The second year of implementation of the Salmon & Packer Creek Aspen Restoration Project will begin late August 2026. Located in Sierra County on Tahoe National Forest lands, this project extends from the junction of Packer Lake Road and Gold Lakes Highway up to Packsaddle Campground. This project will use large machinery and hand crews to selectively thin and remove competing conifers to support healthy aspen regeneration, decrease fuel loading, increase forest resilience, and increase the overall health of the riparian ecosystem in Salmon and Packer Creeks. Last year, 14 acres were treated by thinning and removing conifers. In this second year of implementation, the following actions are planned:  

• Aspen restoration by conifer thinning and removal.  
• General conifer thinning in project for forest health.  
• Fuels management and aspen restoration through preparation of piles for future burning.  
• Increase of meadow edge habitat and improvement of habitat conditions for fringe aspen along Salmon Creek Meadow through select installation of beaver dam analogs (BDAs). 

Aspen on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada depend on disturbance events to stimulate regeneration. As they are a clonal species, regeneration from the root system is the primary method of restoring aspen stands. This can be accomplished by removing conifers to increase soil solar radiation and stimulate the growth of aspen suckers. 

 The following U.S. Forest Service Campgrounds within the project boundary may be impacted by noise and implementation activity: Packsaddle, Berger, Diablo, Salmon Creek.  

After Labor Day, September 7^th, there will be delays and single lane closures on Packer Lake Road to support implementation activities and ingress/egress for construction vehicles. Beaver dam analogs will be installed to increase meadow edge habitat at Salmon Creek Meadow. Work is expected to continue to the end of October and may extend into the fall of 2027 as needed.  

This project is funded by the Wildlife Conservation Board, the U.S. Forest Service, and from the Yuba Aspen and Meadow I Forest Resilience Bond from Blue Forest. This project is part of a larger forest health project known as the North Yuba Landscape Resilience Project, led by the Tahoe National Forest and the North Yuba Forest Partnership.  

Contact: Anne Marie Holt, Aspen Restoration Program Manager 

 annemarie@yubariver.org | (530) 265-5961 x216