Oak Woodland Corridor at River Ridge

What?
WildPlaces and the private landowners of River Ridge Ranch partnered in 2003/4 to create a habitat and rangeland recovery project that incorporates hands-on restoration, service learning and public education. It is designed to benefit 19 endangered, threatened, at-risk and otherwise classified species existing in the Sierra Nevada foothills providing a safe traveling space for native animals to journey between the river and foothills and to offer a demonstration site where landowners and ranchers from throughout California can learn about sound land management techniques that yield significant economic and environmental benefits.

1. A road that ran along the Tule River bank caused damaging erosion and has been decommissioned. A new road was constructed closer to the foothills. In place of the old road along the river bank, a riparian corridor was planted with several species of native plants with help of students from Granite Hills High School and other volunteers as part of a youth service learning project.
2. Two oak woodland corridors have been made on higher ground which stretch from the foothills to the river and provide a safe traveling space for native animals to journey between the river and foothills. These corridors were planted with oak trees and other native species of shrubs, vines, and perennials and fenced to exclude cattle with the help of students from Granite Hills High School and other volunteers as part of a youth service learning project.
3. WildPlaces offers free one-hour tours of this demonstration site to the public. Tours wind through this active ranch and demonstrate land-use practices that improve productivity while improving the long term health of the land. Contact us to schedule a free tour.

Granite Hills High School students and WP volunteers work at River Ridge

Where?
River Ridge Ranch is a working cattle ranch that offers recreational and educational opportunities to its guests in the oak savannah foothills of the western Sierra Nevada. The environmentally-conscious 722-acre ranch borders the Tule River and the 323,000 acre Giant Sequoia National Monument. Learn more at www.river-ridge.net

For more information on this and other projects, how to schedule a ranch tour, and how to join us as a volunteer and member, please fill out the form below.