Wilderness and Wild River Advocate
Stories of Rivers, Wilderness, and the People Who Called Them Home
As founder of Northwest River Company and CEO of Maravia Corporation, Doug helped shape the modern whitewater rafting industry. But it is his relationship with Campbell’s Ferry — an 85-acre historic homestead deep in the Frank Church–River of No Return Wilderness — that has most defined his life’s work.
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Books by Doug Tims
Selway
The Original Wild & Scenic River
Doug Tims
Ferry Media, Boise, Idaho
ISBN-13: 9780989191029
Formats: Paperback, Kindle, Audible Audiobook
The Selway River holds a singular distinction in American conservation law: it is the only river and watershed in the country to receive founding recognition under both the Wilderness Act of 1964 and the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 — the dual legal protections that forever shielded it from dams, logging, and development.
In Selway, Doug Tims tells the story of how that happened. At the center of the narrative is Oscar “Oz” Hawksley — a zoology professor from a small Missouri college, co-founder of American Whitewater, who, in the summer of 1960 became the first person to float the Selway’s full length, using a 15-foot Grumman canoe and a war surplus raft.
Drawing on twenty-five years of guiding clients down the Selway as a licensed outfitter — and years of subsequent research — Tims weaves together the river’s natural history, conservation politics, pioneer settlement attempts, and his own stories of wilderness adventure.
Key Themes
- The first documented descent of the Selway River and the role of film in conservation advocacy
- The 1960s political movement that created the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and Wilderness Act
- The Selway’s unique dual designation — the only river to receive instant inclusion in both laws that created America’s wild land and wild river protection systems.
- The role of the Selway in the evolution of national wild land fire policy
- Endangered species — including Chinook salmon — that depend on the Selway’s purity
- Pioneer settlement history in the Selway watershed
- Stories from twenty-five years as a licensed Selway River outfitter with 100+ trips on the river
Goodreads: 5.00 out of 5 stars
Merciless Eden
A River of No Return
Doug and Phyllis Tims
Self-published under Ferry Media, Tucson, AZ
ISBN: 978-0-9891910-0-5
Formats: Paperback, Kindle, Audible Audiobook
Deep in the Frank Church–River of No Return Wilderness — the largest forested wilderness in the lower 48 states — sits a place where civilization ends and the wild begins. Campbell’s Ferry Historic Homestead, perched on the banks of Idaho’s Main Salmon River, is accessible only by river float, small aircraft, or a grueling mountain trail.
Merciless Eden is the culmination of seven years of research by Doug and Phyllis Tims, who purchased the 85-acre homestead in 1990 and devoted three decades to its preservation and history. They resurrect the voices of the remarkable people who staked their lives on this remote canyon — including the book’s unforgettable central figure, Frances Zaunmiller Wisner.
Part history, part memoir, part wilderness manifesto, Merciless Eden is a story of beauty, survival, romance, wildfire, government bureaucracy, hidden treasure, and the enduring human longing for a place that is truly wild.
Key Themes
- Pioneer homesteading history from 1897 to the present — gold seekers, outlaws, moonshiners, and settlers
- The life of Frances Zaunmiller Wisner, the most celebrated wilderness woman in Idaho history
- The battle over wilderness designation — protecting the land from roads, mining, timber, and development
- Doug and Phyllis Tims’ 17-year negotiation with the U.S. Forest Service for a revised conservation easement
- Living off the grid — without electricity, phone, or neighbors — 100 miles from the nearest store
- Wildfire, restoration, and the fight to preserve historic structures in a remote wilderness
“Now comes Doug Tims, passionate river-runner and outfitter, and Phyllis Tims, retired fine arts dean and dancer, who have figured out that the best and perhaps only way to preserve Campbell’s Ferry is to reach deep into its past, to study it, learn it and understand it. And oh, what enthralling stories and secrets they uncover along the way.”
— Hank Klibanoff, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Race Beat
“This is a fine book, well researched, well organized, well written. If you enjoy historical works — stories of people making a place for themselves in the wilderness — this is the book for you.”
— Ron Watters, Guide to Outdoor Literature (Best of the Year)
“Doug has done a great job of capturing the people and the place. If you like tales of rivers, wildness and colorful characters, you’ll love this book.”
— NRS (Northwest River Supplies)
Goodreads: 4.10 out of 5 stars (31 ratings) — "Best of the Year" from Guide to Outdoor Literature
History in Motion: Films of the Wild
Films have played a pivotal role in the evolution of our system of protection for America’s wild lands and rivers. The rivers, canyons, and homesteads that inspired Doug Tims’ writing have attracted documentary filmmakers for generations — from the pioneering river explorers of the 1950s and 60s to contemporary conservation storytellers. These films bring the history and landscape to life.
Selway First Descent
Historic 16mm footage shot by Oscar “Oz” Hawksley during his pioneering first descent of Idaho’s Selway River in July 1960 — a trip that proved the river was navigable and helped make the case for its protection. Includes Del Roby’s 1956 film Adventure on the Selway. Hawksley’s advocacy using this footage contributed directly to the Selway’s designation as one of the original eight Wild and Scenic Rivers in 1968. This digital version of Hawksley’s film features Hawksley’s original script narrated by author Doug Tims.
Evolution of Wilderness Fire in the Northern Rockies
A 2021 documentary tracing how U.S. Forest Service wilderness fire policy evolved from suppression to managed fire use, told through landmark fires in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness, Yellowstone, and other Northern Rockies wilderness areas.
Wilderness River Trail
The Sierra Club’s 1954 28-minute 16mm color film produced in support of their effort to stop the Echo Park Dam in Dinosaur National Monument on the Green River. The film and guiding on the Green and Yampa Rivers inspired Oz Hawksley to pursue a similar effort in opposition to the Penny Cliffs dam that would have flooded Idaho’s wild Selway River.
Wild River (1970) — John and Frank Craighead
A National Geographic Special featuring the celebrated twin wildlife biologists John and Frank Craighead exploring Idaho’s Middle Fork and Main Salmon Rivers. The Craighead brothers drafted the original river classification system that became the foundation for the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968.
Campbell’s Ferry Historic Homestead
A 6-minute documentary tracing the history of Campbell’s Ferry Ranch from William Campbell’s 1897 homesteading through successive owners — including Frances Zaunmiller Wisner — to the present-day restoration efforts of Doug and Phyllis Tims.
Winter Wildlife at the Ferry
A beautiful compilation of images from game cameras left at Campbell’s Ferry over the winter of 2018. The short 4-minute film captures the rich wildlife — deer, elk, mountain lion, wolf, birds, and other animals — that gather at Campbell’s Ferry’s ancient orchard and riverside meadows during winter deep in the Frank Church Wilderness.
Frances Zaunmiller Wisner
A 5-minute film from 1979 Coors Western Outdoorsman TV show highlights Frances Zaunmiller Wisner (1913–1986), the most celebrated wilderness woman in Idaho history. Frances lived at Campbell’s Ferry for 46 years and wrote a beloved backcountry column for the Idaho County Free Press.
Wildfire at Campbell’s Ferry
A gripping 19-minute account of the 2007 wildfire threatening the historic structures of Campbell’s Ferry. The film features the heroic efforts of the Black Hills Fire Use Module and Entiat Washington Hot Shots deployed to protect this national historic treasure in a wilderness where conventional firefighting resources do not reach. Filmed by author Doug Tims, the footage was later featured in Idaho Public TV Outdoor Idaho’s program on wildfires.
Idaho State History Museum Presentation
A 7-minute film produced for the Idaho State History Museum showing a trip down the Main Salmon River in an historic wooden scow with a stop at Campbell’s Ferry and interview of authors Doug and Phyllis Tims.
Idaho Heritage Trust — Campbell’s Ferry
A 10-minute film produced by the Idaho Heritage Trust tells the story of Campbell’s Ferry and the people who shaped it, created during the Trust Board’s 2017 visit to the homestead. The Idaho Heritage Trust partnered with the Ferry owners on several restoration projects at the historic homestead.
Resources — Rivers, Wilderness & Conservation
Selway-Bitterroot Frank Church Wilderness Foundation
A nonprofit that partners with the U.S. Forest Service to steward over 3.6 million acres of the Selway-Bitterroot and Frank Church–River of No Return Wilderness areas — the largest intact wilderness complex in the contiguous United States. Through trail maintenance, volunteer stewardship, and youth expeditions, the organization connects communities with the wildlands that inspired Doug Tims’ writing.
American Whitewater
The national nonprofit dedicated to protecting and restoring America’s whitewater rivers. Founded in 1954 and co-founded by Oz Hawksley, whose pioneering first descent of the Selway River in 1960 is the central story of Doug’s book Selway: The Original Wild and Scenic River.
Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness History Project
A digital archive hosted by the University of Idaho Library, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, documenting the human history of the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness through archival documents, historic photographs, oral histories, and maps.
Wilderness Connect
The primary online information hub for the National Wilderness Preservation System — over 111.8 million acres in 806 wilderness areas. Provides maps, regulations, descriptions, and planning resources for every designated wilderness.
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System
The official website of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968. The system now protects over 13,400 miles of more than 228 rivers in 41 states. Idaho’s Selway River was one of the original eight rivers designated in 1968.
Grand Canyon River Guides & Boatman’s Quarterly Review
A nonprofit founded in 1988 to protect the Grand Canyon and set the highest professional standards for river guiding. Its Boatman’s Quarterly Review features in-depth oral histories, conservation updates, and river art.
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