Wild & Scenic Rivers South Platte River

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• n • plan for the park, and the boundaries, classification, and development plans for such portions need not be published in the Federal Register. Such revisions to the general man- agement plan for the park shall assure that no develop- ment or use of park lands shall be undertaken that is in- consistent with the designation of such river segments as a wild river. For the purposes of the segments designated by this paragraph, there are authorized to be appropriated $500,000 for development and $2,500,000 for land acquisi- tion.". 4. On page 6, line 5, strike "such sum as may be necessary" and insert in lieu thereof: "up to $150,000 ". 5. On page 6, line 9 delete "States" and insert in lieu thereof: "States: Provided, That in no event shall the contribution of the United States exceed $150,000. ". PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE The purpose of S. 1819 is to designate approximately 75 miles of the Cache la Poudre River in Colorado as a unit of the National Wild and Scenic River System. BACKGROUND AND NEED The Cache la Poudre is one of Colorado's finest rivers —it drains more than two thousand square miles of land east of the Continen- tal Divide, with its lake headwaters in Rocky Mountain National Park. The mainstem flows down from an alpine lake through a long, high mountain valley and then through steep - walled canyons before it opens up to head east onto the plains and through the cities of La Porte, Ft. Collins and Greeley, before joining the South Platte River. The South Fork of the Cache la Poudre starts ,just below Iceland Pass and drops approximately 4 miles through Rocky Mountain National Park and into the Comanche Peak Wilderness area. The South Fork descends through spectacular alpine valleys, notably Pingree Park, and then winds through the Cache la Poudre Wilder- ness area, a wild stretch of river cutting a tight and pristine canyon, to join the mainstem. The history of the river is reflected in its name .given by the early French fur trappers, Cache la Poudre or "hide the powder." Just exactly who hid the powder has never been established with certainty. Several accounts concur that the cache in question was made by trappers caught in a snowstorm just below the mouth of Poudre Canyon. It may have been William Ashley's party making their way up the Platte to the Green River. Whether or not Ash- ley's trappers made the famous cache, his party was almost cer- tainly the first to enter the Poudre's mountain gate. The river and its corridor support a broad range of outdoor recre- ation activities: an excellent cold -water fishery, designated by the State as wild trout water, as well as excellent hiking, picnicking and camping. Besides the fact that the Cache la Poudre is a beauti- ful river corridor and offers easy access to the nearly 2 million people of the Front Range of Colorado, the river has long stretches IL_�.— _ V7- 1