest cover there can be no well-regulated supply of water for hydroelectric development, for irrigation, or even for municipal and domestic use.

Power for transportation, industry, and the home is a prime necessity of our civilization. Hydroelectric power, however, is a development of the present century. The Forty-niners, with inexhaustible energy, laid the foundation of many of the present power and irrigation systems. They knew no obstacle when it came to building reservoirs for storing water and ditches to lead it to their placer diggings. The foothills from Plumas to Mariposa Counties are scarred with their old works, some of them still in use to-day. Many of these projects are of such magnitude, like the canals now used by the Electra power plant, that one wonders how the miners could accomplish such feats in those pioneer days of the pick and shovel and black powder.

EAGLE CREEK FALLS, ELDORADO NATIONAL FOREST Water, in California, is the "white coal" of industry and the "gold" of agricultural prosperity. Without forests or forest cover there can be no well-related supply of water

California stood first among all States in hydroelectric development and second in potential power resources in 1926. The total hydroelectric installation in the State in that year was 1,800,000 horsepower, and the potential development has been estimated at between five and six million horsepower. Like the lumber industry, the power companies are pushing farther and farther back into the mountains, harnessing the higher sources of water and developing great chains of power houses from which the electric energy is carried hundreds of miles by high-power transmission lines to cities, towns, and farms throughout the State. To-day most of the water power in the State available for hydroelectric development is found within the national forests, which under Forest Service management and protection, barring unusual drought, assure an unfailing supply of water for power purposes. In the future there is a possibility that the development of the Colorado River, the headwaters of which are located in national forests of other States, will furnish a large percentage of the hydroelectric power used in California.

HYDROELECTRIC POWER HOUSE California stands first among all States in hydroelectric development and second in potential power resources. National forests, managed and protected by the Government, assure an unfailing supply of water for power purposes

After hydraulic mining in California was curbed because of the silting of rivers and harbors, some of the old ditch and reservoir systems were gradually turned to use for local irrigation works or water-supply projects for growing towns and irrigation districts. In 1848 there was no irrigated land in the State. Agriculture succeeded grazing on the most valuable lands, and vast areas were used for wheat and grain raising without irrigation in the eighties and nineties. In time the orange groves of the mission padres were extended by irrigation and other fruits were introduced, until to-day the value of the fruit crop is over $200,000,000, or an amount nearly equal to the combined value of the hay, grain, and vegetables produced in the State. California stands first among States in amount of irrigated and irrigable areas, and of the total acreage under irrigation at the present time it is estimated that more than one-half is watered by gravity from streams and lakes in the national forests.

Of equal importance with power development and irrigation is the use of the waters from the national forests for domestic and municipal water supply. Many of the cities, towns, settlements, and farms of California are more or less dependent upon these forests for their water. Outstanding examples are Los Angeles, San Diego, Pasadena, Santa Barbara, and Sacramento. San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, and other east bay cities are also planning extensive development of national forest water resources for their domestic and municipal supply.

Considering all these important uses of water, it would be difficult to say what is the total value of the national forests of the State in terms of good health and prosperity.

IRRIGATED FARMS AND ORCHARDS Of the 4,700,000 acres of agricultural land under irrigation in California more than one-half is watered from streams and lakes in the national forests

FORAGE

Stock raising is the oldest industry in the State. The Spaniards brought cattle to Mexico from the West Indies in 1525 and took them into California as early as 1800 when they settled on the old land grants. In 1850 California ranked high in the numbers of cattle in the State, which were raised at that time principally for their hides. The mission padres brought sheep in 1773, and the horses which De Soto brought to Mexico in 1538, and abandoned, multiplied and spread over the western plains.

The herds and flocks belonging to the old Spanish aristocracy slowly passed, together with their land grants into the hands of the Americans. The Americans herded their stock into the great interior valleys, hitherto grazed only by deer and antelope, and pushed high up into the timber and beyond to the mountain meadows of the Sierra Nevada. The pioneer stockmen had absorbed the spirit of their predecessors and dwelt in peace and with friendly understanding of each other's rights. Then came, in time, the foreign sheepmen, Basques, who knew or recognized no prior rights or range boundaries. There followed trouble and violence, range wars, and disregard of each other's welfare as still more stock of new settlers was crowded into the mountains. Forest fires burned uncontrolled over the summer ranges, pastures were trampled to dust and hillsides eroded, and the young timber was destroyed or eaten by the hungry sheep. Then came the inclusion of the mountain ranges in the national forests, with allotments to provide for all who should have a share in the range, both the settler with his few head and the owner who made his living by running a large number of stock.

CATTLE GRAZING IN THE NATIONAL FORESTS Stock raising is the oldest industry in the State, and in early days was attended by violence and range wars. To-day the Forest Service effectively regulates the grazing on 24,000,000 acres of Government and private land within the national forests (F—19819-A)

SHEEP IN A HIGH SIERRA MEADOW The mission padres brought sheep to California in 1773. Since that time the industry has grown and spread until to-day more than half a million sheep and goats are grazed on Government land under permit (F—33343-A)

Since that time there has been a marked improvement in the condition of the livestock industry in the national forests. Regulated grazing has gradually revived the worn-out and depleted ranges; new pasturage has been opened in arid localities by the development of water. In certain regions plants which are poisonous to stock have been eradicated, and gradually the number of both cattle and sheep that graze on the mountain ranges has increased. Of the 19,000,000 acres of Government forests in the California district, 11,000,000 acres support forage and are grazed each year by 200,000 cattle and horses and 500,000 sheep and goats, returning a revenue in grazing fees to the United States Treasury of about $185,000 annually.

Including the patented land within national forests, there are now approximately 24,000,000 acres of grazing land under Forest Service regulation. There are 18,000,000 acres of public domain outside the national forests without any form of grazing regulation. Of the 27,500,000 acres of land in farms in the State, only 11,878,000 is improved, the remainder being used largely for grazing.

NATIONAL FORESTS OF CALIFORNIA (click on image for a PDF version)

RECREATION

Although national forests are created primarily to maintain in a permanently productive and useful condition lands unsuited to agriculture but capable of yielding timber, water, and forage, there is another resource which is always present—recreation. Where there are areas of special "wilderness" or scenic value the policy of the Forest Service is to allow the proper and orderly utilization of economic resources but not to permit the attractiveness or value of the areas for recreation to be impaired.

Until the present century it was the yearly practice of the valley settlers to load their families, cooking utensils, and bedding into the old farm wagons and camp for the summer in the mountains. Sportsmen made long and laborious trips with pack animals to favorite fishing or hunting grounds. The population of the entire State was then a little over a million, and travelers from the outside, if they went into the mountains at all, visited only a few of the well-known and easily accessible places of interest. But the automobile made as sudden and great a difference in the recreational uses of national forests as it has in the economic and social life of the Nation. In the last 10 years national forest travel in California has increased over 800 per cent, and many of the visitors are from other States and from foreign countries. Over 90 per cent of all the travel into the national forests is by automobile. To provide for the comfort and convenience of these visitors and to reduce the man-caused fire hazard, the Forest Service has established in these national forests over 400 public camp grounds, many of which have simple camping and sanitary facilities. Free use of these forest camps is invited.

A FOREST CAMP GROUND Motorists, campers, sportsmen, and vacationists use the national forests of California as summer playgrounds

Many of those who come to the forests return annually to some permanent camp or summer home built on land leased from the Forest Service. There are now in effect in the national forests 5,000 permits for summer cabins, each occupying about a quarter-acre of land. The two favorite summer-home regions are in southern California and along the main roads across the Sierra Nevada. Municipalities of the State have also established in the national forests mountain recreation camps for their citizens. To-day Los Angeles maintains four such municipal camps; Oakland and Berkley two each; and San Bernardino, Stockton, Sacramento, and Riverside one each. In these municipal camps thousands obtain a summer vacation at small cost. Many camps have also been established by clubs, organizations, and public service companies.

Included within the boundaries of California's national forests are many noted and nationally known scenic attractions, of which the most important are:

CAMP SEELEY, SAN BERNARDINO NATIONAL FOREST Municipalities of California have established mountain recreation camps in the national forests where thousands of citizens obtain in summer vacation at small cost (F—200592)

THE EVENING CAMP FIRE There is something about the snap of blazing pine logs and the tang of fir smoke that seems to fascinate the summer vacationist (F—200700)

WILD LIFE

A national forest resource which never fails to attract and interest visitors is the wild life of the mountain regions. Game animals, game birds, and fish here find their natural home and offer many and varied subjects of sport and study for the hunter, fisherman, and photographer.

All the species of large game found in California have at least a part of their habitat in the national forests. A recent census by Forest Service officers shows that in these forests there are more than 225,000 deer, 10,000 bear, 1,000 mountain sheep, 400 antelope, and 150 elk. The number of predatory animals is estimated to be: Coyote, 50,000; lynx and wildcat, 22,000; mountain lion, 2,000.

Throughout the national forests are areas of varying size which are the feeding and breeding grounds of game animals and birds. In these regions one Federal and 31 State game refuges have been established in which no hunting is permitted and where game can, unmolested, multiply and with the overflow stock the surrounding country.

The more important species of fur-bearing animals in the forest are fox, marten, mink, skunk, and badger; other species are ermine, fisher, raccoon, and otter.

In the thousands of streams and lakes of the Sierra Nevada, Coast Range, and mountains of southern California are trout and other species of game fish. These waters are kept well stocked by the State in cooperation with Federal authorities and with associations and private individuals, and offer keen sport to the angler.

Fishing and hunting are permitted in the national forests, subject to the provisions of the State fish and game laws.

The mountains are the natural home of wild life, and in the forest and the open glades and brush fields game animals and birds feed and have their home. The melting snow and rain seep through the forest floor and provide an unfailing supply of water for streams and lakes—the home of game fish. When fire sweeps through the forest and the trees and brush cover are destroyed, game animals are either driven out or killed, the streams dry up, the fish disappear, and the beauty spots of nature are turned into desolate wastes.

FLASHLIGHT OF A DEER There are more than 225,000 deer in the national forests of California (F—172740)

FISHERMAN'S LUCK The thousands of streams and lakes of the national forests in California offer keen sport to the angler (F—206333)