Sheep arrive in lower Boise Foothills, but they won’t stay long

Thousands of sheep were dropped off Tuesday in the Hulls Gulch Reserve area of the Boise Foothills. They’ll linger for about 10 days, grazing as far east as Table Rock, before heading higher into the mountains.

“We really want to minimize the conflicts with recreational users,” said Gretchen Hyde, executive director of the Idaho Rangeland Resource Commission. “This is a multiple-use area. The recreationists are here year-round. This is a very short time the sheep are going to be here. It’s kind of a cool opportunity to see the land actually producing.”\

For almost 100 years, sheep have been released to graze in the foothills around Boise. Despite encroaching civilization, the tradition continues - with hundreds of adult sheep and little lambs "Following the Green," eating their way through the high country each spring.

This story was originally published April 13, 2016 at 2:28 AM with the headline "Sheep arrive in lower Boise Foothills, but they won’t stay long."