page_title: Idaho
section_title: Lakes/rivers
hierarchical_section_title: Idaho / Geography / Lakes/rivers
caption_attribution_description: English: An astronaut aboard the International Space Station observed this distinctive checkerboard pattern alongside the Priest River in northern Idaho. The photograph was taken just before sunset, so some mountainsides glow while others are covered in long shadows because of the low Sun angle. The quarter-mile (400 m) squares in this landscape checkerboard appear to be the result of forest management. Similar patterns originated in the 1800s, when alternate parcels of land were granted by the U.S. government to railroads such as the Northern Pacific. Many parcels in the Pacific Northwest were later sold off and harvested for timber. The land shown here is now managed for wildlife and for timber harvesting. The white patches reflect areas with younger, smaller trees, where winter snow cover shows up brightly to the astronauts. Dark green-brown squares are parcels of denser, intact forest. The checkerboard is used as a method of maintaining the sustainability of forested tracts while still enabling a harvest of trees. The Priest River, winding through the scene from top to bottom, is bordered on both sides by a forest buffer that can serve as a natural filtration system to protect water quality. For nearly a century, the river was used to transport logs. Its function changed in 1968 when the river’s main stem was added to a list of “wild and scenic rivers” in order to preserve its “outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free-flowing condition for the enjoyment of present and future generations.” Whitetail Butte has historically been used by state and federal land managers as a lookout point for forest fires.
context_page_description: Idaho is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It borders the state of Montana to the east and northeast, Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington and Oregon to the west. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canadian border with the province of British Columbia. With a population of approximately 1.7 million and an area of 83,569 square miles, Idaho is the 14th largest, the 12th least populous and the 7th least densely populated of the 50 U.S. states. The state's capital and largest city is Boise.
  For thousands of years Idaho has been inhabited by Native American peoples. In the early 19th century, Idaho was considered part of the Oregon Country, an area disputed between the United States and the British Empire. It officially became U.S. territory with the signing of the Oregon Treaty of 1846, but a separate Idaho Territory was not organized until 1863, instead being included for periods in Oregon Territory and Washington Territory. Idaho was eventually admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, becoming the 43rd state.
context_section_description: Alturas Lake
  Brush Lake
  Bear River
  Bear Lake (Idaho-Utah)
  Boise River
  Clearwater River
  Dawson Lake
  Dierkes Lake
  Hayden Lake
  Henry's Lake
  Hidden Lake
  Kootenai River
  Lake Cascade
  Lake Cleveland
  Lake Coeur d'Alene
  Lake Lowell
  Lake Walcott
  Pend Oreille
  Little Redfish Lake
  Lucky Peak Lake
  Moyie River
  North Fork Clearwater River
  Pack River
  Payette Lake, (McCall)
  Pettit Lake
  Priest Lake
  Perkins Lake
  Portneuf River
  Redfish Lake
  River of No Return
  Sawtooth Lake
  Smith Lake
  Snake River
  Stanley Lake
  Warm Lake
  Williams Lake (Salmon)
caption: Priest River winding through Whitetail Butte
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