This photo was taken by Sam Silverhawk near Antelope lake overlooking Derr Island.
The most prominent feature of Clark Fork, Idaho is the Clark Fork River which feeds Lake Pend Oreille, the largest lake in Idaho. For the history lesson, much of the area was formed by glaciers and cataclysmic floods. Just about where the Cabinet Gorge dam now stands was a mile high ice dam which formed the Great Lake Missoula (which was the size of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario combined!) The ice dam failed repeatedly with each glacial advancement, causing cataclysmic floods that swept through Idaho, Washington and Oregon. These towering walls of water and glacial ice moved at such tremendous speeds that researchers believe the lake may have emptied in as little as 2 to 3 days. Our first inhabitants were the Flathead indians. Meriweather Lewis and William Clark explored the area during the 1806 Lewis and Clark Expedition. In 1864, Northern Pacific Railroad started construction on a railroad line between Lake Superior and Puget Sound. In 1881, construction on the transcontinental line through the Bitterroot and Cabinet Mountains had begun, and with the railroad, the towns of Clark Fork and Hope were formed. In 1916, a bridge was constructed over the Clark Fork River, ridding the area of the need to operate a ferry.
The Cabinet Gorge dam is just upstream and supplies power to the area. Also upstream is the Cabinet Gorge fish hatchery, designed to handle 20 million kokanee salmon annually. Clark Fork offers great fishing, wildlife and bird watching, mountain biking, and miles of National Forest Service trails.
Located at the northeast end of Lake Pend Oreille on the Clark Fork River, this small but active community hosts a full range of outdoor activities, restaurants, and lodging.
Speaking of lodging. The hotel in town is the Merry Weather Inn. If you are looking for a riverside retreat, be sure to visit the Last Resort and Huckleberry Tent and Breakfast
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